9.23 A. Subleasing

• Jurisdiction: New York

A. Subleasing

Flexibility could be crucial to your client’s business in a changing and competitive business environment. Unless your client leases a tiny space or takes a very short lease-term—less than three years, for instance—negotiate for your client the right to sublease part of its space without the landlord’s approval. This allows a tenant to warehouse unneeded space but gives it the option of easily regaining the space from the subtenant.

In a very common approach to subleasing, the landlord’s draft lease requires ownership’s consent before a tenant may sublease and provides that the landlord must be “reasonable.” Define what this means. Companies interested in subleasing space are often looking for a quick, ready-to-go solution to their space needs. Prospective subtenants probably won’t wait while your client wrangles with the landlord over the terms under which...