Three flat-fee packages
Many commercial-premises damage matters should start with a written case-evaluation memo. The other packages stack on once the lease, evidence, and damages picture are clear.
Case Evaluation Memo
Attorney-written assessment of your commercial-premises damage claim. Identifies the lease clauses operating against you, which legal theories fit your facts, the realistic damages framework, the right forum, and the recommended next step.
- Review of the lease, insurance policy, communications timeline, and damage record
- Identification of lease clauses operating against you
- Analysis of negligence, breach of contract, breach of implied covenant, conversion, premises liability, and UCL theories
- Realistic damages framing across property, lost profits, mitigation, and personal injury
- Forum analysis: small claims vs limited civil vs unlimited civil vs AAA arbitration
- Recommended next step with pricing for each option
Attorney Demand Letter
Attorney-drafted letter to the landlord's registered agent or counsel. Cites the specific California statutes and lease sections, attaches your evidence, and frames the damages claim with a defined response deadline.
- Letter on attorney letterhead, sent by certified mail (signature requested) plus email
- Statutory framing under Civ. Code §§ 1668 / 1714, B&P Code § 17200, and applicable lease sections
- Damages figure documented and defensible
- Settlement proposal with response deadline
- Settlement negotiation included if the landlord responds
Superior Court Complaint or AAA Arbitration Filing
When the demand letter does not resolve, this package covers the actual filing. Either a verified complaint in California Superior Court or an AAA Commercial Arbitration demand if the lease requires it. Filing fees paid by client directly.
- Drafted verified complaint or arbitration demand
- Cause-of-action structure: negligence, gross negligence, breach of contract, breach of implied covenant, conversion, UCL, premises liability
- E-filing or AAA WebFile submission
- Service of process coordination
- Initial procedural calls and case-management conference
Who this is for — and who it isn't
This is for you if:
- A commercial landlord, building owner, or operator caused damage to your business or its property
- Damages above $5,000 (small claims is more cost-effective below that threshold)
- You have documentary evidence: lease, communications log, photos, receipts
- The landlord is asserting limitation-of-liability, insurance-requirement, or arbitration clauses
- You are willing to file in superior court or AAA arbitration if the demand letter does not resolve
This isn't for you if:
- Damages under $2,500 with no personal-injury exposure (small claims)
- You signed a release of all claims as part of a prior settlement
- The damage is from a documented natural disaster outside the landlord's control with proper notice
- The matter is primarily a residential-tenancy dispute (different statutory framework)
- You are seeking a contingency arrangement (this practice is flat-fee for pre-litigation; litigation referrals available)
What to send with your first email
You do not need to organize everything perfectly. The fastest way to evaluate the matter is to send the core documents and a short timeline.
- Storage / lease agreement: the signed contract, terms of service, addendums, and any insurance documents.
- Timeline: dates of access, when problems first appeared, when you reported them, who you spoke to, and when each communication occurred.
- Communications record: emails, texts, customer-service ticket numbers, voicemails, and notes from phone calls.
- Damage evidence: photos, videos, dated receipts for damaged property, repair or replacement quotes, and any inventory records.
- Medical records (if applicable): ER/urgent-care visit notes, prescriptions, and any letter from your doctor connecting symptoms to the exposure.
- Your goal: demand letter, small-claims prep, superior-court complaint, AAA arbitration filing, or a written legal evaluation.
My approach
Commercial-premises damage cases turn on the lease, the evidence, and which legal theory fits the facts. Get those right and most landlords settle before the litigation phase.
Send your file
Email the lease, insurance policy, communications timeline, photos and video of the damage, receipts and inventory records, medical records if applicable, and a one-paragraph description of what happened.
Case-evaluation memo
Within 5 business days I deliver a written memo identifying the statutes and lease clauses that apply, the realistic damages framework, the right forum, and the recommended next step with flat-fee pricing.
Escalation if needed
Demand letter to the landlord's counsel. If that does not resolve, superior-court complaint or AAA arbitration demand. The flat-fee pre-litigation phases are designed to clarify whether the matter should resolve, escalate, or get referred for full litigation.
Before you contact the landlord or facility again
- Save every email, text, customer-service ticket number, and voicemail in a single folder. Do not rely on the company portal — they can deactivate your access.
- Make a one-page timeline with dates: when you noticed the problem, when you reported it, who you spoke to, and when each adverse event occurred.
