My colleague Matthew McCarthy from the firm McCarthy Lawyers has pointed out that the May 2021 revision of the LIV standard lease seeks to fix the problems discussed in my previous post here. Clause 12.2 of the new revision states that: 12.2     The lease for a further term: … 12.2.2. has a starting rent determined in accordance with […]

There is a construction issue that keeps coming up in retail and commercial leasing cases about whether a market rent review is required at the commencement of a new term in the standard LIV copyright lease when the Schedule says there are no market reviews.  Different versions of the same issue keep cropping in different version […]

Until recently, there were no cases about s 35 of the RLA 2003 – and now there are two in the last few weeks! The first held case that a clause that reviews the rent by CPI with a ‘cap’ did not comply with sub-s 35(2) of the RLA 2003.  The second held that a rent […]

Justice Quigley, sitting as the President of VCAT, sitting with Deputy President Wilson confirmed on Friday that VCAT is bound by the decision of Lanigan v Circus Oz & Ors [2022] VSC 35, in which McDonald J held that proceedings in VCAT were not an ‘action’ for the purposes of s 5 of the Limitation of Actions Act 1958 (Vic)(Limitation Act).   […]

Some amendments to the Retail Leases Regulations 2022 (Vic) have been published that come into effect on 1 December 2022. A copy of the amending regulations is attached to this post. The amendments bring in some changes to landlord’s disclosure statements. I suggest that practitioners check the Victorian Government legislation website to see when the […]

Remember when all we had to think about was whether or not a lease was retail and there was no such thing as the CTRS to occupy our minds on a Friday afternoon?  Well, as we return to a post-Covid normal we can start thinking about these things again. For those who need a refresher, have […]

The Victorian Supreme Court has announced that it has started a dedicated commercial and retail leases list to promote an efficient approach to the management of commercial and retail lease disputes. The Judge in charge of the list is Justice M Osborne. The list will deal with disputes involving commercial leases that are issued at […]

In the recent decision of Lanigan v Circus Oz & Ors [2022] VSC 35, McDonald J in the Supreme Court of Victoria held that VCAT was not a Court for the purposes of the Limitation of Actions Act 1958 (Vic)(Limitation Act) and, as a result, the limitations periods imposed by that statute did not apply to proceedings issued […]

Ok, so maybe RTG is pushing it, but … … the Frequently Asked Questions on the website of the Victorian Small Business Commission are … Ready To Go … They are available here: https://www.vsbc.vic.gov.au/fact-sheets-and-resources/faqs/ The FAQs have been a great resource during the CTRS, and all readers should have a look at them as they […]

The new CTRS Regulations are based on the Commercial Tenancy Relief Scheme Regulations 2021 (Vic) and largely mirror those regulations.  However, there are some notable changes. My first comments on the new CTRS Regs are: The new regulations cover the period 16 January 2022 to 15 March 2022. The extension applies only to tenants or corporate groups with […]