Part 34 published on 01/05/11
Tenant responsible for costs payable to condominium corporation (by landlord) due to tenant’s breach of “no pets” provision in declaration
The defendant (tenant) leased a unit owned by the plaintiff (landlord). The condominium’s declaration contained a “no pets” provision. The tenant’s lease also said that the tenant agreed not to keep any pets in the unit and to abide by the rules and regulations of the condominium corporation. The tenant brought a pet into the unit, and relied upon Section 14 of the Residential Tenancies Act, 2006 which states as follows:
“A provision in a tenancy agreement prohibiting the presence of animals in or about a residential complex is void.”
The condominium corporation sought the assistance of its legal counsel, in order to enforce the “no pets” provision in the corporation’s declaration. Ultimately, the tenant agreed to move out of the unit. However, in the interim the condominium corporation had incurred considerable legal costs, which were claimed from the landlord. The landlord sought to recover those amounts from the tenant. The Court said that the tenant was obligated to pay any amounts owed by the landlord to the condominium corporation. [The Court did not determine the amount owed, in case either party wished to assess the accounts of the condominium’s lawyers.]
The Court said that the tenant’s actions “triggered the events that generated the legal fees incurred by the condominium corporation, which in turn were charged to the (landlord)”.