North Palm Beach Landlord Tenant Attorney

A tenant stops paying rent three months into a commercial lease, or a landlord changes the locks on a unit without a court order, and within days both sides are exchanging notices that carry real deadlines. The Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team handles business and real estate litigation for property owners, investors, and businesses in North Palm Beach and throughout Palm Beach County and Broward County, and landlord and tenant disputes are part of that work.

If you are searching for a North Palm Beach landlord tenant attorney, the first thing to know is that Florida treats these disputes as a notice-driven process. A landlord cannot simply evict, and a tenant cannot simply stop performing. Each step is controlled by written notices, short statutory windows, and court procedure, and a defect in the first notice can undo weeks of effort. What separates a clean eviction or a winning defense from a costly restart is usually what happened in the first few days.

Landlord tenant disputes also differ from the other conflicts people confuse them with. A rent dispute is not a contract claim between business partners, and an eviction is not a lawsuit for money. They are separate proceedings with separate rules, and a well-run case often needs both tracks handled at once.

How Florida’s Notice Rules Shape Every Landlord Tenant Case

For residential tenancies, the notice requirements come from Chapter 83 of the Florida Statutes, and they depend entirely on what went wrong. When rent is unpaid, the landlord delivers a written demand for payment or possession. If the default continues for three days after delivery, not counting Saturdays, Sundays, or court-observed legal holidays, the landlord may terminate the rental agreement. That three-day count surprises people who assume weekends and every federal holiday are skipped. Only holidays observed by the courts are excluded.

Non-rent violations work differently. If the problem can be cured, such as an unauthorized occupant or a lease rule being broken, the landlord’s notice must give the tenant seven days from delivery to correct it, and it must state that the lease will be terminated if the problem is not fixed. If the violation cannot be cured, or it repeats within twelve months of a written warning, the landlord may instead deliver a notice of intent to terminate, and the tenant then has seven days to vacate. Some conduct, including intentional destruction or damage of property and a subsequent or continuing unreasonable disturbance, carries no right to cure at all.

Tenancies with no fixed term, such as month-to-month arrangements, can be ended by written notice delivered in the manner the statute prescribes. And tenants have a notice tool of their own: if a landlord materially fails to maintain the premises as required or to follow the lease, the tenant can deliver written notice, and if the failure continues seven days, the tenant may terminate.

One trap deserves its own mention. If a landlord accepts partial rent after posting a nonpayment notice, the right to terminate is not automatically lost, but the landlord must handle it correctly. The options are giving the tenant a receipt that states the date, amount received, agreed due date, and remaining balance before filing for possession; depositing the partial rent into the court registry when filing; or posting a fresh three-day notice for the new amount. Skipping this step is one of the most common ways a sound eviction case gets dismissed.

Why Choose the Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team for Landlord and Tenant Disputes

The Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team represents business owners, investors, and families in South Florida’s business and real estate disputes, serving North Palm Beach, West Palm Beach, Fort Lauderdale, and the rest of Palm Beach and Broward Counties. Andrew M. Schwartz, the firm’s founder, was admitted to The Florida Bar in 1989, earned his undergraduate degree from Emory University in 1986 and his law degree from the University of Miami in 1989, and has spent 37 years in litigation. His career has centered on contract disputes, and that matters here because a lease is a contract. Most landlord tenant fights turn on exact lease wording and on how the parties actually behaved over time.

Senior Counsel Sundeep Nath, a Northwestern-trained litigator, brings years of experience in business and real estate cases in state and federal courts. The firm works as a true legal team, so everyone on a matter knows the file, and it keeps a strict 24 hour return call policy. Clients who want a quick, cost-conscious resolution will find a firm that looks for the outcome serving their goals and budget, whether that is a negotiated exit, mediation, arbitration, or trial.

The firm also has a track record on real property contracts in court. After a five-day bench trial in Broward County Circuit Court, the firm won a 32-page final judgment granting its client specific performance of a commercial real estate contract. Landlord tenant matters often sit right next to purchase contracts, failed closings, and lease options, and that trial experience carries over. Many of the firm’s clients are out-of-state owners from New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut with property here, and the firm handles local court appearances so they do not have to travel for every hearing.

