CHAPTER 2

Critical Legal Thinking Case

2.5 Mailbox Rule William Jenkins and Nathalie Monk owned a building in Sacramento, California. They leased the building to Tuneup Masters for five years. The lease provided that Tuneup Masters could extend the lease for an additional five years if it gave written notice of its intention to do so by certified or registered mail at least six months prior to the expiration of the term of the lease. Three days before the expiration of the lease, Larry Selditz, vice president of Tuneup Masters, prepared a letter exercising the option, prepared and sealed an envelope with the letter in it, prepared U.S. Postal Service Form 3800, affixed the certified mail sticker on the envelope, and had his secretary deliver the envelope to the Postal Service annex located on the ground floor of the office building. Postal personnel occupied the annex only between the hours of 9 and 10 a.m. At the end of each day, between 5 and 5:15 p.m., a postal employee picked up outgoing mail. The letter to the landlords was lost in the mail. The landlords thereafter refused to renew the lease and brought an unlawful detainer action against Tuneup Masters. Was the notice renewing the option effective? Jenkins v. Tuneup Masters, 235 Cal. Rptr. 214 (Ct. App. 1987).

REFERENCES

Schlageter III, John J.; Cheeseman, Henry R.; Reed, Kathleen. Contract Law for Paralegals (p. 57). Pearson Education. Kindle Edition.