Facts
In this case, the tenants H.X. and F.X. contested the termination of their lease of indefinite duration by the landlord Y. The Court of Appeal was seized with a main conclusion seeking to annul this termination.
According to case law, when the tenant contests the termination of a lease of indefinite duration, the disputed value corresponds to the rent due until the next date on which a new notice could be given, taking into account the three-year protection period provided for in Art. 271a para. 1 let. e CO. In the present case, the disputed value amounts to 16,400 francs, thus exceeding the threshold of 15,000 francs required for the admissibility of the civil appeal.
Considerations
The tenants invoked two grounds to terminate the lease prematurely: an urgent personal need and insufficient return on the property. The Court considered that only the first ground justified an early termination, in accordance with Art. 261 para. 2 let. a CO.
The Court then examined the question of whether the tenants had also notified a subsidiary ordinary termination for the next contractual term, in case…