Assignment of a commercial lease by the outgoing tenant: solicitor checklist covering due diligence, landlord's consent, authorised guarantee agreements, drafting, completion and post-completion (England and Wales)

Published by a LexisNexis Property expert

Checklists

This checklist is intended chiefly for assignments of commercial leases. It is not comprehensive and cannot anticipate every scenario across all deals. Always consider whether additional points require attention. It proceeds on the basis that:

the lease concerns commercial premises let at open market rent to an occupational tenant, with the landlord providing the insurance
the assignor uses the premises for its business and the assignee likewise plans to occupy for business purposes
the lease is a head lease and the premises are free of any underleases
the lease is not secured by a fixed charge (which would be rare in practice), and
no premium is payable

Where the assignment forms part of a broader or more intricate arrangement, consult Sale of commercial property (seller)—checklist and Practice Note: Transferring commercial property—a practical guide. When acting for the assignee, refer to Assignment of a rack rent lease (assignee)—checklist.

Preliminary matters

See also Practice Note: Transferring commercial property—a practical guide—Preliminary matters and Sale of commercial property (seller)—checklist—Preliminary matters...

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Web page updated on 20/05/2026

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