Legal Advice for Commercial Property Landlords

At Boyd Legal, our commercial leasing lawyers understand how important it is for our landlord clients to protect their investment. We offer fast and efficient legal services to landlords of commercial premises, in respect of both contentious and non-contentious aspects of leasing commercial property, from negotiating and drafting leases to assisting with commercial tenant eviction. We won’t over complicate matters and will explain your options in plain English.

Commercial property leases for landlords

Commercial leases are often complex legal documents, which can have unforeseen consequences if not given enough care and attention. It is important that they are negotiated and drafted in a way that protects your interests and minimises the risk of disputes or costly litigation arising in the future. Our solicitors offer specialist legal advice to landlords on commercial leases, and can help with:

• Negotiating, drafting and renewing commercial leases
• Extensions of commercial leases and deeds of variation
• Sale and acquisition of commercial leases
• Sub-letting and assignation of commercial leases
• Agricultural tenancies
• Lease management issues
• Advising and negotiating rent reviews
• Granting new leases
• Licences
• Termination of leases

Disputes with commercial tenants

Disputes between commercial landlords and tenants can arise for a variety of reasons. A tenant might have failed to keep to the terms of the lease or is claiming that you’re in breach of your obligations as a commercial landlord. When faced with these kinds of disagreements, it’s important to get advice from a commercial property team who can protect your interests and find a swift and effective resolution. Our commercial landlord solicitors will work with you to find an efficient solution that causes as little disruption as possible.

Commercial tenant eviction

If your commercial tenant has breached the terms of the lease, such as by failing to pay rent or carry out repairs on the premises, you may have the right to ‘irritate’ (terminate or forfeit) the lease. This will allow you to resume possession of the commercial property before the lease was due to expire.

However, before doing so, some preliminary procedures must be followed, such as serving the tenant with a warning notice that gives them an opportunity to rectify the breach (normally by making a payment by a certain date). Only if the tenant doesn’t make the payment can the lease be terminated and possession of the premises regained. If the lease is terminated but the tenant refuses to go, you will have to apply for a court order to have the tenant lawfully removed.

While prevention is often the best cure, there may be circumstances when it is necessary to terminate a commercial lease early and evict a commercial tenant. Our solicitors can help you regain possession of your commercial premises, ensuring you do so lawfully and in a way that reduces the risk of any collateral damage.

Contact our team at Boyd Legal Edinburgh – Expert Commercial Landlord Solicitors

If you’re a landlord of commercial premises and in need of legal expert advice and assistance in Scotland, please contact us. Our specialist commercial leasing solicitors serve clients across the country, including those based in Edinburgh, East Lothian, Midlothian, West Lothian, Fife, Perth and St. Andrews, as well as in the Borders, Glasgow, Strathclyde and Kirkcaldy.