Feature
November 18, 2020
The tenant security deposit is the piggy bank that you don’t want to break open while the lease remains in effect, unless it’s absolutely, positively necessary. And with COVID-19 cases resurging and the prospects of business shutdowns looming, we may be getting close to that absolutely...
Brokers’ Buzz
November 18, 2020
In their eagerness to get the lease signed, brokers may be inclined to make statements about what the document says (or doesn’t say) to allay the concerns of one of the parties. So, what happens if the landlord or tenant takes the broker at its word and signs the lease, only to discover that...
Pop Quiz
November 18, 2020
WHAT HAPPENED
Workers hired by the landlord of a medical office building place a 55-gallon barrel that’s been cut in half to serve as a planter on the access ramp leading to the only public entrance of the building, leaving just 30 inches on either side for entrants to squeeze through. In...
Owner Wins
November 18, 2020
What Happened: An airport tenant assigned its lease to an assignee. In June 2020, the owner and tenant signed an agreement terminating the lease. In August, the assignee filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The owner asked for permission to bring a lawsuit to evict the assignee since the underlying...
Owner Loses
November 18, 2020
What Happened: A lease for a shopping center included the following clause:
Owner Loses
November 18, 2020
What Happened: A pharmaceutical company used the warehouse it sublet to store its drug products. But the warehouse sprinkler system went haywire and inflicted $265,110 in damage to the products. The company sued the landlord and tenant. Naturally, each side blamed the other and filed cross claims...
Feature
October 21, 2020
Do financial losses that a landlord, tenant, or other business incurs as a result of COVID-19 and the resulting government shutdowns count as a “direct physical loss” covered by business interruption insurance?
Negotiating Tips
October 21, 2020
It’s become abundantly clear that to overcome the economic dislocation caused by COVID-19, landlords must be able to work not only with their tenants but also their lenders. For one thing, you probably can’t offer tenants rent concessions and other relief without your lenders’...
Pop Quiz
October 21, 2020
Liquidated damages clauses can be a convenient way to incentivize performance and avoid disputes over the price tag of breaches. One common use of such clauses is to require the tenant to pay predetermined rent increases in the event it violates a covenant not to open a competing business within a...
Owner Loses
October 21, 2020
What Happened: Bed Bath & Beyond (BB&B) didn’t provide the necessary sales records to verify its percentage rent payments, concluded the landlord’s auditor in the spring of 2017. The landlord didn’t talk to BB&B or otherwise follow up on the audit. Move ahead three...
