Facts
In this case, A. GmbH (tenant, appellant) rented a storage room from B. AG (landlord, respondent). On November 5 and 8, 2018, the tenant deposited the rents for October and November 2018 with the conciliation authority. The landlord then terminated the lease due to rent arrears effective January 31, 2019.
The Civil Court of Basel-Stadt ordered the tenant to vacate the storage room by May 25, 2020 at the latest. The tenant appealed this decision, which was dismissed by the Appellate Court of Basel-Stadt. The tenant then filed a civil law appeal with the Federal Supreme Court.
Considerations
The Federal Supreme Court states that the deposit of rent pursuant to Art. 259g para. 1 CO is only permissible for rents that become due in the future. If a tenant deposits rents that were already due at the time of the deposit, the deposit does not have a discharging effect on the rent debt.
The Federal Supreme Court justifies this by stating that the wording of Art. 259g para. 2 CO is not clear and the interpretation, taking into account the legislative materials and the system, shows that the discharging effect only occurs when future rents are deposited. The purpose of the right…