Forfeiture of a lease can appear to the landlord as one of the more
appealing remedies available to it for non-performance by the tenant.
Simply changing the locks to recover possession is direct, simple, cheap
and effective. All too often, though, that is just the beginning of the
story, since the law relating to the forfeiture of leases is notoriously
complex and archaic.
A particular problem is the law relating to waiver of the right to
forfeit. It is potentially a valuable and important property right, but
it can be lost by waiver on the landlord's part very easily and
inadvertently - indeed, even without the landlord either knowing that he
had such a right or participating in the act of waiver. The risk of
waiver distorts or prevents dialogue between landlord and tenant, and
stands in the way of sensible negotiated resolutions to disputes.
The availability of relief from forfeiture, mitigating the harshness of
the common law in favour of tenants, is something that few would
complain about in principle. In practice, though, the existence of
several jurisdictions for the grant of relief is unnecessarily
confusing, and the outcome of applications for relief unpredictable.
For the landlord who wants to recover possession, the potential for a
successful relief application means that outcome may well not be
achieved. For the landlord who simply wishes to put pressure on the
tenant to perform their obligations, on the other hand, the problem is
that once done forfeiture is irrevocable, and the tenant may simply
accept it and leave the landlord with a vacant property.
It remains, nevertheless, a remedy which can be very useful and
valuable, and in some cases simply the only effective one. Those
advising on it, whether solicitor or surveyor, and whether acting for
landlord or tenant, need the practical guidance which this book
provides.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Mark practised in major commercial law firms for thirty years,
specialising in property dispute resolution. He has acted for businesses
large and small, including FTSE-listed property companies and
household-name corporate occupiers, across the whole range of
property-related issues. He has advised upon forfeiture, and pursued or
defended possession proceedings, on countless occasions.
He is now a full-time commercial property management law trainer,
putting his expertise and experience to good use in training both
lawyers and surveyors. He delivers training for providers including MBL
Seminars, Central Law Training, Professional Conferences, CPT Events and
Solicitors Group.
Mark is also the author of The Lease Guide website, which aims to
provide helpful and practical guidance in an understandable and
digestible format to small businesses taking a lease.
