Owner Wins, Owner Loses

Duty to Correct Unsafe Condition Applied to Commercial Lease

April 25, 2011    

Facts: A tenant that operated a tanning salon in a single, one-story building sent a written complaint about the leaky ceiling to the owner, which didn't fully repair the problem. The tenant's employee was hit by plaster that fell from the ceiling into her eye, causing her to fall...

Notice to Quit Not Required Prior to Eviction Lawsuit

April 25, 2011    

Facts: Under its lease, a tenant was responsible for maintaining the space it rented to operate its restaurant. The tenant was also prohibited from making alterations and improvements without written approval. “Events of default” included nonperformance of these or any lease...

Tenant's Default Not Excused by Owner's Conduct

March 20, 2011    

Facts: A tenant signed a five-year lease to operate its restaurant in a strip mall. After two years, the tenant asked the owner if it could sublet the space to another restaurant tenant, but the owner refused to sign a consent agreement. The tenant went ahead with its plans to sublet its...

Owner's Recovery Limited to Damage It Actually Suffered

March 20, 2011    

Facts: The owner of two vacant warehouses, one of which had some interior office space, leased the buildings to a construction supply company that planned to convert the warehouses into a retail store. After demolishing the office space, the tenant halted renovations for economic reasons...

Owner Must Deliver Termination Notices According to Lease

February 22, 2011    

Facts: A career center tenant signed a lease with the owner of an office building to rent space in four office suites for an initial term of 124 months. The building was sold, and the tenant and new owner extended the lease. The owner later claimed that the tenant had defaulted on its...

Tenant Responsible for Health Code Compliance

February 22, 2011    

Facts: An employee of an office building tenant suffered injuries after she tripped and fell on a raised edge of the metal molding surrounding a trapdoor on the floor of the tenant's pantry room. The purpose of the trapdoor was to access a crawl space approximately three feet high...

Trial Necessary for Dispute Over Holdover Rent

January 25, 2011    

Facts: A tenant leased office space for its law firm. The lease term was four years and provided for two five-year extensions. After the final extension of the lease term expired, the tenant continued to occupy the space on a month-to-month basis, paying rent as specified in the holdover...

Owner Can't Collect Late Fees After Lease Was Terminated

January 25, 2011    

Facts: An owner and a staffing agency tenant signed a three-year lease for office space. Under the lease terms, the owner could charge a $25-per-day late-rent fee. The owner later sued the tenant for breach of the lease, and the tenant abandoned the space before the end of the lease term...

Customer Must Show Denial of Request for Reasonable Accommodations

December 28, 2010    

Facts: While shopping, a wheelchair-bound mall customer encountered architectural barriers that she claimed discriminated against her on the basis of her disability. The customer sued the mall's owner and property manager for alleged violations of Title III of the Americans with...

Notice to Quit Not Properly Delivered Under Lease Terms

December 28, 2010    

Facts: The lease between a shopping center owner and a restaurant tenant provided: “All notices, consents, approvals, or demands required under this Lease shall be in writing, and shall be deemed delivered when either: (1) deposited in the United States mail, certified or registered...

Owner Not Liable for Labor Law Violations

November 24, 2010    

Facts: As part of his duties, a maintenance worker serviced the lights in an office building owned by a real estate company (owner) and managed by an office management corporation (manager). One of the building's tenants contacted the manager and requested that the worker change an...

Did Owner Have Notice of Illegal Loft Conversion?

November 24, 2010    

Facts: A visitor to an art gallery that consisted of the storage mezzanine (loft) and first floor of a seven-story mixed-use building fell from the loft, which had been used as a bedroom by the tenant for 11 years. There was a knee-high wall around the perimeter of the loft, which...