Pennsylvania Co. for Insuring Lives & Granting Annuities v. Bodek
Pennsylvania Co. for Insuring Lives & Granting Annuities v. Bodek
Opinion of the Court
Opinion by
This was an action by a landlord against a tenant to recover rent for an unexpired term. The premises were destroyed by fire and thus became untenantable. The tenant claims that he is exonerated from the payment of rent by reason of the landlord' not keeping the covenants of the lease. The clauses of the lease that bear upon the question involved are as follows: “The lessee shall keep, and at the expiration of the term peaceably deliver up the premises, in the like good order, condition and repair they now are, ordinary wear and tear and casualties by fire and unavoidable accident alone excepted.” “No repairs of any sort or kind are to be done in and about the premises, during the lease, by the lessor, saving that the roof will not be required to be repaired by the lessee. The lessor, however, assumes no responsibility to the lessee in case of nonrepair to the roof, or for any damages resulting from such nonrepair.”
The basis of the appellants’ contention is, that under the language above quoted, the landlord binds itself to repair the roof, and that the roof having been destroyed by fire, the landlord in failing to replace it absolved the tenant from paying rent; that the landlord itself must perform all its obligations under the lease before it be
We think the learned court was correct in concluding that the defense put up by the appellant could not be maintained, and that judgment was entered properly.
Judgment affirmed.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- The Pennsylvania Company for Insuring Lives and Granting Annuities, Trustee, Etc. v. Bodek
- Cited By
- 4 cases
- Status
- Published
- Syllabus
- Landlord and tenant — Leases—Destruction of premises by fire— Liability for rent. In the absence of an express agreement there is no implied obligation on a landlord to repair demised premises. The destruction of the premises by fire does not exonerate the tenant from the payment of rent, on the ground that the landlord did not keep the property in repair. A clause in a lease providing that “No repairs of any sort or kind are to be done in and about the premises, during the lease, by the lessor, saving that the roof will not be required to be repaired by the lessee. The lessor, however, assumes no responsibility to the lessee in case of nonrepair to the roof, or for any damages resulting from such nonrepair,” did not constitute any obligation on the part of the landlord to repair the roof. Such a provision only excused the tenant from any duty to repair the roof.