Sorainen has successfully represented a Lithuanian company owned by the W. P. Carey fund in its claim that Kesko Senukai Lithuania had wrongly failed to pay it rent for its use of a logistics center in the Kaunas district of Lithuania.
The Kaunas Regional Court ordered Kesko Senukai Lithuania to pay back rent of EUR 537,517 plus 6% procedural interest. In doing so, Sorainen reports, "the court found that the logistics center was fit for use during the disputed period, March-May 2020, and ruled that the landlord was not responsible for the tenant’s inability to use the leased premises."
Sorainen Partner Kestutis Adamonis, who co-led the firm's team representing the claimant, explained the verdict: “The court ruled that the tenant’s right to request a rent reduction can be exercised only if the site is defective, not when tenant’s activity in the site is restricted. This interpretation is important in assessing the responsibilities of a landlord and a tenant in a commercial property leasing relationship. During quarantine, the physical properties of the real estate sites did not change; they could and in many cases were used for their intended purpose. The fact that the tenant’s activities were restricted or limited by the Government did not affect the properties of the real estate, so the obligation to pay the rent did not change."
In addition to Adamonis, the firm's team included Partner Kestutis Svirinas and Senior Associates Ausra Gauryte and Ieva Rimaviciene.
Editor’s Note: On February 22, 2023, Sorainen announced it had obtained a favorable decision for the W.P. Carey-owned company before The Lithuanian Supreme Court. The firm’s updated team included Partners Kestutis Adamonis and Kestutis Svirinas, Senior Associates Ausra Gauryte and Ieva Rimaviciene, and Associate Domante Lunyte.