- Photograph and date every piece of damage, including wide shots that show context and condition of neighboring units or areas.
- Do not sign a release, settlement, or lease amendment until you understand what claims it waives.
- Do not delete data, return damaged items, or clean affected areas until the evidence is preserved.
- Read the storage / lease agreement before you respond — most contain a limitation-of-liability clause, an insurance requirement, and an arbitration or venue clause that will shape the strategy.
Recent client results
"The landlord had been ignoring my repair requests for months. Sergei's case-evaluation memo identified that the implied-covenant claim was strong and the demand letter put the landlord's insurer on notice. The matter resolved within 30 days of the demand going out."— small business owner, anonymized matter resolved at demand-letter stage
"After the lockout, the landlord refused to acknowledge that they had not followed the statutory eviction procedure. Sergei drafted the demand letter and the threat of a UCL filing changed the conversation."— commercial tenant, anonymized self-help eviction reversed
"I had given up on the property-damage claim. Sergei's memo restated the case in a way I hadn't seen, and the demand letter got the landlord's carrier engaged for the first time."— business owner, anonymized insurance coverage opened
Why work with me
Sergei Tokmakov, Esq.
I have been a California-licensed business attorney since 2011 (CA State Bar #279869) with a steady commercial-litigation practice covering commercial-premises damage, landlord-tenant disputes, and small-business loss matters. I know how the major commercial leases get drafted, which clauses get enforced, and what evidence preservation looks like in practice.
My pre-litigation work is flat-fee. You know what evaluation, demand letter, and filing each cost before the work starts. If the matter ever needs full contingency-fee litigation, I refer to a trial firm at that point.
Frequently asked questions
Does the lease cap on liability really apply?
It depends. California enforces ordinary-negligence liability caps in commercial contracts, but Civil Code § 1668 prohibits exculpation for gross negligence, willful misconduct, or personal injury caused by negligence. The case evaluation memo looks at whether the facts fit one of those exceptions, which is what defeats the cap.
My lease says I have to arbitrate. Can I sue in court anyway?
Generally no, but California Code Civ. Proc. § 1281.97 and § 1281.98 require the drafting party to pay AAA fees on time. Untimely payment can let the consumer / commercial tenant move the case to court. The case evaluation looks at the arbitration clause and whether any procedural defenses apply.
My insurance denied the claim. What now?
The denial letter is often the strongest evidence in the demand letter against the landlord, especially if the landlord required the policy and the denied risk was foreseeable. Insurance bad-faith claims can sometimes be added as a separate track if the denial was unreasonable.
What if my damages include both property and personal injury?
Personal-injury damages are not capped by the limitation-of-liability clause under California Civil Code § 1668. The case becomes a two-track matter: property-damage negligence / breach of contract plus premises-liability personal injury. Recovery is fact-dependent and depends heavily on medical documentation and causation evidence.
How long do I have to file?
Negligence claims in California generally have a 2-year limitations period (Code Civ. Proc. § 335.1). Breach of written contract is 4 years (CCP § 337). Conversion is 3 years (CCP § 338). UCL claims have a 4-year period (B&P Code § 17208). The case-evaluation memo includes a written deadline calendar specific to your facts.
Can I recover lost profits from the business interruption?
Recovery is fact-dependent. Lost-profits claims require documentation: prior-period revenue, the specific operational impact, the period of impairment, and reasonable mitigation. The case evaluation memo identifies whether the lost-profits claim is supportable and how to document it.
The five legal theories that drive most commercial-premises damage cases
- Negligence (Civ. Code § 1714). The landlord, facility, or operator owed a duty of reasonable care, breached it, and caused the damage. The duty arises from the lease, the facility's actual or constructive knowledge, and the foreseeability of the harm. Damages: property loss, lost profits, consequential, sometimes personal injury.
- Breach of contract / breach of implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing. Most commercial leases contain express or implied promises of fitness for a particular use, security, structural integrity, common-area maintenance, and timely response to reported issues. Failure to perform on a material promise gives rise to contract damages and, sometimes, tort recovery.
- Premises liability. Owner or operator of a commercial facility owes a duty to maintain the property in reasonably safe condition and to warn of known hazards. Breach causing personal injury allows recovery uncapped by any contractual limitation under California Civil Code § 1668.
