What Happened: The tenant admitted to not paying its rent. The only question was whether it had a valid defense for not doing so. The tenant’s argument: The landlord violated its “warranty of habitability” by failing to fix the leaky roof. As the landlord...
What Happened: It’s become a familiar pattern. A landlord sues to evict a restaurant tenant for not paying rent. The restaurant cites COVID-19 as an excuse and asked the court to dismiss the case.
What Happened: A doctor had a longstanding personal relationship with one of the principles of the company from which he leased office space. In 2019, after contemplating retirement, he reluctantly re-upped for another five years. And then the pandemic hit. Unable to see...
What Happened: Technically, the landlord had a perfectly valid case to evict. But there was also a clear explanation why Bed Bath & Beyond (BB&B) didn’t pay its late rent until after the 10-day cure notice period expired. Its corporate headquarters was closed due...
What Happened: From March to October, a steakhouse couldn’t come up with its monthly rent because of the COVID-19 public health orders restricting indoor dining, the meat and potatoes of its business. But the steakhouse tried its best to be a faithful tenant. First, it...
What Happened: One nonpaying tenant that didn’t catch a break from the courts was the one that leased store space for use as a boxing studio. The lease obligated the tenant to “pursue and diligently prosecute a change” in zoning that would allow the property to...
What Happened: Another retail tenant has failed in its bid to use COVID-19 as an excuse for not paying rent. The tenant in this case was a New York City outlet of national retail chain The Gap, which claimed, among other things, that the pandemic and its resulting shutdowns...
What Happened: Another retail tenant has failed in its bid to use COVID-19 as an excuse for not paying rent. The tenant in this case was a New York City outlet of national retail chain The Gap, which claimed, among other things, that the pandemic and its resulting shutdowns...
What Happened: Upon arriving at his office, a tenant who was behind in his rent discovered that the landlord had changed the locks and left a paper notice taped to the inside glass door facing out. Its basic message: We’ve changed your lock. But we’re not...
What Happened: An employee coming to work in the morning suffered serious injuries after slipping on ice in the office parking lot. Whether due to workers’ comp or just professional self-preservation, the employee decided that suing the landlord made a lot more sense than...
What Happened: Like so many tenants affected by COVID-19, Saks Fifth Avenue stopped paying rent at its flagship New York City store. The landlord sued Saks’ parent company, the lease guarantor, for $2.7 million in unpaid rent. If these were normal times, we’d be...
What Happened: Like so many tenants affected by COVID-19, Saks Fifth Avenue stopped paying rent at its flagship New York City store. The landlord sued Saks’ parent company, the lease guarantor, for $2.7 million in unpaid rent. If these were normal times, we’d be...
