Leases Flashcards
A.G. Securities Ltd v Vaughan (1988) Facts
Furnished four bedroom flat
Individual agreements were entered into for each occupier
Multi-Occupation (4 occupiers)
Rent was different
Period of occupation differed
When one occupier left, he was replaced by another under a new agreement
•Held:
o They were Licensees
o Independent agreements
o Accepted that there could have been separate tenancies of the part of the house
o No unity, title, or interest between them
A.G. Securities Ltd v Vaughan (1988) Principle
In Multi-occupation situations, if the agreements are independent from each other:
- There is no single right of exclusive possession
- they are not joint tenants
- The 4 unities do not exists
- There is no lease, they are separate licences
A.G. Securities Ltd v Vaughan (1988) Topic
- Exclusive Possession
- Multi-Occupation
- Joint Tenants
- 4 Unities
Antoniades v Villiers (1990) Facts
•Couple moved into a 2 bedroom flat
•Signed separate, but identical agreements.
oRight for licensor to introduce third occupier
•Held:
o They were joint tenants
o The agreements were interdependent
• Should be read together as a whole
• Both would sign or neither
• Third person clause was unrealistic (Sham)
Antoniades v Villiers (1990) Principle
- Multi-occupation situation, if agreements are interdependent:
- They should be read together
- Should be treated as same document
- They are joint tenants as long as the 4 unities are present - Term that landlord can choose anyone else to move in with the couple
o Term was held to be a sham
o Inserted to mislead the reader to the nature of the agreement
Antoniades v Villiers (1990) Topic
- Exclusive Possession
- Multi-Occupation
- 4 Unities
- Shams
Aslan v Murphy (1989) Facts
•Occupant lived in a small basement
•Document stated that he had to share the accommodation with another occupier and vacate the property for 1 hour and 30 minutes each day
•Tenant or lodger?
•Held:
o Occupant was a tenant
o Clauses in the document were “wholly unrealistic and were clerely pretences”
Aslan v Murphy (1989) Principle
- Inserted to mislead the reader to the nature of the agreement
- Courts can ignore these terms when determining exclusive possession
Aslan v Murphy (1989) Topic
- Exclusive Possession
- Single Occupier
- Shams/Pretences
Booker v Palmer (1942) Facts
•Owner of a cottage •Allowed person who was bombed out of her his to live there for the duration of the war. •Held: o Licence was created o Act of Charity • No intention to enter legal relations • No contractual relationship
Booker v Palmer (1942) Principle
- Acts of Charity is an exception to exclusive possession
- They are licences, cannot be leases
Booker v Palmer (1942) Topic
- Exception to Exclusive Possession
Marchant v Charters (1977) Facts
•Single man occupied a room in a large house
•Shared bathroom and cooking area
•Housekeeper clean roomed on a daily bases and changed linens once a week
•Applied to the rent officer for registration of a fair rent
•Owner of house served him notice to quit
•Held:
o It was a licence, not a lease
• Was not intended to have stake in the room
Marchant v Charters (1977) Principle
- Some terms might indicate that exclusive possession cannot exist
Marchant v Charters (1977) Topic
- Exclusive Possession
- Terms in document that might indicate the absence or presence of Exclusive Possession
Mikeover v Brady (1989) Facts
•Couple signed separate, but identical ‘licence’ agreements.
•Each were obligated to pay only part of the rent
•One tenant moved out, with the other, D, offering to pay the difference
•D fell into arrears for his half
•P tried to remove him
•D claimed it was a lease
•Held:
o They were independent agreements
• Each paid different amount
o They only had licences
Mikeover v Brady (1989) Principle
If 4 unities are not present:
- No exclusive possession
- Licence, not a lease
Mikeover v Brady (1989) Topic
- Exclusive Possession
- Multi-occupation
- 4 unities
Street v Mountford (1985) Facts
•Re-established the primacy of exclusive possession
oDownplayed the stated intentions of the parties
•M signed an agreement, termed a licence agreement
•Right to occupy 2 rooms for weekly licence fee of £37
•At the foot of the document, signed by her, it stated: “I understand and accept that a licence in the above form does not and is not intended to give me a tenancy protected under the Rents Act”
•M sought to have fair rent registered
•Owner argued that she was a licensee, not a tenant
•Held:
o M is a tenant
o Agreement have M exclusive possession of the rooms
o Intention was held to be irrelevant