Security of Tenure Flashcards
what is security of tenure?
Applies to commercial leases. Means the tenant is able to stay on in their property after the expiry of the lease(expires on the contractual expiry date) - provided under the landlord and tenant act 1954.
if tenant says that they are holding over their lease, the lease is deemed to continue.
if a landlord wants to end the lease and remove the tenant, they must prove one of the grounds of the 1954 act exists. even if L applies t court to terminate the tenancy, T still has the right to apply for a new one.
what does security of tenure under the LTA 1954 apply to
‘Business tenancies’ only.
must have these three things
1. tenancy - licences not included
2. occupation (does not include subletting)
3. business (including charities)
How can a landlord contract out of LTA 1954
L must serve notice on T at least 14 days before exchange
T must make a declaration
- A simple declaration if the notice has been given more than 14 days before entry into the lease
- less than 14 days notice? a signed statutory declaration stating that they have received and accepted consequences of the notice.
- declaration has prescribed form that must be adhered to to be valid
- the lease must contain a clause stating that the security of tenure has been excluded AND must directly reference L’s warning and T’s declaration.
what is a section 25 notice under the LTA 1954?
A notice to T from L ending the current tenancy on a date specified in the notice (SED).
L must inform T whether they oppose (hostile notice- with grounds) or not oppose - T’s application for a new lease. T then applies for a right to renew.
notice saved on the tenant not more than 12 nor less than 6 months before the SED
L cannot set an SED which is earlier than the CED of the lease
what is a hostile section 25 notice?
when L wants to terminate the current lease and oppose any new lease - a hostile notice must contain ground of opposition.
grounds either discretionary or mandatory. - an application to the court is then made.
application is critical.
what are the mandatory grounds under a hostile notice?
mandatory- if L proves them, no new tenancy can be granted.
eg
i) L has made an offer of suitable alternative accommodation with regard to T’s business
ii) L intends to reconstruct building and can’t do It with T here
iii) L intends to occupy property itself. L cannot use this ground if they purchased the property within 5 years of the SED/SCD)
what are the discretionary sounds ?
even if L proves them, the court can still grant a tenancy to T.
eg
i) Breach of repairing obligation by T which must be a serious breach at the date of the court hearing
ii) Persistent and serious delay in paying rent
iii) other substantial breaches of the lease
iv) if T has sub-letted a part of the property, L can claim to want to take possession of the whole property to lease or sell it as a whole.
what is a friendly section 35 notice ?
L wants to terminate lease but wants T to stay on.
- does not contain grounds of opposition. It must state that a new tenancy is not opposed and include proposals for a new lease.
- An application must still be made to court in the same way for hostile notice. this application is made for a new lease, instead of applying for a termination
What is a section 26 notice?
Notice served by T on L to terminate the current tenancy and request a new one to commence on a date specified in the notice (SCD).
SCD shall be no more than 12 months nor less than 6 months after the notice is given. the SCD cannot be earlier than the CED.
t Amy choose to serve a section 26 to
a) assign
b) rental negotiation-local rents may be falling
c) improvements to property.
what is the process after section 26 notice has been served?
if L wants to oppose renewal- must serve counter notice on tenant within 2 months of s26 notice
T and or L can apply to court - t applies to have the lease renewed , L applies to terminate. L cannot make the application if T has already done so. the deadline for application is before the SCD.
if T fails to apply to court, T has no right of renewal.
if L does not oppose the tenancy - L does not need to serve a counter notice. T should still apply to court before the SCD to ensure they still have protection under the Act.
what is a section 27 notice ?
T wants to end the tenancy without renewal. Served on T by L.
- This notice will only be used if T intends to stay on a bit longer after the CED.
- After serving the s27 , T cannot then serve a s26.
when will the court impose terms of the new tenancy
if the court grants a renewal lease and the parties can’t agree on the terms of the new lease, the court steps in.
when can a tenant be paid compensation by the court under
Either after s25 notice or s26 notice the court does grant a grant of renewal tenancy and the tenant has to vacate and either:
- uses of grounds of opposition which T is not at fault for
- the landlord has used misinterpretation or concealment of facts. when stating the grounds and either.
what types of business are not protected by the 1954 act?
tenancies at will
fixed term tenancies not exceeding 6 months
Certain types of business lease such as tenancies of agricultural holdings, farm business tenancies and mining leases are expressly excluded from the protection of the act.
Fixed term tenancies that are contracted out of the 1954 act that are excluded from protection
What is the effect of the 1954 act
A tenancy to which part of the act applies shall not come to an end unless terminated in accordance with the provisions of the act.
Even then, the tenant has a right to apply to court for a new tenancy which can only be opposed by the landlord on one of the 7 statutory grounds in s30
