A member asked over 9 years ago

Landlord trying to dictate business type

Our business has grown and evolved somewhat, but our landlord says that our new business (we have a cafe and have gone a bit into retail) is not permitted under the lease and is trying to get us to close the retail part of the store. What can we do about it?

Josh Kaplan
Senior Associate at Marshalls + Dent Lawyers
Hello. Thank you for your question. In the lease there should be a description of the "permitted use" by which you as tenant can use and enjoy the premises. If this use is described exclusively as "cafe" (or similar) in the lease then you may not have the right to use the premises as a retail outlet. It is also important to make sure that you have approval from the local council and other relevant authorities to use the premises in the way you intend. It may end up being in the landlord's commercial interests to permit you to combine a retail component to your business with the cafe component as the more successful a tenant's business the greater the potential there is for a landlord to secure a long term rental income. You may wish to raise this point with the landlord in your negotiations.

Suggested way forward

Engage a legal adviser to review the lease and provide advice with respect to the permitted use of the premises.

Answered about 9 years ago   Legal disclaimer

Sandy  Rizkallah
1 lawyer agrees with this answer
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