Commercial Leasing

Many landlords and tenants feel that they do not need a commercial leasing lawyer to review their lease because a pre-printed “form lease” from a recognized real estate organization is being used.  This is a big mistake.  Form leases are drafted to protect a certain party or sector.  For example, the CAR forms are a product of the California Association of Realtors and are designed to protect the realtor or broker.  They are not appropriate forms for most commercial transactions.  Even using a pre-negotiated lease form, such as an AIR lease form, is tricky because one needs to know which lease form is appropriate.

  • Is the lease a triple net lease, a gross lease or a modified gross lease?
  • Is the space being leased a single tenant stand-alone building, or is it part of a multi-tenant building?
  • Is it a mixed use building or is it all office, or all retail?
  • Who will build out the space?

Office building leases

All of these questions need to be answered in order to select the appropriate lease form.  However, selecting the correct lease form is only the beginning.  The lease form needs to be modified to fit the terms of the specific transaction at hand.  Special attention needs to be given to ensure that all of the agreed-upon terms (usually as set forth in a fully executed Letter of Intent) have been properly incorporated.  Finally, the lease needs to be thoroughly reviewed and negotiated by a leasing attorney who understands liability, indemnity and insurance issues, how the various provisions of the lease interrelate, and what terms are “market” for a comparable transaction.

Our commercial leasing attorneys have all spent a significant number of years in “Big Law,” so we can provide Big Law expertise without the high cost. We represent a number of non-institutional developers and small to mid-sized real estate investors, along with numerous office, retail and industrial tenants.  We have negotiated several hundred thousand square feet of lease space in both the Northern California and Southern California markets.  Our areas of expertise include the review, negotiation and drafting of the following (with a specialty in the restaurant leasing arena):

  • Office, industrial and retail leases
  • Restaurant Leases
  • Medical facility leases
  • Ground Leases
  • Work Letter Agreements
  • Subordination, Non-Disturbance and Attornment Agreements
  • Recognition Agreements
  • Estoppel Certificates
  • Subleases
  • Amendments
  • Liquor License transfer documents
  • Asset Purchase Agreements
  • Conditional Use Permits
  • Letters of Intent

Commercial leasing of office space

We also assist our landlord and tenant clients with tough lease issues that arise in connection with the following, sometimes after the lease has been fully signed and partially performed:

  • Build-out of tenant space
  • Commencement Date
  • Security concerns
  • Permitting
  • Zoning
  • Conditional Use Permits
  • Recorded Covenants
  • Liability from alcohol sales
  • Insurance claims and litigation
  • Premises liability
  • Subleasing and Assignment
  • Change of Use
  • Exclusive Use Rights
  • Accessibility requirements
  • ADA issues

leases for office buildings

Some of our representative clients and transactions include the following:

  • Grammarly, tech company, various leases in downtown San Francisco and Kiev, Ukrainia
  • Capretto, upscale women’s clothing store lease in Newport Beach
  • One Taste, ground lease for 160-acre retreat and office space lease in Northern California
  • CoinOp San Francisco, video entertainment and restaurant space in San Francisco
  • Double Robotics, industrial lease in Burlingame, California
  • Jason’s Wine and Spirits, downtown Los Angeles lease
  • Ella Health, Sublease in San Francisco
  • Avila Health and Wellness Center, downtown Los Angeles lease
  • Spectrum Women’s Health Group, downtown Los Angeles lease
  • Reliant Immediate Medical Care Group, downtown Los Angeles lease
  • Raos, leases in Las Vegas and Los Angeles for iconic New York City Italian restaurant
  • Le petite Paris, Los Angeles French brasserie lease
  • Din Tai Fung, expansion of Taiwan-based chain dumpling restaurant into Western U.S.
  • County Wine Bar, San Francisco restaurant lease
  • Atelier Crenn, lease for Michellen 2-star restaurant in San Francisco
  • Jersey Mikes Subs, leases for nationwide chain
  • Domino’s Pizza, leases for nationwide chain
  • Republique, Los Angeles lease
  • Redbird, Los Angeles lease
  • Marix, lease issues for tex-mex restaurants, West Hollywood and Santa Monica
  • Good Girl Dinette, Vietnamese restaurant lease in Highland Park, CA
  • Baco Mercat, lease for Spanish fusion restaurant, Los Angeles
  • Ledlow, downtown Los Angeles lease
  • Bar Ama, lease for upscale Mexican Cantina in downtown Los Angeles
  • Brown Sugar Kitchen, leases for new soul food restaurant in San Francisco
  • Garage Pizza, downtown Los Angeles lease
  • Pitchoun Bakery, downtown Los Angeles, lease issues
  • BS Taqueria, downtown Los Angeles, lease issues
  • Holmes Bakehouse, Los Angeles (Larchmont) lease
  • Sushi Nozawa, lease for a “Sugarfish” restaurant in downtown Los Angeles
  • Orsa & Winston, lease for Asian-Italian fusion restaurant in downtown Los Angeles
  • The Waffle, lease for this new Jordan Kahn restaurant experience in Culver City
  • Humphrey Slocombe, gourmet ice cream leases
  • Tsubaki, Japanese izakaya restaurant leases in Echo Park and LA’s Chinatown
  • Verve Coffee Roasters, retail leases for regional gourmet coffee roaster