Tenant lease portfolio management

Our specialist team of solicitors is focused on tenant lease portfolio management in the real estate sector. We support well-known brands and household names such as FatFace, Burger King and Lidl, helping them deliver real estate solutions in support of their core business. Many of our clients have a large portfolio of leased premises, which can include retail stores, leisure destinations, corporate premises, branch offices, or warehouse storage and distribution.

We can help you maximise your property portfolio, however your premises are used. From large portfolio restructuring projects to one off advice on a dispute with your landlord, our expert team has the knowledge and experience you require to help your business succeed. We will work hard to understand your business and to come up with commercial solutions, tailored to making your portfolio work for you.

Our clients include: FatFace, Farrow & Ball, Burger King, Orvis, Turtle Bay, Lidl, The Cornish Bakery Shops.

Areas of expertise

We cover all aspects of the tenant and landlord relationship to assist you in the management of your lease portfolio. These include:

• Reviewing and advising on heads of terms
• Negotiating leases inside and outside the 1954 Act
• Collateral security including rent deposits and guarantors
• Day to day requests to landlords including alienation, alteration and temporary licences
• Variation of leases
• Landlord disputes and serving notices – 1954 Act notices, lease termination and break notices
• Dilapidations settlement
• Landlord and tenant insolvency events including handling liquidations, administrations and Company Voluntary Arrangements
• Acquisitions and disposals of leasehold assets and portfolios
• Planning, environmental and health and safety advice

Recent work highlights

FatFace

We advised FatFace Limited in respect of the negotiation and completion of an agreement for lease and lease together with connected licence for alterations and storage licence at a prestigious new retail premises within the St. Pancras International Station, London. This included full due diligence against the demise and amendments to transaction documentation to best protect the client’s interests.

We also acted on behalf of FatFace Limited on a large number of occasions regarding multiple of their stores in dealing with documenting separate agreements reached in light of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The work included advising on and negotiating and completion side letters, deeds of variation, reversionary leases and lease renewals of existing store leases, often on a time critical basis. We also advised on throughout on real estate legal points to assist the client in the challenging and changeable current economic climate.

Lidl UK

One of our clients acquired the entire business of Lidl UK GmbH, necessitating the transfer of all that company’s property assets – freehold and leasehold. The matter entailed liaising with mortgagees, landlords, and others. We drafted all of the transfers, SDLT returns, Land Registry forms and approved all necessary licences to assign.

Farrow & Ball

Clarke Willmott has acted on behalf of Farrow & Ball in negotiating, approving and completing a lease and ancillary side letter for a Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 contested lease renewal for showroom premises in Oxford.

Orvis

We are the sole legal advisers to Orvis. Working closely with the Board and external surveyors we play an active role in the management of Orvis’ retail stores and warehouse. Examples of our work includes lease renewals, strategic advice on store closures, including dilapidations and other liabilities towards lease end, resisting a landlord’s claim for fees for a fire escape licence and various rent reviews.

Our commitment to you

• Tailored service to suit you and your agents
• Partner led with clear and regular communication
• Fair and competitive fixed fee pricing
• Effective cost management throughout
• Proactive can-do attitude
• Added value through training, resources and technology

What our clients say about us

“The team has a very accessible and can-do attitude.” The Legal 500 2022

“The team at Clarke Willmott are very efficient, thorough with their communication and are very approachable.” The Legal 500 2022

“Graham McIntyre is well respected in the market and offers considerable experience handling a wide range of substantial disputes as well as portfolio management matters. He frequently acts on behalf of a roster of leading developers, investors and retail sector clients” Chambers UK 2020

“William Juckes regularly leads on portfolio management work and commentators refer to him as a ‘well-respected’ name in the market. He counts restaurant and retail chains among his clients.” Chambers UK 2019

Contact us

For further advice and guidance please contact one of our lawyers directly, call us on 0800 652 8205 or get in touch online.