Facts
The case concerns a rent reduction pursuant to Art. 259d CO, which was claimed by the tenants for the months of February, March and April 2011. The lower court had dismissed the reduction because the tenants had only submitted the declaration after their extraordinary termination of the lease agreement.
In the proceedings before the Federal Supreme Court, the issue was up to what point in time the declaration of reduction must be submitted - whether it can also be made after the end of the contract or only during the tenancy.
Considerations
After a thorough interpretation of Art. 259d CO, the Federal Supreme Court concluded that there is no specific time limit for submitting the declaration of reduction. It can therefore be made even after the defect has been remedied or the contract has been terminated.
While the law provides that the reduction only applies for the period from the landlord's knowledge of the defect until its remediation or the end of the contract, this does not imply a deadline for submitting the…