The tenant applied for declarations that the landlord’s termination of a commercial lease was unlawful and that the tenant was entitled to re-enter the premises.
After the fixed lease term expired, the tenant remained in possession due to delays relocating a medical clinic caused by regulatory inspections.
The landlord changed the locks and removed the tenant’s property, asserting that the lease had expired and vacant possession was required for a new tenant.
The court held that the lease’s overholding clause created a month-to-month tenancy when the tenant remained in possession after expiry.
Because the landlord had not provided proper notice to terminate the month-to-month tenancy and did not comply with the lease’s notice provisions, the landlord breached the lease by re-entering and removing the tenant’s property.
