Commercial rent recovery webinar – where do we go from here?

In our last update on this topic, we discussed the Government’s proposed arbitration scheme, and, although further details of the scheme are yet to emerge, we have since had a couple of interesting developments from the Courts:

• The decision of the High Court in London Trocadero (2015) LLP v Picturehouse Cinemas Ltd, where another tenant failed to persuade the judge that it should not be required to pay pandemic-related rent arrears. Notably, one of the arguments rejected by the Court was that the claim should be stayed pending the introduction of the arbitration scheme.
• The reports that permission has been granted for decision of the High Court in Bank of New York Mellon (International) Limited v Cine-UK Limited to be appealed to the Court of Appeal. This was the case which found, amongst other things, that rent suspension clauses which require damage or destruction to premises will not be triggered by forced closures during the pandemic, even if the landlord has insured against that particular risk.

So where do we go from here? Pending the decision of Court of Appeal, and the formal introduction of the Government’s arbitration scheme, what is the best approach for landlords and tenants to adopt when trying to resolve disputes over rent arrears?

To help answer those tricky questions, we’re delighted that Nicholas Trompeter QC (who was counsel for the successful landlord in the Trocadero case) will be joining Adam Osieke from our Real Estate Dispute Resolution Team in the latest of our webinars taking place on 11 November 2021.

When: 11/11/2021 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM GMT

Register: Commercial rent recovery webinar – where do we go from here? (kennedyslaw.com)