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THE GUARANTY OF RENT DUE UNDER THE COMMERCIAL LEASE WAS A “GOOD GUY” GUARANTY; THE GUARANTOR’S LIABILITY ENDED WHEN THE TENANT VACATED THE PREMISES, NOT SUBSEQUENTLY WHEN THE LANDLORD ACCEPTED THE SURRENDER OF THE PREMISES (CT APP). ​

The Court of Appeals, reversing the Appellate Division, in a full-fledged opinion by Judge Wilson, over a two-judge dissent, determined Mr. Lieberman’s guaranty of the rent due under the commercial lease terminated when the tenant vacated the premises, not when the landlord subsequently accepted the surrender of the premises. The opinion turns on interpreting the language of the guaranty and the lease:

In the world of commercial leases, a “good guy” guaranty is a limited guaranty in which the guarantor’s obligation extends only up to the point that the tenant surrenders the premises to the landlord, leaving the tenant solely responsible for rent due from that point forward … . The question in this case is whether the guaranty at issue operates in that manner. The guarantor’s liability ended when the tenant vacated the premises and, under the terms of the guaranty in this agreement, was not conditioned on the landlord’s acceptance of that surrender. Accordingly, we reverse. * * *

It would be a simple matter for parties intending to enter into a “good guy” guaranty to say so explicitly, with clear language that does not require courts to resort to rules of construction regarding superfluity or canons that aid in determining the parties’ intent. Here, although the parties could have expressed their intent in a much simpler and clearer way and avoided this litigation entirely, we conclude that the guaranty in this case is limited, confining the guarantor’s liability to damages accruing prior to the date the tenant surrendered possession of the Premises. Under the terms of the guaranty, WSA [the tenant] surrendered possession of the Premises on or about November 30, 2020 when it provided 1995 CAM [the landlord] notice, completely vacated the Premises, and relinquished control of the Premises. 1995 CAM LLC v West Side Advisors, LLC, 2025 NY Slip Op 05782, CtApp 10-21-25

Practice Point: Consult this opinion for an analysis of a “good guy” guaranty of rent due under a commercial lease.

 

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