Following on from previous articles on the same, this in-depth update from Property and Commercial Special Counsel Alex Bentancor takes a look at the current Retail and Commercial Lease landscape within NSW, as we move into another year of the COVID-19 Pandemic.

This piece covers a range of relevant information for commercial and retail landlords, as well as tenants, including:

• Retail and Other Commercial Leases (COVID-19) Amendment Regulation 2021 (‘2021 Regulations’);
• Retail and Other Commercial Leases (COVID-19) Regulation 2022 (‘2022 Regulations’);
• “Leasing Principles” to be followed by landlords;
• Prescribed Actions by landlords that are prohibited by the Code; and
• Amended 2021 Regulations.

Retail and Commercial tenants in NSW are likely familiar with the operation of the provisions of the National Cabinet Mandatory Code of Conduct – SME Commercial Leasing Principles and the NSW Government’s regulations that followed to give effect to the Code in response to COVID-19 pandemic during 2020 and, for some tenants, the first quarter of 2021.

This piece includes a summary of the Code and the regulations that were made to give legal effect to the Code from April to December 2020 and, to a more limited extent, the first quarter of 2021.

As a lawyer primarily focused on Property and Financial matters, clients often ask me: what's better - a bank guarantee or a security bond?  

As with many questions posed by clients, the answer is entirely dependent on who is asking - and in turn, their individual circumstances. 

Let's take a look at the differences.

On 24 April 2020, the NSW Government enacted the Retail and Other Commercial Leases (COVID-19) Regulation 2020 to implement the Lease Code of Conduct. 

The Regulation applied for a period of six-months, ending on 24 October 2020 - on which date the NSW Government extended the protections for eligible tenants to 31 December 2020.