In re Standor Jewelers West
United States Bankruptcy Appellate Panel for the Ninth Circuit
129 B.R. 200 (1991)
Jewelry retailer Standor Jewelers West (Standor) (plaintiff), in Chapter 11, sought to assign its South Coast Plaza Mall retail lease to Sterling, Inc.; the landlord, South Coast (defendant), objected because Standor hadn't shown it would comply with a lease provision requiring, as a condition of any assignment, that Standor pay South Coast 75% of the consideration Sterling would pay Standor for the lease transfer. The bankruptcy court, applying 11 U.S.C. §365(f), allowed the assignment over South Coast's objection, and South Coast appealed.
Whether a lessor may enforce a lease provision conditioning a debtor-lessee's assignment of the lease on paying the lessor a portion of the consideration received for that assignment.