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View from Valletta by Ian Busuttil
Litigation & Dispute Resolution

Decision on the Quantum of Rent Payable

In a judgment decided on the 26th of June 2024 in the names Marcus Scicluna Marshall et vs Michael Borg Cardona, the Court of Appeal in its Inferior Jurisdiction confirmed that no appeal can be filed from the rate established by the Rent Regulation Board to increase the rent for leases predating the year 1995. Act XXIV of 2021, which introduced amendments to the laws on protected residential leases, gave the right to lessors who are bound by lease agreements with respect to dwelling houses predating 1st June 1995 to request an increase in the rent payable that is calculated…
Stephen Muscat
19th July 2024
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Litigation & Dispute Resolution

Re-balancing the Respective Rights & Obligations of Lessors and Lessees

This article was written by​ Dr. Stephen Muscat and Daniel VancellIntroductionThe Reletting of Urban Property (Regulation) Ordinance, Chapter 69 of the Laws of Malta (the "Ordinance"), has been recently amended by virtue of Act XXIV of 20211. The main goal for the introduction of the Ordinance, originally, was to protect the interest of the public by establishing a type of lease which would automatically renew itself and could not be terminated unilaterally upon its expiration. A problem that arose under the Ordinance was the fact that this law placed a restriction on the amount of rent a lessor may demand,…
Stephen Muscat
31st August 2021
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Litigation & Dispute Resolution

The Maintenance of Roofs, Floors & Ceilings under Maltese Law

This article was written by Dr. Stephen Muscat & Dr.Mark Soler. The Issue:-The continuous urbanization and gentrification of the Maltese landscape has augmented the importance of maintaining well-regulated neighbourly relations among residents living in densely populated areas of the Island. A common dispute which arises among the owners of units situated within a condominium concerns the maintenance of certain common parts, particularly:1. The corresponding floors and ceilings which run horizontally between two private units within the condominium, separating them vertically; and 2. The roof of a condominium which runs horizontally between the uppermost privately-owned unit and the upper surface of the building…
Stephen Muscat
30th November 2017
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Litigation & Dispute Resolution

Invoking an arbitration clause in a contract subject to Maltese law

The Maltese Arbitration Act was meant inter alia to confirm in general the supremacy of the will of the parties to a contract containing an arbitration clause, to choose arbitration to the exclusion of ordinary courts. In view of recent developments in case-law interpreting and applying a provision in the same Arbitration Act, the ordinary courts seem to be fighting back to retain more than the residual authority which the courts traditionally retained for themselves when the contracting parties would have agreed on an arbitration clause. DisclaimerThis document does not purport to give legal, financial or tax advice. Should you…
Stephen Muscat
18th May 2017