A lease contained an agreement by the landlord to grant a lease for a further term of five years ‘at the same rent and containing the like covenants and provisos as are herein contained (including an option to renew such lease for the term of five years at the expiration thereof)’. The tenant claimed that as a perpetually renewable lease it was converted by the 1922 Act into a term of 2000 years.
Held: There was an express covenant or obligation for perpetual renewal. Russell LJ said: ‘In the present case the brackets make it abundantly plain that the parties are explaining that ‘containing the like covenants and provisos’ is a phrase intended to embrace an option. That is to say that the covenants and provisos contained in the first lease, which the first lease requires the second lease to contain, are not to be construed as a reference to those covenants and provisos other than an option to renew, but as a reference to all those covenants including an option to renew.’ and ‘If the words . . . are repeated in the second lease without the words in parenthesis the second lease will not be carrying out the requirement of the first lease: it will not be granting an option for a further lease containing ‘the like covenants’ as defined.’
Judges:
Russell LJ, Sachs LJ, Stamp LJ
Citations:
[1972] 1 WLR 372, [1971] EWCA Civ 1, [1972] 1 All ER 248
Links:
Statutes:
Jurisdiction:
England and Wales
Cited by:
Cited – Marjorie Burnett Ltd v Barclay ChD 12-Dec-1980
A lease was created of a shop, dwellings and out-buildings. By clause 6 the tenant had a right to renew the lease, with the new lease creating the same provision. The defendant claimed that as a perpetually renewable lease it took effect as a lease . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Landlord and Tenant
Updated: 24 October 2022; Ref: scu.259710