At common law a landlord could use reasonable force to oust a defaulting tenant.[1] Landlord-tenant law today varies greatly on the right of the landlord to self-help evict a tenant.Continue reading
Category Archives: Landlord Tenant Law
The Implied Warranty in Commercial Leases
The is a split among jurisdictions as to whether implied warranties apply to commercial tenancies.Continue reading
Landlord Liability for Snow and Ice
Landlord liability for snow and ice accumulation varies by jurisdiction. There are at least two established rules.
Under the older natural accumulation rule, or the Massachusetts rule, landowners have no duty to protect invitees from conditions caused by natural accumulations of snow or ice.[1]
On the other hand, the rule known as the Connecticut rule requires landlords to keep common areas in a safe condition regardless of the cause of the danger. The landlord is not the guarantor of tenants’ safety and therefore a tenant may be required to show the landlord had actual or constructive knowledge of the dangerous condition and failed to fix the condition within a reasonable amount of time. [2]
The duty of the landlord being to exercise reasonable care to prevent the occurrence of defective or dangerous conditions in the common approaches, the fact that a particular danger arose from the fall of snow or the freezing of ice can afford no ground of distinction. Indeed, the causes which are at work to produce it are no more natural causes than are those which, more slowly, bring about the decay of wood or the rusting of iron. To set apart this particular source of danger is to create a distinction without a sound difference.
Reardon v. Shimelman, 102 Conn. 383 at 388, 128 A. 705, 39 A.L.R. 287 (1925).
This is not a substitute for legal advice. For more information about the duty of the landlord to keep the premises safe from snow and ice accumulation in a particular location and under particular circumstances consult an attorney.
[1] The traditional position and its name stem from Woods v. Naumkeag Steam Cotton Co., 134 Mass. 357, 45 Am. Rep. 344 (1883). See also 62A Am. Jur. 2d Premises Liability ยง 699 (1990 & Supp. 1995) (discussing landowners’ responsibility for snow or ice both on adjacent public sidewalks and on private premises).
[2] Geise v. Lee, 84 Wn.2d 866, 529 P.2d 1054 (1975) (imposing the duty on mobile home park owners to keep the driveways between the homes safe for pedestrian traffic where snow and ice created dangerous conditions)
Options to Purchase
An option to purchase is an irrevocable offer to sell upon specified terms during a specified period. A landlord and tenant may enter into an option to purchase within the terms of a lease.[1]
Landlords Beware
Don’t believe everything you read. There is bad advice for landlords on the web. Some of the advice is really, really bad.
First and foremost, landlord-tenant law varies greatly by jurisdiction. What is sound practice in one state may be completely illegal in the next.