Lessors will try to get their lessees to pay for as much as their stuff as possible. Including their own legal costs.

It is customary for the lessor to request that its legal costs be paid by the lessee. This is not always agreed to, and more often than not the parties agree to bear their own legal costs.

The most common practice in the current market is for each party to pay their own costs.

On occasion, a lessor will pay the lessee’s costs, as part of an ‘incentive’ to induce a lessee to enter into a lease. In such instances costs are usually paid up to a certain capped amount. The lessee is still  expected to pay duty and registration expenses.

Note that Section 14 of the Retail Leases Act 1994 (NSW) prohibits the cost of preparation of the lease from being passed on to the lessee. The Retail Leases Act 1994 (NSW) applies to some, but not all commercial Lea