What Does Vacant Possession Mean?

The recent court of appeal decision in the case of Capitol Park Leeds Plc v Global Radio Services Ltd in June 2021 considered the meaning of vacant possession and whether a tenant can be in breach of contract by removing items from the premises that make up the building itself.

Background

In 2017 the tenant, Global Radio Services, served a break notice to terminate their lease of the premises. One of the conditions of exercising the break notice was that the tenant had to give vacant possession of the premises.

Discussions were held between the parties regarding potential dilapidation issues, but the discussions broke down without agreement between the parties. By the termination date the tenant had stripped out a range of items from the premises including ceiling grids, ceiling tiles, fire barriers, window sills, ventilation duct work, office lighting, smoke detection system, emergency lighting and radiators.