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The Landlord and Tenant Act 1954: Ending and renewing business tenancies

In 2008 we find ourselves in an economic downturn that is affecting commercial projects. The Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 (“the Act”) was introduced over 50 years ago in a struggling economy to encourage new businesses to set up by alleviating business tenants ‘end of term’ concerns.

Whilst the provisions of the Act have been watered down since their initial post-war introduction, the aim of the Act remains the same: to incentivise entrepreneurs and stimulate the economy by providing security for business tenants.

The provisions of the Act and later reforms are strict and technical in nature and continue to be interpreted and applied by the courts in this way. 

What should be done.

Consideration should be given well before the expiry of the contractual term of any tenancy by both the landlord and tenant and legal advice should be sought as to how to accommodate the requirements of the party or parties seeking to rely upon the provisions of the Act, even if this is simply to understand the implications of holding over for both the landlord and the tenant.

Subject to the tenancy not being legally excluded from the Act at the outset, the landlord, tenant and each parties’ legal advisors should initially consider whether the tenancy is still a tenancy which is protected under the provisions of the Act. This consideration is often overlooked.

To benefit from the protection of the Act, the property included in the tenancy must be occupied by the tenant for the purposes of a business. This short definition whilst appearing clear and uncontentious has been and continues to be the subject of  numerous landlord and tenant disputes and continues to be a litigious area of law.

Specific advice on this and any other aspect of commercial property law can be provided by our specialist commercial property team.

Contact Us.

If you have any queries or questions about your business tenancy or any other property-related issue, please do not hesitate to contact Michael Pitt within our commercial property team on 0161 785 3500 or email: .

Or click here to contact to a specialist property lawyer.

Notes to Editors.

Pearson Hinchliffe Commercial Law is a commercial law practice providing a range of legal services to business and commercial clients in Manchester, Oldham and across the North West. The firm's specialities include Company & Commercial, Employment Law, Commercial Litigation and Commercial Property matters.

As one of the leading law firms in the North of England, Pearson Hinchliffe’s mission is to be ‘the complete law firm’ providing the highest quality legal services to its clients. It does this by offering practical and cost effective, high quality legal advice for a wide range of clients.  Each client is catered for as an individual with their business and personal requirements taken into account which allows for a highly personalised service.

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