SHELTON DE SILVA vs SHIRANIHELEN FERNANDO – sllr 2005 volume 1 page 108

Brief

In the case between W. Irene Fernando (owner/landlord, representing the property purchased on 23.09.1959) and Sybil de Silva (widow and successor of original tenant Shelton de Silva), the court examined the interpretation of “specified date” in Section 22(7) of the Rent Act and whether “occupation” referred to simple physical presence or occupation as a tenant under an owner landlord. The sequence of events included a longstanding tenancy from 1938 under a non-owner landlord, later followed by transfer of ownership to W. Irene Fernando, which led to a statutory analysis of whether the tenancy under the new owner landlord constituted a “new” tenancy. The findings established that upon transfer to the owner landlord, the tenancy relationship was distinct and not subject to statutory b