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From time to time, clients ask counsel and brokers about the pros and cons of using an assignment versus a sublease to effect a transfer of possession and a transfer of obligations with respect to leased premises. With about equal frequency, questions come up regarding the differences between assignments and subleases, and ‘whether those differences really make a difference’ after all is said and done. While assignments and subleases are both means to achieve substantially similar ends, they do yield different legal and business results. The purpose of this paper is to explain and discuss some of the similarities and some of the distinctions between assignments and subleases, both from a legal perspective and from business and practical perspectives, and to discuss some of the reasons that the different parties involved in such transactions may prefer, or wish to select one of these transaction forms over the other.

No matter the size or scope of a biotech laboratory project, neither landlords nor tenants should rely on traditional ‘form’ documents to address the many complex leasing issues unique to this industry. When negotiating and documenting a biotech lab lease, five clauses warrant particular attention. ‐ Construction of tenant improvements: Build‐outs of lab space can be highly specialised and elaborate. Tenants will require detailed involvement in design and construction of improvements while landlords may limit, to the extent possible, tenant improvements to those that are financeable, resuable and ‘generic’. ‐ Security deposits: Greater security in the form of a deposit and letter of credit may be required to balance the potentially higher risks and longer terms of many biotech laboratory leases. ‐ Hazardous materials: Most biotech laboratories will work with hazardous materials. Specially tailored lease provisions can help limit liability and mitigate the potential costs of removal, remediation and litigation. ‐ Building services and utilities: Biotech users may require high levels of heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC), plumbing, electrical and janitorial services. Lease provisions for services and utilities should be tailored to the unique intended use of biotech premises. ‐ Assignment of sublease: Given the rapidly changing nature of the science, tenants may require added flexibility to sublease space or to assign the entire interest in the lease. Although these five clauses address only some of the many issues that landlords and tenants should consider in biotech lab leases, they have implications that echo throughout the lease.

The cost of occupying and utilising a real estate asset, whether leased or owned, if an important element of controlling corporate resources. Yet, the focus of corporate real estate departments is often in the areas of acquisitions, dispositions and facilities rather than cost control. This paper takes the reader through the methods of identifying and controlling costs as the transaction progresses through the real estate life cycle.

Even the most experienced and hardened negotiators tend to ‘lighten up’ when they step onto foreign soil. Current global conditions, however, allow for a systematic, diligent and professional approach to lease and purchase negotiations. This paper encourages corporate real estate professionals to do the right thing ‐ wherever they may be.

With strategies including flexible work practices, tenants are increasingly seeking flexibility in their physical office space and layouts. The purpose of this paper is to examine to what extent investors address tenants’ changing demand for office space with reference to layouts in new and existing office buildings.

A qualitative study comprising in-depth individual interviews with senior portfolio managers of all listed property trusts investing in the office sector in New Zealand was undertaken.

The findings confirmed property investors incorporate several adaptive and flexible space design and specifications in their modern office buildings to enhance space flexibility and functional efficiency. These include adaptive building structures, efficient floor plates, flexible building services, advanced IT networking, high-quality building amenities and modern building materials. Building structures and layouts are designed to be modified quickly and cost effectively to address tenants’ changing needs. Implications affecting tenant demand for flexible spaces on their lease contracts were also identified.

The findings from this research have implications for management of office space. Although the data were sourced with reference to buildings located in New Zealand only, the findings are applicable to office buildings in other countries.

The study provides an insight into design strategies adopted in modern office buildings to enhance space flexibility and functional efficiency. These findings are of practical application to professionals involved in the design, development, investment and valuation of modern office buildings.

The paper provides in-depth insights into how investors meet tenants’ changing demand for physical space which is linked to delivering improved and stable market-driven returns to investors.

The purpose of this paper is to highlight the practical difficulties resulting from the UK Court of Appeal's recent guidance on the effect of anti‐avoidance provisions in the Landlord and Tenant (Covenants) Act 1995.

The paper analyses the Court's guidance, focusing on the inability of a guarantor to take a valid assignment of a lease from the outgoing tenant.

The paper identifies significant implications for due diligence, valuation and pricing of property investments, arguing that the result could be to deprive landlords of access to covenant strength that is crucial to its valuation or to any sale price.

The paper reflects practitioner discussions since the Court of Appeal gave its ruling in K/S Victoria Street v. House of Fraser. It highlights significant new issues that must be factored into property due diligence.

As real estate departments and workplace organisations devote more attention to strategic planning, most of the work has focused on improving performance metrics and developing dashboards to communicate this information clearly and concisely. Yet these steps will take these organisations only part of the way. Once they have this information, they need to devote more time to developing strategies and plans. This review examines one of these activities ‐ developing high‐level occupancy plans. Representatives of the strategy and planning groups at ten leading corporations and the occupancy planning experts at seven service providers and system developers were interviewed for this survey. It was found that most firms continue to complete high‐level occupancy plans with tedious and time‐consuming data‐collection processes and spreadsheet analyses. These organisations could improve efficiency and the success of their plans in two ways: better analysis approaches and better data collection and organisation. This review summarises the best practices identified in these areas.

This paper aims to examine the English court's approach to the interpretation of rent review provisions in circumstances where the words used by the parties may produce a commercially unforeseen or undesirable result. It emphasises that, while the court has wide discretion to adopt a purposive approach, and to interpret an agreement in a way that produces a result in accordance with “business common sense”, there must first be some ambiguity in the wording. The court cannot rewrite a contract where the parties simply failed to foresee or to provide for unexpected market conditions (here, a “double‐dip” fall in rental values).

The paper examines the Court of Appeal ruling in Scottish Widows v. BGC International [2012] EWCA Civ 607 as an example of the limits of the court's ability to arrive at commercially sensible results through purposive interpretation.

It concludes that where a clause has been drafted by experienced and skilled solicitors, the court is unlikely to intervene unless it is clear that there is a mistake in the language or syntax. The court will not rewrite an agreement where the parties did not anticipate adverse market factors.

The paper identifies the key factors taken into account when the court is considering either interpretation or rectification of a clause that has produced a commercially undesirable result. It also discusses the extent to which pre‐contractual negotiations may be relevant to interpretation or rectification of a contract.

The paper sets out the author's reading as a commercial real estate practitioner of key judicial dicta on the interpretation and effect of rent provisions.

As the property market falters, corporate occupiers are increasingly finding themselves in the uncomfortable role of ‘The Reluctant Landlord®’, with surplus property and subtenants. When you are facing both sides of the landlord‐tenant equation, what strategies can you use to limit the damage to cash flow and to avoid the costly legal pitfalls awaiting you if you get it wrong?

The purpose of this paper is to look at the problem caused by the operation of break clauses contained in commercial leases – a predominantly UK phenomenon, a consequence of longer lease terms.

The pitfalls that can befall a corporate occupier are numerous and the authors of this paper share some of their recent experiences to highlight issues that can arise and how a Corporate Real Estate Manager or advisor can avoid or minimise those risks.

For corporate occupiers, the operation of a break clause can be fraught with difficulty and its successful implementation requires a strategy to be put in place well in advance of the break date.

The paper shows how turmoil in the wider financial market could make the flexibility that breaks offer very important to certain businesses.