Landlord and Tenant: Delivery of Possession and Title Covenants

This lesson examines the duty of the landlord to deliver possession of the leased premises to the tenant. Courts have split as to whether the landlord has an implied duty to deliver actual physical possession of the property. Express lease provisions that bear on the delivery of possession are also considered. There is also a short discussion of a related topic: covenants of title in leases.

Learning Outcomes

On completion of the lesson, the student will be able to:

1. State the two primary implied common law rules regarding the landlord’s duty to deliver possession to the tenant at the start of a lease.
2. Explain the justifications for the American rule.
3. Explain the justifications for the English rule.
4. Compare the results of applying the two primary implied common law rules regarding the landlord’s duty to deliver possession to the tenant at the start of a lease, to resolve conflicting claims to possession.
5. Relate the primary remedies potentially available to a tenant when the landlord breaches the duty to deliver possession to a tenant at the beginning of a lease.
6. State the implied common law rule regarding title covenants in a lease.
7. Explain the impact of the covenant of quiet enjoyment on the landlord’s duty to deliver possession.
8. Analyze the impact of back-to-back leases on the landlord’s duty to deliver possession.