TENANT AND LANDLORD. The word tenant, in the more limited legal sense, which is also the popular sense, is one who holds land under another, to whom he is bound to pay rent, and who is called his landlord. The word Land means not only land itself, but also all things, such as buildings, houses, woods, and water, which may be upon it. Any one who has an estate in land, provided he is also in possession, may let the land to another. Where the letting takes place by an express contract between the parties, the contract is called a Lease, the nature of which is explained generally under LEASE.
But the relation of landlord and tenant may be created otherwise than by a formal lease. If one man with the consent of another occu pies his land, a contract of letting is assumed to have been made between them, and the occupier becomes tenant at will to the owner. Such tenants are, after payments of rent as in annual tenancies, con sidered to be upon the same footing as if the lands had been let to them for a year dating from the commencement of their occupation. And at the end of the first year, a second year's tenancy begins, unless six months notice of the intention to determine the contract has been given by either party to the other, and so on from year to year. The same rule of law applies to cases where a tenant continues to occupy land after the expiration of a lease made by deed ; but in this case all the covenants of the expired lease as to payment of rent, repairs, insurance, and the like, are in force unless the lease is cancelled by destroying the seal; and even if there should be a verbal agreement for a different rent, still the old covenants subsist, unless the lease is cancelled. [DEED.] In every case where the relation of landlord and tenant exists, either by express or by implied contract, certain terms are implied by law to have been agreed upon by the parties as forming part of the con tract. It is of course in the power of the parties, where the contract is express, to qualify these terms so implied by the language of the contract itself. But it may be -observed that as these terms are comprehensive in their nature, and distinctly understood in law, the interests of parties are often better consulted by leaving them to the general protection afforded by these implied terms than by attempts to define by enumeration in detail the respective rights and duties of the landlord and tenant. The terms implied on the part of the landlord are, that the tenant shall quietly enjoy the premises without let or hindrance from the landlord ; on the part of the tenant, that he will pay rent, keep the premises in repair to a certain extent, and use the land, &c. in a fair and husbandlike manner.
When the landlord is himself tenant of the premises to a superior landlord, and neglects to pay his rent, and the occupying tenant is called upon to pay it to the superior landlord, he may do so, and set it off against the rent due from him to his own landlord. If a tenant has covenanted without exception or reservation to pay rent during the term for which the lease has been granted to him, he will be bound to pay it even if the premises should be destroyed by fire or other casualty. If he should have assigned his lease to another and ceased to be in possession, he will still remain liable under his covenant to pay rent.
The rules of law as to the repairs of premises may be determined by the terms of the lease. If they are not determined by the terms of the lease, they are somewhat uncertain and depend on a variety' of circumstances, which are laid down in law treatises.
No tenant, in the absence of an agreement to that effect, is bound to rebuild after accidental destruction of the premises by fire. But under a general covenant to repair, and leare repaired, the tenant is bound to rebuild even in the case of destruction by fire.
In agricultural tenancies the lease generally determines the mode in which the farm is to be treated. [LEAsE.] Unless also the lease expressly or impliedly excludes the operation of the custom of the country, the tenant is bound to conform to it. The custom of the country means the general practice employed in neighbouring farms of a similar description, with reference to rotation of crops, keeping up fences, and other like matters. In leases of fume it u often the practice to protect the Landlord against certain acts of the tenant, such as ploughing up meadow Land, &c., by introducing certain provisions into the lease. Thee previsions may operate according to the phraseo logy mined, either to assign a penalty or to determine the liquidated damages agreed to be paid for the act done. It is often a matter of great importance and of some nicety to determine under which elms the provisions fall. If under the first, the landlord is not untitled to the whole penalty upon the act being done, but he can only recover in an action the amount of the actual damage which has accrued. If under the second, be Is entitled to the whole amount of the damages agreed on. A covenant by a tenant not to plough up meadow under a penalty of U. for every acre ploughed, is an instance of the first class : covenant to pay 5/. rent for every acre of meadow ploughed up, is of the second class. The right to timber and timber-like trees belongs to the landlord ; loppings of pollarals and bushes, to the tenant. Different definitions prevail in different counties of timber and timber-like trees, nod various customs prevail as to what amount of wood the tenant may be allowed to employ (after the landlord has been called on to select it) for the purposes of the farm. No tenant, unless ho employe the WO as a nurseryman or gardener, can remove any kind of Bluets from the soil. Neither can a tenant remove fixtures, though put down by himself. A fixture is a chattel which is let Into the soil, or united to some other which is let in. There are sonie exceptions to this rule in favour of fixtures used for the purpose of trade or agriculture, or merely ornamental purposes, where the removal will cause little or no damage. (Amos and Ferard,' On Fixtures.') The tenant in occupation of the premises is, in the first instance, liable for all taxes and rates of every description due in respect of the premises. The party, therefore, who in authorised to collect them may proceed against the tenant in occupation to recover them. It is generally a matter of agreement between the landlord and tenant that the tenant Anil pay all rates and taxes except the land tax ; and some times it is agreed that the landlord shall pay the sewer rate also. IL however, the landlord has undertaken to pay the tenant the rates and taxes, and fails to do so, the tenant may deduct the amount from his rent, or bring an action to recover it ; but this should be done during the current year, and if the tenant allows a considerable time to elapse without claiming a deduction or bringing an action, he will be held to have waived his claim to recover them from, the landlord.