Crawford Clothes, Inc. v. Kaufman-8th Ave. Corp.

The plaintiffs, the tenants under a written lease of a store in a building in this city owned by the defendant, their landlord, have brought this action to recover rent pay-ments claimed to have been in excess of the amount payable under the applicable lease. A brief history of the relation of the parties is necessary to an understanding of the problem posed for decision.

On August 12, 1943, the parties entered into the first lease for a term of five years, commencing on October 1, 1943, and ending on September 30, 1948. Under this lease the tenant was to pay a fixed minimum annual rent of…