Jessica Stanway, solicitor, and Richard Glover, partner, in our Property Litigation team acted on behalf of a tenant of a commercial premises in London. The tenant was a charitable organisation and used the premises as part of its business.

The lease was subject to the protections under the Landlord & Tenant Act 1954.  The landlord served notice to bring the tenancy to an end and the tenant made an application for a new lease. The landlord defended the tenant’s claim but failed to file any evidence until the last moment.

The day before trial, we successfully negotiated a settlement agreement as a result of which the tenant was entitled to remain in the premises for a further year at no rent, allowing the tenant time to relocate and transition to new premises whilst still being able to carry on trading from the leased premises. We also successfully negotiated settlement on the basis the landlord pays a significant contribution (approximately 85%) of the tenant’s legal costs, and also the tenant was not required to pay any back rent.

The outcome

Specialist Property Litigation partner Richard Glover said “our client was pleased with the outcome as it was faced with an uncertain future and there was a very real possibility of it losing its commercial premises. We were delighted when settlement was agreed meaning our client could remain in the premises for 12 months’ rent free and the landlord has paid the majority of our client’s legal costs.”