Lessee v. Property Owner Regarding Lease Non-Renewal Pretext

A lessee, under a commercial lease, sued the property owner for damages following the owner's refusal to renew the lease, which the lessee claimed was based on insufficient grounds for repossession, specifically arguing the owner's stated intention to build on the premises was a pretext. The court of appeal found in favor of the property owner, concluding that the owner's expressed intent to build constituted a legitimate reason for refusing the lease renewal under the applicable law, which was supported by evidence presented during the proceedings. The highest court quashed the decision, reasoning that the appellate court failed to sufficiently verify that the owner's purported reason for repossession—the intention to build—was genuine and not a mere subterfuge to avoid the statutory obligation to pay the tenant statutory indemnity for non-renewal, thus failing to apply the statutory protection afforded to the lessee.