Eviction of a sub-tenant

The landlord who owns a building in Montreal but who lives permanently in France alleges that her tenant sub-rented his unit for a period longer than 12 months. The building is managed by the landlord’s representative. The representative sent a notice of change to the lease for the period July 1, 2006 to June 30, 2007 with a monthly increase of $5. The representative lives in the same building as the tenant.

The facts

During a trip to Montreal on or about March 28, 2006, during a supper out at a restaurant, she took up a conversation with a young waitress. The restaurant is located in the same area as her building. During the conversation, the waitress candidly explained that she was the tenant along with a girlfriend of a rental unit in the landlord’s building. The astounded landlord asked her who she signed the lease with. The young waitress replied and told him that she was sub-letting the apartment belonging to Miguel (fictitious name). In addition, it was Miguel’s brother who cashed the cheques and took care of the apartment. Donato (fictitious name) also lived in the building and had a lease with the landlord. The landlord also learned that the two young women each paid $500 to Miguel every month. The landlord was furious as the monthly rent at the unit was only $575. Mr. Duarte was, therefore, pocketing $425 every month.

The Law

According to the provisions of Article 1944 of the Code civil du Québec, the landlord sent a notice, dated March 29, 2006 to the two sub-renters and to the tenant. The notice was aimed at trying to avoid extending the lease.

''Article 1944. The landlord may, when a tenant has sub-let his/her unit for more than 12 months, avoid extending the lease, if she advises the tenants of his/her intention to cancel it within the deadlines established for making a change to the unit. She may when a tenant has passed away and that no-one is living with him/her when she/she died, avoid extending the lease by informing the Estate’s inheritors or executors.''

The Régie du logement

At the Régie du logement hearing, the young waitress Evelyne (fictitious name) testified that she was surprised that the woman she was talking to was the building’s real landlord. The brother of the tenant, and also a tenant in the same building, rented him the unit and let him believe that he was the landlord of the building. She added that she and her co-renter had each paid $500 every month to the tenant’s brother to sub-rent the unit. The Régie ordered the eviction of the tenant and concluded:

'The evidence showed that the tenant, through his brother, sub-let the unit at a substantially-higher monthly rent than he paid to the landlord and without the knowledge of the latter to take considerable advantage of her, and also to avoid the application of Article 1944 of the C.c.Q.'' 1

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1 Régie du logement 31 060706 0826;

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	The Régie du logement evicts a tenant who sub-rented her apartment for more than one year
	by Me Robert Soucy