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ARTICLE · 24 FEBRUARY 2026

Landlord Considerations: To Term Or To Terminate

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On February 18, 2026, the Supreme Court of Canada will hear the appeal of Canada Life Assurance Company v Aphria Inc. [1] In this momentous hearing, the Court will be asked to decide whether commercial landlords...

CanadaReal Estate and Construction
Tamara Katz
Tamara Katz
Daniel Kuhnreich
Daniel Kuhnreich
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On February 18, 2026, the Supreme Court of Canada will hear the appeal of Canada Life Assurance Company v Aphria Inc.  1 In this momentous hearing, the Court will be asked to decide whether commercial landlords have an obligation to mitigate their damages when a tenant repudiates a commercial lease. Since the decision made in the Highway Properties case in 1971, the law has been settled that commercial landlords do not have a duty to mitigate if they insist on continued performance under the lease following a tenant's repudiation. 2 This appeal provides the Court with an opportunity to change that settled law and to obligate landlords to seek out new tenants during the term of an existing lease which has been repudiated.

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