Category: Real Property Law

Coinmach Corporation v. Murnick

LEASES; DEFAULTS; NOTICE—A general lease provision requiring a notice of default is overridden by a specific lease provision allowing for immediate termination by notice to a tenant that its rent is due and unpaid.

• Opinion Date: October 2, 2001

Sharut Furniture, Inc. v. Vornado Realty Trust

LEASES; CONSTRUCTIVE EVICTION—A tenant found to have been constructively evicted from its premises under one lease may also be deemed constructively evicted under related leases where it was contemplated that use of the first premises was needed to enjoy the benefit of the space occupied under the other leases.

• Opinion Date: November 28, 2001

Collignon v. Levy

LEASES; CORPORATIONS; PERSONAL LIABILITY—A corporation is a corporate tenant even if a landlord reasonably believes it is dealing with an individual tenant, liability for rent lies with the corporation not with its individual officer.

• Opinion Date: December 18, 2001

Oak Tree Village v. Thompson

LEASES; ATTORNEYS FEES—A tenant may contractually agree to pay reasonable legal fees related to an eviction.

• Opinion Date: April 23, 2001

Ryder v. Ocean County Mall

LANDOWNER’S LIABILITY; NEGLIGENCE—A shopping mall that operates a food court is presumed to have notice that spills of food and drink are likely to occur even outside of the food court.

• Opinion Date: June 1, 2001

Liu v. Top Glass Contractors Company

LANDOWNER’S LIABILITY; CONTRACTORS—A landowner has no duty to protect an employee of an independent contractor from the very hazards or dangers emanating from performance of the contracted work unless the owner exercises some degree of involvement in or control over the work.

• Opinion Date: April 12, 2001

Pfenninger v. Hunterdon Central Regional High School

LANDOWNER’S LIABILITY; CONTRACTORS—Even though neither a landowner nor a contractor usually has duties to protect a subcontractor’s employee from the very hazards created by the performance of the subcontracted work, where there is evidence of some participation, interference or exercise of some control over the work, a duty of care may fairly be imposed.

• Opinion Date: March 13, 2001

Vasquez v. Brock

LANDOWNER’S LIABILITY—Where a property owner hires a seemingly responsible tree removal contractor and an inadequately trained worker is killed when hit by a falling tree, the owner is not liable for the death because the worker was killed in the performance of the precise work that it had been hired to do, even if cutting down trees could be construed to be inherently dangerous.

• Opinion Date: December 19, 2001

Rura v. Bennett

LANDLORD-TENANT; SECURITY DEPOSITS—The statutory limit for residential security deposits is one and one half month’s rent and a landlord cannot insist on an enhancement for special reasons such as the presence of a dog.

• Opinion Date: January 12, 2001

Deb Associates v. Pollack

LANDLORD-TENANT; SECTION 8—Landlords are required to accept Section 8 tenants and cannot thwart the Section 8 program by refusing to execute the program’s necessary documents.

• Opinion Date: April 27, 2001