Kenneth S Gerber

This Practice Note sets out the basic law on restrictions on carrying out alterations, landlord consent for alterations, reinstatement at lease expiry, consents, insurance and improvement and considerations when drafting fitting out licences and licences for alteration in relation to commercial leases in Scotland.

This Practice Note considers what back letters are, when they can be used, whether they are binding on successor landlords and tenants, difficulties with committing the landlord beyond its period of ownership and potential impact on rent review.

This Practice Note considers break options in commercial leases in Scotland, who may exercise a break clause, conditionality affecting its exercise, rent payment due before the early termination date, effect on sub-leases and points to consider when drafting break clauses.

This Practice Note sets out the common law and discusses usual drafting provisions in commercial leases in Scotland dealing with landlord and tenant obligations in relation to insurance, insured and uninsured risk, reinstatement, rent abatement and termination where the property is damaged or destroyed.

This Practice Note considers what mines and minerals, ownership of mines and minerals in Scotland, registration of mines and mineral ownership, how the existence of mines and minerals affects the marketability of the surface title and what developers can do to manage the risk of interdict or damages on development where they do not own the mineral title.

This Practice Note sets out the basic law on rent and rent reviews in Scottish commercial leases including the right to interest, VAT treatment of rent, different methods of reviewing rent, the effect which onerous lease provisions can have at review and examining when a rent review clause might be void due to uncertainty. It also briefly notes the situation where a landlord might be treated as having waived its right to review the rent. The Practice Note does not apply to agricultural tenancies which are subject to different statutory rules.

This Practice Note considers the common law relating to repairs, latent and patent defects, ordinary and extraordinary repairs, repairing clauses found in commercial full repairing and insuring or FRI leases in Scotland, the use of a schedule of condition in agreeing the tenant’s repairing obligations and exclusion of rei interitus and the insuring and reinstatement provisions of a lease.

This Practice Note considers service charge typically levied on tenants of a multi-occupancy building by commercial landlords in Scotland. The Practice Note makes reference to the RICS professional statement on service charges in commercial property, as well as some matters typically provided for by way of service charge provisions in a commercial lease.

This Practice Note focuses on the law relating to sub-leases in Scotland and sets out practical issues to be considered from the landlord’s, tenant’s and sub-tenant’s point of view when negotiating and drafting sub-leases.

This Practice Note considers what tacit relocation is in commercial leases in Scotland, the effect of tacit relocation, notice periods to stop tacit relocation operating, how notice is to be served and the position relating to shop tenancies.

This style is a landlord notice to stop tacit relocation operating in commercial leases in Scotland.

This style is a tenant notice to stop tacit relocation operating in commercial leases in Scotland.

This Checklist contains the key questions that landlords, tenants and subtenants should consider when a tenant is granting a sublease of commercial premises in Scotland to a subtenant, including restrictions on subletting, financial strength of subtenant, form and requirements for landlord consent, form of sublease, and irritancy protection agreements.

This Checklist explains how break clauses operate in leases in Scotland. It considers who/which party may exercise a break clause or option, when the break can be exercised, the form and method of service of a break notice, whether any preconditions must be complied with by the tenant and if a break notice can be withdrawn.

This Checklist sets out the issues that should be considered by a tenant (assignor) of a commercial lease in Scotland. It sets out when landlord consent to assignation is required, whether the landlord is obliged to act reasonably in granting such consent, the form of the consent and assignation and issues that both parties and the assignee should consider in relation to the landlord letter of consent to assignation and the assignation itself.

This Checklist outlines the key questions that both commercial landlords and tenants in Scotland should consider when landlord (and superior landlord) consent and licence for tenant works or alteration is being sought and negotiated.

This Checklist sets out some of the common issues that landlords and tenants should consider when negotiating repair clauses in commercial leases in Scotland including latent and patent defects, ordinary and extraordinary repairs, repairing clauses found in commercial full repairing and insuring (FRI) leases, the use of a schedule of conditions in agreeing the tenant’s repairing obligations, exclusion of rei interitus and the insuring and reinstatement provisions of a lease.

This Checklist explains how notices to quit to stop tacit relocation operating in commercial leases in Scotland should be served, It considers who/which party may serve a notice to quit, when notice to quit must be given and the method of service of a notice to quit.