- Conversion. When the landlord/facility wrongfully exercises dominion over your property — improper auction sale, withholding access, refusing return after lease termination, holding inventory hostage — conversion gives statutory damages, punitive exposure, and attorney-fee shifting in some contexts.
- Statutory consumer-protection claims. Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code § 17200 (UCL) covers unfair, deceptive, or unlawful business practices. False advertising, deceptive marketing of security or facility conditions, and systemic failures to follow contract or statute can drive UCL claims with restitution and injunctive relief.
Six commercial-premises damage scenarios that often create leverage
Scenario 1: Landlord ignores repair requests; tenant's property is damaged
Tenant reports a roof leak, broken HVAC, plumbing issue, or pest problem. Landlord delays or refuses to address it. Tenant's inventory, equipment, or operations are damaged. The leverage is in the documented timeline: when the issue was reported, what was promised, what was actually done, and the gap between known harm and actual remediation.
Scenario 2: Pest infestation in a commercial property
Rats, roaches, bedbugs, or other pests invade tenant's space. Tenant reports; landlord/operator either denies the issue or attempts cleanup that fails. The strongest evidence is facility-wide documentation that defeats the "your unit caused it" defense, plus prior complaints by other tenants. Adds personal-injury exposure if anyone is hospitalized or develops illness.
Scenario 3: Theft or break-in with security failures
Inventory or equipment stolen from a leased facility. Landlord disclaims any security obligation. The leverage is in: marketing materials that promised security, prior break-in pattern, failed security infrastructure, and breach of the implied covenant of quiet enjoyment.
Scenario 4: Improper lien, lockout, or seizure of tenant property
Landlord locks tenant out of premises, seizes inventory, or attempts to auction property without following the statutory procedures. Procedural defects convert routine collection into a tenant's conversion and UCL claim. Self-help eviction is unlawful in California for commercial leases as well as residential.
Scenario 5: Misrepresentation about facility condition
At lease signing, landlord represented that the facility had specific conditions or features (security, climate control, condition of premises, exclusivity, no other competing tenants in the same trade). Reality differs and tenant suffers loss. Theories: fraud in the inducement, negligent misrepresentation, breach of contract, UCL.
Scenario 6: Personal injury from facility conditions
Tenant, employee, or invitee is hospitalized after exposure to facility conditions (mold, pest droppings, fumes, sewage, structural collapse). Two-track case: property damage plus personal-injury premises liability. The personal-injury track defeats most contractual liability caps under Civil Code § 1668.
First-30-days action checklist after a commercial-premises damage incident
- Preserve the evidence. Photograph and video everything, including the wider context. Do not clean, dispose, or repair until documented.
- Pull every related document. Lease, addenda, insurance policy, communications log, prior repair requests, marketing materials, prior tenant communications.
- Demand the landlord's records in writing. Prior complaints, repair logs, security incident records, vendor invoices for cleaning or pest control, and inspection reports.
- File the insurance claim immediately. Both your business policy and any landlord-required insurance. Get any denial in writing with the policy citation.
- Request medical evaluation. If anyone was exposed to harmful conditions, get evaluated and ask the doctor to note potential connection.
- Calendar the deadlines. Negligence: 2 years. Breach of written contract: 4 years. Conversion: 3 years. UCL: 4 years. Statutory landlord-tenant claims often have shorter deadlines.
- Do not sign a release. Especially not before personal-injury or latent damage is fully assessed.
- Document the lost income. Prior-period revenue, the specific period of inability to operate, mitigation efforts, and the causal connection back to the landlord's conduct.
Related resources
Self-Storage Damage Lawyer Hub
Niche pillar hub for self-storage facility damage cases (CubeSmart, Public Storage, Extra Space, etc.).
Landlord Property-Damage Demand-Letter Guide
How a demand letter for landlord-caused property damage is structured.
California Premises Liability
Premises-liability framework for hazards that cause damage at commercial facilities.
Commercial Landlord Service Failures
When the landlord fails to perform required services and how to frame the demand.
California Landlord-Tenant Hub
Broader hub covering rental and commercial-lease disputes.
Want a written answer before you decide what to do?
Email owner@terms.law with your lease, communications timeline, damage photos and receipts, and any medical records. I will tell you whether the $349 case-evaluation memo is the right first step or whether the matter is not a fit for my flat-fee pre-litigation model.