Commercial leases call for the landlord’s discretion in many instances; three of these instances are very important to all tenants:

1. Any changes to the premises
2. The “use” clause for the premises
3. Any change in the makeup of the tenant(s)

All of these require a quick and efficient answer without the tenant spending time, money, and other resources waiting for a court to determine if the landlord was reasonable or acting properly under the lease. Too often, attorneys overlook these problems and leave them for another day. However, if you are a tenant and you need your landlord’s approval for any of these important areas, you cannot wait for a judge to tell you the landlord was right or wrong in denying consent. There are “quick, mini-trial” procedures in arbitration that solve these problems. Therefore, you should insist upon quick arbitration in these subject areas in both your letters of intent and your definitive leases. Contact Weiss LLP for further advice.