Lease surrenders

Lease surrenders

A surrender is a transfer by a tenant to its landlord. The lease 'merges' into the landlord's interest. Rent will cease accruing at the point of surrender, as will liability for the performance of covenants in the lease. However, in the absence of an express release, both parties remain liable for breaches arising prior to the surrender. A lease surrender requires mutual agreement between the landlord and the tenant.

There are two types of surrender—express and implied:

•
express—which is achieved formally, in writing, usually by deed, although this is not always necessary
•
implied—also known as a surrender by operation of law, which occurs when the landlord and tenant by their unequivocal conduct demonstrate that they no longer regard the lease as continuing between them, see Practice Note: Surrender by operation of law.

Our Practice Notes in this topic provide both general guidance on lease surrenders and guidance on specific issues encountered in the course of a lease surrender, including guidance on:

•
key aspects of lease surrenders, eg:
1. ◦
  an explanation of what constitutes a lease surrender
2. ◦
  the differences between an express

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