Types of Landlord and Tenant Disputes We Handle

• Nonpayment of Rent: The most common trigger for an eviction. It starts with the three-day written demand and, if the tenant neither pays nor leaves, moves to a possession action. Accepting partial rent mid-process requires careful handling.
• Commercial Lease Defaults: Retail, office, and warehouse tenants around North Palm Beach and the wider county often have personal guarantees, percentage rent, and common-area charges that make these cases larger than a typical rental dispute.
• Lease Violations and Non-Curable Conduct: Unauthorized occupants, property damage, and repeated disturbances. Whether the tenant gets a seven-day chance to cure depends on the type of violation and whether it is a repeat.
• Landlord Failure to Maintain the Property: Tenants facing mold, broken systems, or unsafe conditions have a statutory path through written notice, and landlords need to know when a complaint turns into a right to terminate.
• Holdover and Month-to-Month Terminations: Ending a tenancy with no fixed term requires proper written notice, and a defective notice can force the process to restart.
• Security Deposit and Money Claims: Unpaid rent, damages, and disputed deposits are money claims that can be filed alongside or separately from the possession case.
• Lease Disputes Between Business Owners: When the landlord and tenant are connected, such as former partners or family members sharing a property, the lease fight overlaps with broader ownership conflicts. The firm’s partnership and real estate practice covers both.
• Emergency Relief: Lockouts, utility shutoffs, or a tenant stripping a unit can call for a quick court order, and the firm is experienced with temporary and permanent injunctions.

What to Do Right Now If You Are a Landlord or Tenant in a Dispute

Start with the paper. Pull the signed lease, every amendment, all notices sent or received, rent ledgers, and texts or emails about the problem. Note exactly how and when each notice was delivered, because the statutory clocks run from delivery. If you are a landlord who has not yet served a notice, stop and confirm the type you need before sending anything; a notice that cites the wrong violation or the wrong cure period can be thrown out, and the whole process starts over.

If you are a tenant who has received a notice, read the deadline carefully and count it the way the statute does. Do not ignore it, and do not assume that paying part of what is owed ends the matter. If you are withholding rent because of a landlord’s failure to maintain the property, written notice to the landlord comes first; withholding without it is a common and expensive mistake.

Never use self-help. A landlord who changes locks, removes belongings, or cuts off utilities risks liability, and a tenant who tears out fixtures or sublets without permission hands the other side a no-cure termination ground.

On the court side, the amount in dispute determines where a money claim is heard. Small claims handles the lowest tier, county court handles the middle range, and circuit court handles larger claims. In Palm Beach County, these cases are heard by the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit and its county court, and the Clerk operates a North County Courthouse in Palm Beach Gardens in addition to the main courthouse in West Palm Beach. Larger commercial lease disputes that involve Broward properties may land in the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit, which has complex business divisions for large business litigation. Federal court in the Southern District of Florida sits in West Palm Beach and Fort Lauderdale when jurisdiction is proper.

Call early. The difference between a case that resolves in a negotiated move-out and one that becomes a contested trial is often decided in the first week.

When a Lease Dispute Is Really a Larger Ownership Problem

Some landlord tenant conflicts are symptoms. A tenant who stops paying may be an LLC whose members are deadlocked. A landlord who wants possession may be one of several co-owners who cannot agree on what to do with the building. In those cases, winning the eviction only addresses part of the problem.

Florida law gives co-owners tools to resolve this. A partition action asks the court to divide jointly owned property or order it sold and the proceeds shared. Where the underlying company is the issue, Florida’s LLC statute lets a member seek judicial dissolution on grounds that include deadlock with threatened irreparable injury, misappropriation or waste of assets, and conduct that makes it not reasonably practicable to carry on the business. Courts can also appoint a receiver or custodian after a hearing. Because the firm handles partnership disputes, partition, and quiet title alongside real estate litigation, a lease case can be evaluated in context rather than in isolation.

