The market standard is to conclude such agreements for a fixed term (e.g., for 5 years). Their characteristic feature is the lack of possibility for early termination – unless the agreement itself explicitly states specific situations in which it is permitted.

In practice, shopping malls reserve many such cases for themselves, while tenants rarely have similar rights negotiated. However, it is worth remembering that the Civil Code itself, in exceptional and extreme situations, gives the tenant the right to terminate the agreement. Every such case, however, requires an individual legal analysis.

Inexperienced tenants often focus solely on the rent amount. Meanwhile, these agreements range from several dozen to even over a hundred pages. It is worth investing in their thorough understanding, as a single overlooked mistake can cost an entrepreneur hundreds of thousands of zlotys.

The key elements that need to be negotiated are:

• Contractual penalties – their amount and the situations in which the mall can impose them.
• Service charges / Common area costs – what exactly is included in them, how they are settled (advance payments or flat-rate) and whether you, as a tenant, are able to predict their final amount.

• Securities and risk allocation – who is responsible for unforeseen situations, such as power outages, technical failures, or a structural disaster of the facility. What collateral/securities the Tenant provides and when they are triggered.

They are crucial. Very often, tenants focus on negotiating the main body of the agreement, completely forgetting about the appendices.

Meanwhile, this is exactly where provisions generating huge additional costs are hidden – e.g., technical specifications of the premises, exorbitant fit-out standards, or price lists for additional services (e.g., installation or maintenance of fire protection/sprinkler systems).

The tenant’s starting position is generally weaker, and the agreement with a shopping mall is inherently asymmetrical. However, a weaker contractual position does not mean a lack of chances. A precise knowledge of the realities of this industry, as well as the operational mechanisms of malls and the investment funds behind them, allows us to identify their weak points and effectively defend the tenant’s interests.

Yes. We have been operating in the shopping mall market since 2010, and during this time, we have won dozens of complex lawsuits for tenants and led to many extremely favorable settlements that saved our clients’ businesses.