Landlords must be aware of their rights in respect of non-paying tenants of commercial leases. On 14 July 2021, the NSW Government introduced the Retail and Other Commercial Leases (COVID-19) Regulation 2021 (the Regulations) which provides for a moratorium on enforcement action by landlords in NSW until 11 September 2021.
The Regulation is a continuation of the Regulations announced in 2020 and the National Code of Conduct for Commercial Tenancies (the Code). The Regulation does not reinstate the terms of the Code, however implement similar protections for impacted tenants.
If you are a landlord of a commercial lease, you must consider and take particular care in respect of what actions you can and cannot take in respect of a non-paying tenants, due to the effects the moratorium has on your rights as a landlord.
If you are a landlord, prior to taking any action if your tenant stops paying their rent, or prior to you considering any rent reduction, please contact our Dispute Resolution Partners, Aaran Johnson or Bharath Balasubramanian to discuss your rights and options available to you.
The contents of this publication are for reference purposes only. This publication does not constitute legal advice and should not be relied upon as legal advice. Specific legal advice should always be sought separately before taking any action based on this publication.
