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Do I have a case for a lease in bad faith?
Anonymous8 views2 answers
I subleased my commercial space last March.....then when that expired Sept 1st, 2011 I signed a new lease directly with the landlord. I asked for a 6 month lease but the landlord gave me month to month saying I was a new company....
December 30, 2011 my lease was terminated and I was given until Jan 31 to vacate the premises.
Come to find out, the people across the way signed a long term lease and now are moving into my space....they signed their lease before I did, so all the owner did us use my money for 4 months then kick me out...
So I had a lease for 4 months....
Can't I sue for bad faith and re-cover some of my expenses for moving again, telephone contracts, etc...it's a huge cost to recover...
No, you did not have a lease for 4 months, or for 6 months. You had a lease which was month to month.
You will not be able to sue for bad faith if you only had a month to month lease.
Alexander Simone ManiscalcoLand Use / Zoning AttorneyCarlsbad, CA ·
I agree with my colleague. Unfortunately, they only agreed to a month-to-month lease. You had no expectation of anything longer. They had no legal obligation to provide you anything longer.
If you are adamant about suing, consider small claims court and consult an attorney for limited scope assistance. The claims limit is $5,000 for business plaintiffs (unless you are a sole proprietor, which is $10,000). The two long-shot causes of action would be misrepresentation, and breach of the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing. Also, beware that the other side may claim attorneys fees required to prepare a response, if your lease provides for attorney fees (most do).
