Leases: Multiple Occupancies

Question 1

What is the key issue with leaseas and multiple occupants?

Answer 1

If the occupiers together have a right to exclude all others, then there is a lease

But question is if they have one joint lease or several individual leases

Question 2

How does this apply to joint tenants? And what is the test for identifying joint tenants in a lease?

Answer 2

Joint tenants are viewed as a single entity and must hold the four unities of AG Securities v Vaughan

1. Unity of possession
2. Unity of interest
3. Unity of time
4. Unity of title

Question 3

What is the unity of possession?

Answer 3

all must be entitled to occupy the whole of the premises

no one has exclusive use of any part

if occupier can show that they each have exclusive possession of a part of property then it is possible for them to have individual leases of their own part

Question 4

What is unity of interest?

Answer 4

All occupiers must have a leasehold interest for:

the same term

under the same conditions and

must be jointly liable for the rent

Question 5

What is the unity of time?

Answer 5

all of the occupiers interests must start at the same time

Question 6

What is the unity of title?

Answer 6

all of the occupiers interests must derive from the same document or from separate but identical documents which are interdependent

Question 7

What happens if the occupants do not have all of the unities?

Answer 7

They do not have a joint tenancy

Occupants can then only be individual licensees that are sharing with each other - so they will have separate individual leases on their part