North Palm Beach Landlord Tenant Questions

How long does a tenant have to pay after a three-day notice?

Three days, counted from delivery of the written demand, and excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays observed by the courts. If the default continues past that point, the landlord may terminate the rental agreement and proceed with a possession action.

Can a landlord evict me without going to court?

No. Even after a notice period expires, the landlord needs a court judgment for possession. Changing locks, removing belongings, or shutting off utilities to force a tenant out can expose the landlord to liability.

What happens if a landlord accepts partial rent after serving a notice?

Accepting partial rent does not waive the right to terminate or sue, but the landlord must follow one of three paths: give a receipt stating the date, amount, agreed due date, and balance; deposit the partial payment in the court registry upon filing; or serve a new three-day notice for the revised amount.

Can a tenant cure a lease violation that is not about rent?

Often yes. For curable violations, the landlord’s notice must give seven days from delivery to fix the problem. Some conduct, such as intentional property damage, cannot be cured, and a repeat violation within twelve months of a written warning can lead to a seven-day notice to vacate.

How do I end a month-to-month tenancy?

A tenancy with no fixed duration is ended by written notice delivered in the manner the statute requires. A notice that is late, unsigned, or improperly delivered may fail, so the details matter.

Can a tenant terminate if the landlord will not make repairs?

Possibly. If the landlord materially fails to meet maintenance obligations or the lease terms, the tenant delivers written notice, and if the failure continues for seven days, the tenant may terminate. Skipping the written notice weakens the tenant’s position considerably.

Which court hears my landlord tenant case?

It depends on the claim. Money claims are sorted by amount between small claims, county court, and circuit court, and the dollar thresholds are adjusted periodically. For North Palm Beach, cases are filed in the Palm Beach County court system under the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit.

I live in New York or New Jersey and own a rental in South Florida. Can you handle an eviction for me?

Yes. The firm regularly represents out-of-state owners, handles the local court appearances, and keeps clients updated so they do not need to travel for every hearing.

What if my tenant is a business owned by my former partner?

Then you may have overlapping claims: lease default, breach of fiduciary duty, an accounting, or even partition or dissolution. Handling them together avoids contradictory positions and lets you choose the right order of attack.

How long does an eviction or lease lawsuit take?

It varies with whether the tenant contests the case, how clean the notices were, and the court’s calendar. An uncontested possession case moves much faster than a contested commercial lease dispute with damages. Mediation or a negotiated move-out can shorten the timeline further.

Is it worth hiring a lawyer for a single missed rent payment?

Often it is, because a procedural mistake in the notice can restart the process, and a tenant who misreads a deadline can lose a defense. A short consultation can confirm whether the notice is valid and what the cheapest path to resolution looks like.

Serving Landlord and Tenant Clients Across North Palm Beach and the Region

Our work begins in North Palm Beach, where residential rentals and small commercial tenants are common, and extends through Palm Beach County to Juno Beach, Lake Park, Palm Beach Gardens, Riviera Beach, Jupiter, and West Palm Beach. We also represent landlords and tenants in Boynton Beach, Delray Beach, Boca Raton, Royal Palm Beach, and Wellington, and across the western communities of the county.

Farther south, the firm serves clients in Broward County, including Fort Lauderdale, Deerfield Beach, Pompano Beach, Coral Springs, Plantation, and Hollywood. Clients from New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut who own rental property or lease space in South Florida are a regular part of the practice, and we handle the local filings and hearings for them.

Speak With a North Palm Beach Landlord Tenant Lawyer Today

Whether you are a landlord who needs to recover possession or unpaid rent, or a tenant who needs to answer a notice or enforce your own rights, the right move depends on the exact lease and the exact notices exchanged. A North Palm Beach landlord tenant lawyer at the Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team can review your documents, tell you where you stand, and recommend the most efficient route, whether that is negotiation, mediation, or court. Call us to schedule a consultation and get your deadlines in front of someone who works with them every day.