Lessors under an underlease of retail premises in West London have won a High Court ruling over their right to a rent review from 25 April 2001.
The court rejected Iceland Foods plc’s claim for a declaration that a notice, issued in May 2001 by the lessors Naim and David Dangoor and Pensioneer (sic) trustees (London) Ltd, as Trustees of Monopro Pension Fund, implementing a rent review clause in the lease, and notifying the lessees of the appointment of an independent surveyor, was not effective.
The court heard that although the notice should have been served between 25 April 2000 and 25 January 2001, the lessors did not serve the notice until 15 May 2001.
Iceland claimed that under the circumstances, the notice was invalid because the lessors had failed to make an application to the president of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors for the appointment before the 25 April review date.
Dismissing the claim, Neuberger J held that under the terms of the lease, “time was not of the essence”.
He added that where a late notice has been served, as in this case, “the parties could still have agreed the reviewed rent, or agreed on the surveyor to determine the same, and that it would only have been when it became clear that no agreement could be reached on the rent, or on the appointment of the surveyor, that the time started for the lessors to make an application to the president.”
Iceland Foods Plc v Dangoor and others Chancery Division (Neuberger J) 8 February 2002
Jonathan Gaunt QC (instructed by Bullivant Jones, of Liverpool) appeared for the claimant; Kim Lewison QC (instructed by Davenport Lyons) appeared for the defendants.
PLS News 11/02/02
