Hemingway Realty Ltd v Master Wardens and Commonalty of Freemen of the Art or Mystery of the Clothworkers of the City of London [2005] EWHC 299; [2005] 19 EG 176; [2005] 11 EG 181 (CS)
Can a tenant initiate a rent review to take advantage of an upward/downward rent review provision in a lease, even though the lease is drafted in terms that confer the right to review the rent solely upon the landlord?
The judge ruled that the form and operation of a rent review provision is for the parties themselves to decide, and that the presence of an upward/downward rent review provision in a lease will not require or permit the courts to construe a lease as requiring a mandatory rent review, or a review that is operable by either party.
The case serves as a useful reminder to lawyers acting for tenants to provide in clear terms for mutual rights to initiate a rent review in leases where the reviewed rent could go up or down. If they fail to do so, the landlord will be able to avoid any decrease in rent by declining to initiate a rent review.
Allyson Colby is an associate in the real estate group at Wragge & Co LLP
Hemingway Realty Ltd v Master Wardens and Commonalty of Freemen of the Art or Mystery of the Clothworkers of the City of London [2005] EWHC 299; [2005] 19 EG 176; [2005] 11 EG 181 (CS)
Can a tenant initiate a rent review to take advantage of an upward/downward rent review provision in a lease, even though the lease is drafted in terms that confer the right to review the rent solely upon the landlord?
The judge ruled that the form and operation of a rent review provision is for the parties themselves to decide, and that the presence of an upward/downward rent review provision in a lease will not require or permit the courts to construe a lease as requiring a mandatory rent review, or a review that is operable by either party.
The case serves as a useful reminder to lawyers acting for tenants to provide in clear terms for mutual rights to initiate a rent review in leases where the reviewed rent could go up or down. If they fail to do so, the landlord will be able to avoid any decrease in rent by declining to initiate a rent review.
Allyson Colby is an associate in the real estate group at Wragge & Co LLP
