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Land Law – Breach of Leasehold Covenant
Even though this would come within the standard contractual remedies, it's crucial to know what remedies each party has in case of a lease covenant violation. The landlord action's legal remedies for debt/damages would be to file an application in small claims court in the standard manner to recover any debt or damages. an injunction, which is a court order that prevents the tenant from carrying out the violation. For instance, if the tenant violates a covenant that prohibits them from building an addition without the landlord's approval but continues with the construction regardless, the landlord may file for an injunction to halt the development. particular performance: this would call on the tenant to do something for which they have not specifically taken responsibility; for instance, if they were supposed to fix the fences but haven't. Although the courts are hesitant to employ this remedy and would much rather issue an order for damages, landlords can nonetheless pursue it. One of the most extreme remedies available to a landlord is forfeiture, which essentially gives them the "right to re-enter" the property and ends the lease, giving them authority over the leasehold estate. Due to the severity of this action, it is strictly regulated by statute, and the renter is entitled to a number of remedies. If this action is taken because of nonpayment of rent or any other infraction, different procedures apply to forfeiture, and we will address those separately.
forfeiture for failing to pay rent
In order to invoke this remedy, the landlord must: formally demand the unpaid rent, unless the lease expressly exempts them from doing so; additionally, if the rent is past due by six months or more, make sure the agreement contains a forfeiture clause. The landlord may then petition to the county court for possession proceedings or use force to re-enter the property if these conditions are met. Nonetheless, a tenant may be spared from forfeiture if they are able to make the overdue rent payment within five days of the hearing. The court may also adjourn the proceedings for a period of four weeks or more. The renter will automatically be released from forfeiture if they pay the arrears in full.
Forfeiture for any other breach of covenant
To use this remedy: there must be a forfeiture clause in the lease the landlord must consider whether the breach is remediable. If it is remediable then the landlord must serve a notice specifying the time limit in which to remedy the breach. If the breach is remedied then the right to forfeiture is lost. If it is not remedied then the application can proceed to the court for forfeiture. If the breach is not remediable then the landlord must still serve a notice specifying this, but must then wait 14 days before making an application to the court for Once more, a tenant may be spared from forfeiture if they can convince the judge that the lease should stay in effect notwithstanding the breach or if they can demonstrate to the court that they have made amends for the violation. Naturally, this will depend a great deal on the particulars of each instance.
Tenant's available remedies Damages: This would be the standard procedure for filing a small claims court application in order to recover any debt or damages. An injunction is a court ruling that prevents the landlord from carrying out or continuing with a planned violation. Particular performance: this would call for the landlord to do something that they haven't done before. If the tenant has given the landlord a notice stating the repairs and the landlord has not made the repairs, recover the cost of the repairs from future rent. In order to cover the expense of those repairs, the renter may subsequently withhold future rent.
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