Davidow v. Inwood North Professional Group

In Davidow v. Inwood North Professional Group, 747 S.W.2d 373, 377 (Tex. 1988), the court held that, in a commercial lease, the lessor makes an implied warranty that the premises are suitable for the intended commercial purpose. It said that what that meant was (1) at the inception of the lease, (2) there were no latent defects in the facilities (3) that were vital to the use of the premises (4) for their intended commercial purpose and (5) these essential facilities would remain in a suitable condition. 747 S.W.2d at 377. It seems to be clear that using the clause, "these essential facilities will remain in a suitable condition," presupposes that the lessor had a continuing duty to repair such "essential facilities" that contained the latent defects . That is underscored by the court's statement that, if "the parties to a lease expressly agree that the tenant will repair certain defects, then the provisions of the lease will control" . Id.