Commercial Lease Dispute Lawyers

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Lease Disputes

If you are having a dispute in respect of a lease, our commercial law team can help.

Our experienced lawyers resolve lease disputes for landlords and tenants in all types of commercial real estate, including:

  • Recovery of rent;
  • Termination of leases and recovery of possession;
  • Interpretation disputes over rent;
  • Disputes regarding outgoings;
  • Signage disputes;
  • Maintenance disputes;
  • Incentive agreement disputes; and
  • Market review disputes.

Results for clients

  • Acting for a landlord in successfully terminating and re-taking possession of premises occupied by a defaulting tenant. After we advocated for the landlord, the tenant paid all overdue payments. Additionally, they agreed to a new lease that includes better terms.
  • Acting for a landlord through arbitration over market review rent. We successfully helped our client defend their position and get a 30% increase in rent from the tenant.
  • Acting for a tenant in resisting a rental arrears claim brought by a landlord based on outgoings provisions. We successfully argued that the outgoings clause in the lease did not cover as much as the landlord claimed.
  • Acting for a tenant regarding rectification proceedings commenced by the landlord. In the proceedings, our client successfully resisted an attempt by the landlord to broaden the scope of an outgoings clause based on an alleged rectification error.
  • Acting for a landlord in respect of rental arrears and the winding up of a tenant owing more than $250,000.00 in rent.
  • Action for a landlord in the recovery of the tenant’s assets. This process involved ending multiple leases connected under a single umbrella arrangement. Recovering $350,000 in rental arrears for a landlord without commencing proceedings using security instruments

If you need to resolve a dispute, contact our commercial leasing lawyers for an obligation-free consultation.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is lease security?

The landlords of most commercial and retail leases will require their tenants to provide security for the performance of their obligations under the lease. The security required by a landlord may take the form of:

  • a security (cash) bond;
  • a bank guarantee; and/or
  • where the tenant is a company, a personal guarantee from the company’s directors.

The purpose of security is to reduce the likelihood of a landlord suffering loss because its tenant fails to comply with its obligations under the lease.

A security bond or a bank guarantee will give a landlord access to monies that can be readily applied where a tenant fails to comply with its obligations under the lease. Commercial and retail leases should contain a clause that specifies what the parties’ respective rights and obligations are regarding any security bond or bank guarantee such as:

  • when the tenant must provide the security to the landlord;
  • the steps that the landlord must take before using the security (such as giving the tenant notice);
  • whether, in the case of a security bond, the bond must be invested in an interest-bearing account; and
  • the timing for the return of the security at the end of the lease.

If you need legal advice regarding a bond or tenancy dispute, speak to our commercial lawyers in Cairns and Townsville.

Who holds the bond for a commercial lease?

Landlords can either ask for a bank guarantee or for the tenant to provide a bond. If a bond is provided, the landlord must invest the full amount into an interest-bearing account. Any interest accrued needs to be passed to the tenant at the end of the lease.

If the lease is subject to the Lease Act, bonds need to be returned to the tenant within thirty days of the expiry of the lease.

If you need legal advice regarding a bond or tenancy dispute, speak to our commercial lawyers in Cairns and Townsville.

Call Us Now For An Obligation Free Consultation

Cairns Lawyers

07 4052 0700

Townsville Lawyers

07 4752 0200