Commercial Lease Lockout in Queensland: Your Rights on Both Sides of the Door
A landlord changes the locks overnight. A tenant arrives at their premises and cannot get in. Whether that lockout is lawful or unlawful depends on a specific procedural sequence that the landlord must have followed — and since 1 August 2025, those procedures are governed by Queensland’s new Property Law Act 2023. Getting this sequence wrong exposes the landlord to damages and injunctions. Getting the response to it wrong can cost a tenant their business premises permanently.
An unlawful lockout requires urgent action. The longer you wait, the harder reinstatement becomes.
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The New Legal Framework: Property Law Act 2023 (Qld)
The Property Law Act 2023 (Qld) commenced on 1 August 2025, modernising and replacing the former Property Law Act 1974 (Qld) for most commercial leasing purposes. Critically, a number of its key provisions — including the requirements governing notices to remedy breach and the exercise of rights of re-entry — cannot be contracted out of and apply to all leases regardless of when they were entered into. A landlord operating under a lease signed in 2018 must still comply with the 2023 Act’s re-entry procedure.
Transitional note: where a breach occurred before 1 August 2025, or a lease was entered into before that date in respect of some specific provisions, the former Property Law Act 1974 may still govern some elements of the relevant rights and obligations. The position should be confirmed for any specific dispute.
What a Landlord Must Do Before Exercising a Right of Re-Entry
Under section 153 of the Property Law Act 2023, a landlord cannot exercise a right of re-entry in respect of a covenant or condition in a lease unless they have first served a formal notice to remedy breach — commonly known as a Form 7 notice — on the tenant and any mortgagee with a relevant interest. The notice must specify the breach, what is required to remedy it, and allow a reasonable time for that remedy to occur.
A landlord who changes the locks, issues a notice of forfeiture, or physically excludes a tenant without first serving a compliant notice to remedy breach acts unlawfully, regardless of whether the tenant is genuinely in default. This is not a technical formality — it is an absolute prerequisite to the right of re-entry, and courts have consistently held that a landlord who bypasses it cannot rely on any subsequent re-entry as lawful.
What Counts as a Reasonable Time to Remedy?
What is ‘reasonable’ depends on the nature of the breach. For unpaid rent, the notice period in the lease may be short — sometimes as little as 14 days. For breaches involving repair or reinstatement of premises, a longer period may be required. Courts scrutinise closely whether the time allowed was genuinely reasonable given the nature of the breach and the circumstances of the tenant. A Form 7 notice that specifies an unreasonably short remedy period, or that misstates the breach in a material way, may be invalid.
If You Have Been Locked Out: Your Immediate Options as a Tenant
Speed is critical. The longer a tenant remains locked out, the greater the business damage and the harder a reinstatement claim becomes to maintain, particularly if the landlord re-lets the premises to another party in the interim.
- Urgent injunction application: a tenant who has been unlawfully locked out can seek urgent injunctive relief from the Supreme Court of Queensland, or QCAT where the dispute involves a retail shop lease, requiring the landlord to restore access immediately. Applications for urgent reinstatement can be heard within days.
- Relief against forfeiture: even where a right of re-entry was lawfully exercised, a tenant may apply to the court under sections 156 to 162 of the Property Law Act 2023 for relief against forfeiture — essentially, an order reinstating the lease on payment of all arrears, rent, and costs. Courts consider whether the tenant can genuinely remedy the breach, the nature and duration of the default, and the relative prejudice to each party.
- Damages claim: where a lockout was unlawful and the tenant has suffered business loss, loss of fit-out investment, or loss of stock, a damages claim against the landlord may be available separately from or in addition to reinstatement relief.
For Retail Shop Leases: The QCAT Pathway
Retail shop leases governed by the Retail Shop Leases Act 1994 (Qld) have their own dispute resolution pathway, generally through the Queensland Small Business Commissioner in the first instance and then QCAT. QCAT has jurisdiction over retail shop lease disputes and can order reinstatement of possession, payment of arrears, and damages. For retail leases, the QCAT pathway may be faster and less costly than Supreme Court proceedings for straightforward unlawful lockout matters.
For Landlords: The Risk of Acting Without the Right Process
A landlord who exercises a right of re-entry without following the notice to remedy breach process exposes themselves to an urgent injunction application, a reinstatement order, and a damages claim from the tenant. The Property Law Act 2023 is clear that the notice requirement applies to all leases regardless of contractual terms purporting to exclude it. A landlord who assumes a ‘self-help’ right of re-entry applies to commercial tenancies without following the statutory process is taking a significant legal risk, even where the tenant’s default is not in dispute.
Both sides of a lease lockout dispute move fast. The party who acts first, on the right advice, controls the outcome.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Can a landlord change the locks without notice if I haven’t paid rent?
A: Generally, no. Under section 153 of the Property Law Act 2023 (Qld), a landlord must first serve a formal notice to remedy breach and allow a reasonable time for remedy before exercising any right of re-entry or forfeiture. A landlord who bypasses this process acts unlawfully regardless of whether rent is genuinely overdue.
Q: What should I do the day I find myself locked out?
A: Document everything immediately — photographs of locked access points, a contemporaneous note of the date and time, and any communications from the landlord. Do not attempt to force entry yourself. Seek legal advice immediately, since urgent injunction applications can be filed within 24 to 48 hours in serious cases.
Q: Does the Property Law Act 2023 apply to my existing lease signed before August 2025?
A: The key provisions on re-entry and notices to remedy breach cannot be contracted out of and apply to all leases regardless of when they were entered into. However, the Act’s application to specific issues, including some provisions on assignor liability and compensation rights, depends on when the lease was entered into. Confirm the specific position for your lease with legal advice.
Q: What is relief against forfeiture?
A: Relief against forfeiture is a court order reinstating a lease that has been lawfully forfeited, available under sections 156 to 162 of the Property Law Act 2023. It is typically granted where the tenant can pay all arrears, costs, and rent, and the balance of prejudice favours reinstatement. Courts take into account the nature and duration of the default, the tenant’s ability to remedy, and the harm to the landlord of continued occupation.
Q: Does this apply to retail shop leases?
A: Yes, though retail shop leases have additional protections under the Retail Shop Leases Act 1994 (Qld) and their disputes can be resolved through QCAT, which may be a faster pathway for straightforward reinstatement applications. The Property Law Act 2023 re-entry requirements apply to retail leases as well as commercial leases generally.
Q: What damages can a tenant claim for an unlawful lockout?
A: Where a lockout was unlawful, a tenant can seek damages for loss of business revenue, loss of stock and fit-out investment if the premises were accessed or the fit-out was damaged, and other consequential losses flowing from the unlawful exclusion. The strength of the damages claim depends on how well the loss can be documented and whether the landlord’s conduct was clearly unlawful.
