A vexing issue in retail and commercial leasing has been the extent to which a restriction on the permitted use in a lease can prevent the Retail Leases Act 2003 (Vic) (RLA 2003) from applying. The decision in Sofos v Coburn (1992) V ConvR 54-439 suggests that the Act will not apply when the lease […]

This question has vexed the leasing community for some time, and has recently been addressed (in part at least) by a VCAT decision that was published in the last week or so. There are, by and large, two questions: Does the Retail Leases Act 2003 (Vic) continue to apply to the lease if, say, the […]

Many readers will be familiar with the Ministerial determination that excludes lease with a term of 15 years or more (and certain other related leases) from the Retail Leases Act 2003 (Vic).  For those who are not, a copy of that determination is available by following the link here. The 15 year determination has been a […]

With land tax increasing and its consequential effect on rent, more and more tenants are turning their minds to the question of whether the Retail Leases Act 2003 (Vic) applies to their leases. A few month ago, fellow barrister Ben Kelly and I presented a paper on this topic to the Legal Practitioners Liability Committee. […]

In the recent decision of Paramount Investments Group Pty Ltd v Club Fogolar Furlan Melbourne [2025] VSC 90, Croft J in the Supreme Court considered VCAT’s power to vary conditions on an order for relief against forfeiture after the order was made and after the tenant had failed to comply with the conditions.  His Honour […]

A number of readers have told me that are interested in following developments in the Wollert Lifestyle Community case, discussed in an earlier post here, and have requested updates on the case as it develops. For those who are following the case, the respondents applied to VCAT for a stay of the Tribunal’s orders until hearing […]

A group of residents were successful this week in an application brought against the operators of the Wollert Lifestyle Community (Lifestyle).  The application concerned the validity of exit fees in residents’ Residential Site Agreements (RSA) and covenants that allow rent to be charged after a resident dies.   Residents typically buy a home from Lifestyle and […]

Tenants with rent in arrears often try to reduce those arrears by setting them off against some other claim against the landlord. This has caused many landlords to introduce covenants that require the rent to be paid ‘without deductions’ or words to that effect. While a contractual exclusion of set-off is generally effective, in the […]

In the decision of Aldi Foods Pty Ltd v Northcote Shopping Centre Pty Ltd [2024] VSC 799 handed down this morning, Croft J has held that ‘caps’, or upper limits on rent reviews are permitted by sub-s 35(2) of the Retail Leases Act 2003 (Vic). This decision overturns the VCAT decision in Northcote Shopping Centre Pty Ltd v […]

In a decision handed down this week, the Tribunal held that an obligation in a retail premises lease to repaint and re-carpet periodically is not inconsistent with the landlord’s obligation to maintain the premises under s 52 of the RLA 2003.   In the decision of Deng and Deng Pty Ltd v McPhee and Anor […]