Commercial Leasing Law & Lawyers

A commercial lease agreement is a contract between a landlord and a business for the rental of property. Most businesses will choose to rent property instead of buying it because it requires less capital. Before signing a commercial lease, it is important to obtain legal advice to understand the lease contract that defines the rights and responsibilities of each party, that is, between the landlord or lessor and the tenant or lessee.

If you have a legal matter concerning a commercial lease, then please complete your enquiry form on the right, or click here, to be put in contact with a specialist commercial leasing lawyer.

Commercial leasing also involves the grant and renewal of commercial leases, the sale and purchase of investment commercial and residential development property subject to occupational leases and commercial landlord and tenant development work as well as all aspects of the management of commercial property.

If you have a legal matter concerning a commercial lease, then please complete your enquiry form on the right, or click here, to be put in contact with a specialist commercial leasing lawyer.

As also mentioned below, Commercial Leasing Lawyers, areas of expertise include:

• Commercial Landlord and Tenant and Investment
• Commercial lettings
• Sale and purchase of investment properties subject to occupational leases
• Lease renewals
• Rent reviews
• All aspects of work arising from the Landlord and Tenant legislation
• Management of commercial investment property

If you have a legal matter concerning a commercial lease, then please complete your enquiry form on the right, or click here, to be put in contact with a specialist commercial leasing lawyer.

Generally speaking, Commercial Lawyers provide advice to both Landlords and Tenants on all tenancy related matters e.g. new leases, renewal of existing leases, meanwhile leases, negotiating leases and pre-let arrangements.

From a Landlord’s perspective we understand the need to maximise the return from leasing premises. From a Tenant’s point of view we know that renting or leasing a commercial property usually represents a major part of the operating costs of running a business.

Whether acting for a Landlord or Tenant, it is always the priority of a Commercial Leasing Lawyer to help negotiate the best possible terms and conditions to enable you to achieve your objectives.

Commercial Leasing Lawyers act for Landlords and Tenants dealing with a diverse range of transactions in varying circumstances.

The services of a Commercial Lawyer also includes:

• Advising on Heads of Terms
• Leasing of Retail Premises
• Grant and Renewal of Leases
• Assignments of Lease
• Transfer of Lease
• Termination of Lease
• Advising on terms of the Lease Agreement
• Short Term Letting Agreements
• Stamp Duty Land Tax
• Acquisition and Disposal of Leases of Business Premises

If you have a legal matter concerning a commercial lease, then please complete your enquiry form on the right, or click here, to be put in contact with a specialist commercial leasing lawyer.

Retail Leasing Legislation

There is no Federal regulation of the relationship between landlords and tenants in retail and commercial premises in Australia. Such regulation exists at state level, and differs for each state.

The relevant legislation for each state is as follows:

• Australian Capital Territory - Leases (Commercial and Retail) Act 2001
• New South Wales - Retail Leases Act 1994
• Northern Territory - Business Tenancies (Fair Dealings) Act 2003
• Queensland - Retail Shop Leases Act 1994
• South Australia - Retail and Commercial Leases Act 1995
• Tasmania - Fair Trading (Code of Practice for Retail Tenancies) Regulations 1998
• Victoria - Retail Leases Act 2003
• Western Australia - Commercial Tenancy (Retail Shops) Agreements Act 1985

Business Leases

As stated above, specialist commercial property lawyers advise both landlords and tenants on a range of issues relating to commercial and business lease terms, whether offices, shops, industrial units, warehouses, retail units  or any other type of commercial property.

If you have a legal matter concerning a commercial lease, then please complete your enquiry form on the right, or click here, to be put in contact with a specialist commercial leasing lawyer.

Broadly speaking, a commercial leasing lawyer provides the following expertise:

• Drafting and negotiating lease terms and contracts
• Assignments (transfers of existing leases) and sub-letting
• Enforcement of breach of lease
• Forfeiture (where landlord claims an entitlement to terminate the lease, usually for non-payment of rent)
• Specialist advice regarding offices, shops, restaurants or industrial units
• Issuing proceedings for the possession of premises
• Issues arising from the Landlord & Tenant Act 1954 and lease renewals
• Landlords' consents
• Service charge issues
• Recovery of possession
• Removal of unauthorised occupants
• Rent reviews/rent arrears

If you have a legal matter concerning a commercial lease, then please complete your enquiry form on the right, or click here, to be put in contact with a specialist commercial leasing lawyer.

Landlords - tips for negotiating business lease terms

For Landlords, the following are likely to be important issues to consider:

• The chance of tenant default;
• Ease of re-letting if tenant defaults, and time taken to find new tenant;
• Value of property;
• Acceptability as security for a loan;
• Cost of repairs and other expenses;
• Location;
• Rent deposit/personal guarantee
• Whether to agree break clauses/rent renewal clauses/should lease be renewable (contracted in) under the relevant law

Important considerations for tenants

A well advised tenant will always carefully check, take advice and and negotiate on, as necessary, amongst other things, responsibility and the position on :-

• internal and external maintenance and repair. Check if you’re responsible only for maintaining the premises in its current condition, otherwise you may be liable for damage or wear and tear that occurred before you occupied it.
• that the building meets fire, and health and safety regulations
• insurance for the premises and building
• that the premises have the right classification of use for your business
• access requirements under the Disability Discrimination legislation
• how much is the rent and is Vat payable on top
• when will the rent need to be paid
• what is the rent deposit, how will it be held, in what circumstances can the landlord draw on it
• what happens to interest earned and  when can it be refunded
• does the rent include rates, if not how much are these?
• does the rent include any building insurance or other insurances?
• are service and maintenance charges included? does this include cleaning?
• are any shared services such as parking, security, reception staff included? If not how much are these?
• are utilities (gas electric, water, phone/communication lines, air conditioning) included and are they sufficient for your needs?
• how often, and when, will the rent be reviewed?
• are you able to sublet all or some of the space?
• can you access the building whenever you like or are there restrictions?
• If it’s a long-term arrangement are there any break clauses where both parties can terminate early, and what is the procedure
• Is the lease renewable?

If you have a legal matter concerning a commercial lease, then please complete your enquiry form on the right, or click here, to be put in contact with a specialist commercial leasing lawyer.

Further Resources - Commercial Leasing Law & Lawyers