additional #ooms for the purpose of Has a tenant the right to build éubletting to his or her own vantage? This is the interesting question raised in the Second Special District Court on Thursday, but since the court dismissed the: case in which such a dispute is involved the outcome of the legal battle is still to be seen. The argument developed by Mr. Paul Premet in the court was that certain tenants have found an easy way to face the high cost of living: not only do they avoid paying their rent, but they also sublet rooms and build additional rooms for the purpose of subletting in contradiction to the conditions of their lease and they receive rents from the sub-tenants.
He presented the argument in the criminal division of the court in a prosecution case for breaking in 2 dwelling house against Joseph Kojevetz, Russian supervisor of "Joffre Terrace," which is the property of the China Realty Company. The prosecution was started by the French Police at the request of Mrs. Dergasheva, a tenant of the Terrace. Notwithstanding the defence of the landlords, she was alleged to have built an additional room on the root of her apartment some time ago, and all the efforts made by the China Realty Company to prevent this construction have proved futile.
As Mrs. Dergasheva was alleged to be two months late in payment of the rent, the real estate company decided to pull down the- construction which was said to be an easy thing. A foreign official of the China Realty Company was said to have instructed the accused, Joseph Kojevetz, to call carpenters who came to the spot accompanied by the accused, acting as interpreter in the Chinese and Russian languages. After having asked Mrs, Dergasheva to be allowed to enter her apartment, they were refused permission and so they decided to pass through the adjoining house in order to reach the roof where the construction was erected and the carpenters started pulling it down.
The work was interrupted by the French Police, it was alleged, who sent Kojevetz to the Chinese cour in accordance with Article 306 of the Penal Code. During the hearing, the lady confirmed her complaint and after having heard the explanations of Mr. Paul Premt for the ued, the French Municipal Advocate rose and declared that the Police were willing to withdraw the prosecution as it appeared that the accused had not participated in the pulling-down process but merely acted as an interpreter. The court therefore dismissed the
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.