Exclusivity provisions are staples of some commercial leases, particularly in the shopping mall setting. The purpose of these so-called “exclusives” is to protect a tenant from a competing business renting in the same shopping center and potentially undercutting the tenant’s pricing. The larger the tenant (think “anchor” tenant) in terms of resources, the more leverage it has in …
Category Archives: Landlord-Tenant
Breach of Lease Doesn’t Negate Earlier Exercise of Option to Purchase Property – Illinois Court
A dispute over the purchase price of a veterinary practice boiled over into multi-year litigation after the plaintiff in Ruffolo v. Jordan, 2015 IL App (1st) 140969 leased the defendant’s practice under a multi-year lease with an option to buy. The plaintiff exercised the purchase option in August 2005 and paid rent for 18 months until …
Commercial Landlord’s Suit for Rent Damages Accruing After Possession Order Survives Tenant’s Res Judicata Defense
18th Street Property, LLC v. A-1 Citywide Towing & Recovery, Inc., 2015 IL App (1st) 142444-U examines the res judicata and collateral estoppel doctrines in a commercial lease dispute. The plaintiff landlord obtained a possession order and judgment in late 2012 on a towing shop lease that expired March 31, 2013. About six months after the possession order, the lessor sued …