Samanthas Case Study

Samantha, a 10th grade educated, stay-at-home mother who was forced to retire due her ill health, is facing a situation relating to the enforcement of provisions of a lease that she signed without reading. This case is an example of a scenario surrounding enforcement of the provisions of a lease between a landlord and a tenant. As evident in the case, the clauses or provisions in this lease grant the landlord the right to amend the agreement at will. In essence, the lease is structured in a manner that seemingly favors the landlord over his/her tenants. Garson (2006) states that lease agreements between landlords and tenants sometime contain unenforceable clauses or provisions that work in favor of one partly, especially the landlord. In this scenario, the lease is designed in a manner that gives Samanthas landlord some unenforceable rights.

Samantha can use the concept of severability to invalidate some of the provisions of the lease agreement...

This concept is used to invalidate some provisions (parts) of a contract between parties that are deemed unenforceable or illegal while the rest of the agreement remains applicable. In Samanthas situation, she can invalidate Clause 2 of the lease agreement between her and the landlord. This clause grants the landlord the right to amend or alter the...…invalidating this provision are very high. The argument that what constitutes acceptance of the conditions of the amendments, which resulted in breach of the lease, would imply that the clause was unenforceable. Even though this provision is not necessarily illegal, the failure to provide clear timelines for acceptance of amendments would imply that it cannot be enforced. If Clause 2 is deemed unenforceable, the landlords decision to force Samantha to leave would be null and void. This would imply that Samantha would not be held liable for breach of the lease and for other damages that emerged as a result of her breach of lease. Therefore, Samantha would not need to pay the…