Landlord & Tenant

Landlord & Tenant law can often be complicated and appear difficult to apply to practical everyday situations. At FIELDEN, we offer a comprehensive advisory service for landlords and tenants and our in-depth experience provides our clients with solutions and problem solving for common tenancy issues.

Lease Renewals

We provide expert client advice in respect of the Landlord & Tenant (Amendment) Act 1980, which was further amended by the Landlord & Tenant (Amendment) Act 1994. The recent changes as contained in the Civil Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2008 provide another criteria in the form of a renunciation, which is an important part of the Lease negotiations for both the landlord and tenant.

We act for both landlords and tenants and take care to negotiate the best Lease renewal terms for our client.

Compensation for Improvements

In a situation where a tenant wishes to carry out an improvement to their property, there is a procedure which should be followed, for the benefit of both landlord and tenant. A tenant must serve an Improvement Notice on the landlord, and the landlord should then respond within a period of one month with an agreement or objection to the proposed works.

An improvement to a property will usually affect the rental value, and our professional services team are well qualified to advise a landlord or tenant in this situation.

Compensation for Disturbance

A business tenant may be entitled to compensation for disturbance where their right to a new lease is refused on the grounds of a reconstruction, redevelopment or good estate management. The amount of compensation payable depends on the level of expense incurred by tenant as a result of having to leave the property. We act on behalf of landlords and tenants in the analysis and negotiation of a potential claim.

Ground Rents and the right to purchase the freehold

In accordance with the Landlord & Tenant Ground Rent Act (1978), a tenant does, under certain circumstances, have the right to buy out the freehold. Section 9 & 10 of this Act set out the relevant criteria, and our professional services team advises both landlords or tenants of how much should be paid to purchase the freehold, having regard to the current ground rent payable, any future increases in rent, current interest yields on government securities, comparable sales of other ground rents in that location, and any other relevant matters.

Compulsory Purchase Order

Where land is acquired by a local authority to allow infrastructure projects, such as the Luas, new roads, motorways etc., we act on behalf of the claimants in assessing the claim for compensation, having regard to the value of the land taken; any severance or injurious affection; the disturbance caused as result of the works and any accommodation works and fees.

This includes the submission of the claim to the acquiring authority, and any subsequent negotiations to settle the matter, or where there is no agreement, a further submission to the arbitrator, on behalf of the claimant.

Court

We are experienced Expert Witnesses and are often called upon to provide evidence in relation to landlord and tenant matters.

We also offer expert advice to parties to a Court Lease, advising on the principle differences of a Court Lease, including the rent review process and the rental commencement date in such a Lease.

For further information, please contact us here