Retail Lease Lawyer Adelaide
Retail lease lawyers for Adelaide businesses. We review and draft retail shop leases for landlords and tenants under the Retail and Commercial Leases Act 1995 (SA).
- Fixed fee lease review.
- Disclosure statements and minimum term certificates.
- Online, no need to come in.
We act for landlords and tenants of South Australian shops, wherever their business is based.
What the SA Act requires
The Act applies to most leases of retail shops, including shops in shopping centres. A lease can’t contract out of it. The main rules are:
- Disclosure statement. The landlord must give you a disclosure statement and a copy of the proposed lease before you enter the lease.
- Minimum 5-year term. The term, including options, must be at least 5 years. You can agree to less through a certified exclusionary clause, certified before you sign by a solicitor independent of the landlord or by the Small Business Commissioner.
- Outgoings. The landlord must give you a written, itemised estimate of outgoings before the lease and before each accounting period, and an audited statement of what was spent after each period.
- Assignment. When you sell the business, the landlord can refuse consent to an assignment only on the grounds the Act lists, such as a proposed change of use or a buyer unlikely to meet the lease’s financial obligations.
Does the Act cover your lease?
Not every shop lease is covered. Leases with rent above an amount set by the regulations, and some tenants such as listed public companies, fall outside the Act. If yours does, only the terms of the lease apply. We confirm which applies before we advise.
Advice on the lease you’ve been offered
For tenants, we review the lease and the disclosure statement together and check that they match. We look at rent and rent reviews, outgoings, make good, the personal guarantee, options and assignment.
If the term is under 5 years, we explain what you’d give up by excluding the minimum and can give the certificate, as long as we aren’t acting for the landlord. You get written advice and a list of points to raise with the landlord.
Preparing a lease and disclosure statement
For landlords, we draft the lease and the disclosure statement, and tell you when they must go to the tenant. We set up the outgoings clauses so that they match what you’ll report each year.
If you’re offering a term under 5 years, the lease needs a certified exclusionary clause. The certificate must come from a solicitor not acting for you, or from the Small Business Commissioner, before the tenant signs. We tell you what to ask for.
Disputes
The Small Business Commission SA offers mediation for retail tenancy disputes. If mediation doesn’t resolve the dispute, claims under the Act go to the Magistrates Court.
Questions
Something else? Enquire online or email us.
Can I agree to a lease shorter than 5 years?
Yes, if the lease has a certified exclusionary clause. Before you enter the lease, a solicitor who isn't acting for the landlord, or the Small Business Commissioner, certifies that you were told you'd otherwise be entitled to a 5-year term and weren't pressured into agreeing. Without it, the 5-year minimum applies.
Does the Act cover commercial leases too?
Despite its name, the Act mainly regulates retail shop leases. An office or industrial lease is usually outside it. We tell you whether yours is covered.
Taking on or granting a retail lease?
Send us the lease and the disclosure statement, or the terms you've agreed, and we'll tell you the next step.
- Fixed fees.
- Online, Australia-wide.
- Landlords and tenants.