Business Lease: Who is at fault, tenant or landlord?

Question

I bought a business and started leasing it from the landlord. The landlord already had a business set up there so I bought the business and entered into a lease. Before I entered into a lease, the landlord had made some structrual changes to the building which added more space to the inside of the store. Landlord did this without and permits from the County or State. But now the county is aware of it and wants the landlord to put the property back in its original form, which means that I loose space and it also makes impossible for me to operate in there.

Answer 1

It is definitely the fault of the landlord for making the changes without getting the permit. You can use the fact that you leased based on the space as it was to break the lease, if you want. You may also have grounds for suing because this will inconvenience your business to have to relocate.

Answer 2

Commercial real estate law is an entirely different animal from residential.

In the "commercial" world, a court will tell you that you should have verified public records to see how much space was allocated in that particular building.  They will even further tell you that you should have done this, especially if you knew it would be "built to suit" or that recent work had been completed.

They call that "due diligence", and when you are a person engaging in business transactions, it's expected, legally, that you know how to "play the game".