St Mary's Court, Silver Street
- The building
- 18 flats let on 999-year terms from 1 January 1988, the freehold having been acquired by the management company in 1993.
- What was applied for
- Variation of all 18 leases under section 37 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1987, to vary the definition of the demised premises and the company's repairing covenant.
- The figures
- 18 flats and 18 leases, 999-year terms from 1 January 1988. Fifteen of eighteen agreed, three did not respond. Bundle of 490 pages.
What Happened
The management company said the leases defined neither the individual demised premises nor the landlord's retained land clearly, so it was not possible to determine who was responsible for maintaining what. The definition made no express reference to windows, and the repairing covenant obliged the company to repair only the main structure rather than the structure more broadly. Fifteen of the eighteen leaseholders agreed and three neither consented nor objected.
What the Tribunal Held
Varied in the terms sought. The tribunal was satisfied the statutory ground was made out and the thresholds complied with, and held that no evidence of prejudice had been adduced and, in the absence of any objection, no submission had been received suggesting the variations would be otherwise unreasonable. Decided on the papers with no opposing case, so the reasoning is brief.
What it means for a block here. Where leases fail to define the demise and the retained land clearly, a landlord or management company can fix all of them at once under section 37 without unanimity. Silence from non-consenting leaseholders is not opposition.