Commercial Disputes on Lease Termination

Contact our commercial dispute and lease termination solicitors

Terminating a commercial lease can be complicated. At Levi Solicitors, we have years of experience in helping both individuals and businesses to achieve their commercial goals. Whether you need assistance with termination, commercial lease dispute, or squatters we‘re here to represent you.

You can call our expert solicitors for commercial disputes on lease termination at 0800 988 7756, or contact us by using the simple enquiry form on this page. We have solicitors in Leeds, North Leeds and London who are ready to provide prompt, friendly advice.

If you have further queries regarding commercial property, do not hesitate to get in touch with our commercial property dispute solicitors.

Why choose Levi Solicitors for commercial disputes on lease termination?

Our services in commercial disputes on lease termination

| Commercial forfeiture advice

Where a commercial tenant has accrued rent arrears or is otherwise in breach of their lease, a landlord may decide that its only option is to terminate the lease and take back possession of the property. This is known as forfeiture.

The decision to forfeit is not one to be taken lightly, and it is important to seek early legal advice to ensure that the correct procedures are used. Our solicitors will go through the process with you and give you practical and commercial advice. We will work with you to ensure that you do not waive the right to forfeit or pick up legal charges for incorrect processes.

We are also experienced in advising commercial landlords and tenants on applications for relief from forfeiture. It is vital that matters relating to forfeiture and relief from forfeiture are dealt with quickly. Rest assured that we are here to see you through the procedure, including the court application and hearings.

| Contested lease renewals

A landlord can only refuse a tenant’s lease renewal under certain circumstances. Either the tenant must have breached their obligations, such as failing to pay the rent or damaging the property without intent to repair, or the landlord must wish to use the premises for their own use. For commercial properties, this will often lead to the warring needs of two or more businesses.

We can represent landlords who wish to contest lease renewal by advising on their reasons to deny renewal, and represent tenants who wish to contest a rejected lease renewal, making appeals on behalf of your company.

Our commercial property disputes team work closely with the commercial property team when dealing with contested lease renewals. We can assist you throughout the process, from drafting the relevant notices to making the court application on your behalf. We will be there to represent you throughout the court proceedings.

| Residential tenants in mixed-use premises

A mixed-use property will have both residential and non-residential units, for example, a shop on street level and apartments overhead. With properties split up in this manner, commercial landlords will sometimes need advice on how to deal with residential tenants.

Residential tenants have stricter protections than tenants of commercial premises, and it is therefore vital that they are treated in accordance with the rules on residential tenancies.

At Levi Solicitors, we have extensive experience of dealing with residential tenancies, as we as commercial leases. For more information, please visit our residential property disputes pages.

| Squatters in commercial properties

If you find you have squatters in an unoccupied commercial property, our team can help you act quickly to ensure their removal. We would advise you to seek specialist legal advice as soon as you become aware of any unlawful occupants.

To evict squatters from a property, you will need a court order. Where appropriate, we could help you apply for an Interim Possession Order (IPO), with a hearing usually held in County Court. This allows landlords to remove squatters from the property quickly. It is imperative that you deal with squatters and other trespassers quickly. Our property disputes team will, therefore, treat all squatter cases with urgency and will not lose sight of the commercial issues at play.

We can also help landlords to apply for a final order, known as a Summary Possession Order (SPO). Once you have obtained a final order, we can assist in arranging the eviction with the county court bailiffs.

| Disputes on the termination of a commercial lease

When there is a disagreement over how to interpret a break clause or when lease terms are not followed by the tenant, then there may be a dispute on the termination of the commercial lease.

As with all disputes, it is often best to resolve any issues informally to maintain relations between the landlord and tenant. Levi Solicitors can arrange alternative dispute resolution, including mediation and negotiation, to seek a voluntary resolution for both landlords and tenants.

If court proceedings are required, then we will set out your position robustly. We confidently represent both tenants and landlords and will always have our clients’ commercial interests in mind, ensuring we advise on the most cost-effective methods of reaching your desired outcome.