Facts
Susanne and Armin [D.] were operating the Dürrenmühle agricultural estate as a secondary activity. After Armin D.'s death in 1982, his father-in-law Ernst [K.], who was also operating an agricultural estate in St. Gall, continued to cultivate the meadows and store the hay on the Dürrenmühle estate, compensating Susanne D. When Susanne [D.] terminated the lease in 1988, Ernst [K.] contested the termination. After Ernst K.'s death in 1989, his son Martin [K.] took over the operation. Susanne [D.] and her children then brought an action to establish the non-existence of the agricultural lease. The cantonal instances dismissed the claim, but the Federal Tribunal ultimately upheld the appeal.Considerations
The Federal Tribunal considered that the agricultural lease contract could be tacitly concluded by the parties' conclusive conduct, such as the fact that Ernst [K.] had operated the meadows and compensated Susanne D. Although the exact moment of the conclusion of the contract was uncertain, this was not important for the resolution of the dispute.
In the event of the tenant's death, the heirs generally enter into the lease contract. However, the lessor has the right to terminate the lease or to demand that one of the heirs (spouse or descendant) take over the lease. When several heirs wish to take over the lease, the lessor has the choice to designate the one he wishes to maintain as the new…