Owner Loses

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Facts: A national department store tenant withheld its rent and engaged in self-help remedies after the owner of the shopping center repeatedly failed to repair problems with the building, including leaking plumbing and a dilapidated appearance both inside and outside the property. The tenant eventually moved out, alleging that the owner’s actions adversely impacted its business to such an extent that it effectively forced it to abandon the proper...

Facts: A luxury retailer (subtenant) subleased space for its flagship store. The sublandlord was an affiliate of the owner of the building. The sublandlord informed the subtenant that the property would be redeveloped in two years, and, in the meantime, the subtenant would have to pay substantially increased rent—one reflecting a higher fair market value revealed by a property appraisal. The subtenant objected. The sublandlord informed it that it ...

Facts: A bank tenant entered into two ground leases for properties on which to build a bank branch and parking lot, respectively. The tenant was responsible for procuring all necessary permits. The ground leases provided a contingency period—the “Approval Period”—of six months during which the tenant was required to seek all necessary government approvals and permits to construct and operate the branch. The leases also gave the t...

Facts: A tenant negotiated two leases for space for two of its upscale restaurants at an Atlantic City, N.J., pier. The tenant was interested in the particular spaces because two other upscale restaurants had also signed leases for nearby space with the owner.

Facts: Since the start of its lease with a tenant, a building owner paid for electricity for the tenant’s space and charged the tenant 50 percent of the cost as part of the additional rent due. The lease didn’t require the owner to provide electricity, it just specified the formula for calculating how much the tenant owed if the owner did provide it.

Facts: When an anchor tenant closed its store at a shopping center, the cotenancy clause in a lease between an arts-and-crafts supply retailer and the center’s owner was triggered. When the owner had failed to obtain another anchor tenant after six months, the tenant started paying the lower alternative rent provided for in the cotenancy clause.

Facts: The employee of a tenant who rented retail space was injured when a light fixture fell on her upper back and neck while she was working. The employee sued the owner. The owner asked a trial court for a judgment in its favor without a trial. The trial court granted the owner’s request. The tenant appealed.  

Decision: An Iowa appeals court reversed the ruling and sent the case back to the lower court for a trial.

Facts: An owner claimed that its restaurant tenant breached the lease by failing to remove “trade” fixtures before moving out. The tenant argued that it wasn’t required to remove the fixtures because the owner hadn’t complied with the lease terms regarding fixture removal. The owner sued the tenant. The tenant asked a court to dismiss the case. 

Decision: A Massachusetts trial court ruled in favor of t...

Facts: A retail lease provided that attorney’s fees and expenses would be awarded to the prevailing party in “any dispute” between the owner and tenant arising out of the use or occupancy of the space. The owner later sued the tenant for several claims involving lease violations. After the tenant successfully defended itself against one of the owner’s claims—forcible-entry-and-detainer—it was allowed to continue occup...

Facts: The lease between a shopping center owner and a supermarket tenant contained a restrictive-use covenant prohibiting the owner from leasing space to another grocery store or “food market.” The lease defined food market to include any vendor selling food items. The owner later leased space on the premises for a farmer’s market made up of “stalls” run by vendors selling various types of food. Two stalls were directly in...