Background
Lease/tenancy: The landlord is the person who leases the property and the tenant is the person who rents the property, their agreement called a tenancy or a lease. A tenancy/lease is therefore an arrangement whereby the tenant receives a proprietary interest in the prop and exclusive possession thereof. The tenant receives leasehold as opposed to freehold title of the property.
Types of lease/tenancy: a tenancy can be oral or written. Section 4 Deasys Act (1860 Act), an oral tenancy for less than a year is enforceable, longer than that, it must be in writing. You can also have an equitable lease when there is sufficient compliance with the Statute of Frauds 1695 or where there is evidence of part performance which may support an application for specific performance (these concepts are covered in Chapter 1). A tenancy can be for a fixed term or roll from year to year (unless terminated). A tenancy can arise under the Landlord and Tenant (Amendment) Act 1980 (1980 Act) for commercial leases, and under Part 4 Residential Tenancies Act 2004 (RTA 2004 as amended, most recently in June 2019). The main legal rights and responsibilities as a tenant come from landlord and tenant law (statute law), and the lease. Leases or other tenancy agreements cannot take away from your statutory rights under the legislation but can of course go further than the legislation.