Rebus” applied with a 40% reduction in rent for 20 months

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Applying the rebus sic stantibus clause , the Court of First Instance and Instruction No. 7 of Palencia has agreed, for the benefit of the tenant of a business premises (gym) affected by Covid-19 restrictions, to reduce the rent by 40% and proportional part of the IBI to be paid to the owner, from April 2020 to November 2021. It is undeniable that the health crisis caused by Covid-19 has led to an economic crisis that has especially affected the services sector. The ruling, dated September 13, 2021, is now final .

Positions of the parties On the one hand, the plaintiff, tenant of the business premises used as a gym (oriented to the practice of contact sports activities), was interested in the application of the rebus sic stantibus Phone Number Data clause to the lease contract for use other than housing signed in April. of 2016 and requested that the reduction, between 20 and 40% , of the income and the proportional part of the IBI from April 2020 to December 2021 be agreed upon, among a range of options. "The profit and loss account from January to December 2020 ended with a negative result of 18,750.53 euros."



(Photo: E&J) To support her position, the tenant reports that, as a result of the regional and national regulations issued during the first months of the pandemic , she was forced to close the sports facilities, causing non-payment of the premises' rent and causing a significant debt with the tenants. lessors. On the other hand, the defendant opposed what was stated by the plaintiff and recalled that the litigated lease contract, in its first clause, already made it possible for the tenant, after the first year and without any penalty, to terminate the aforementioned contract . However, this never happened. Along the same lines, the defendant warned about the imbalance that could occur if the tenant's proposal were heeded, since it would even be accepting the existence of unjust enrichment , since the landlord would be forced to pay the IBI in addition to the VAT tax burden.