Legal Question in Real Estate Law in California

In California, subleases of commercial property can be prohibited by a provision to that effect in the lease. See Civil Code section 1995 et seq. However, there is no such statutory permission given for residential lessors to forbid subleases or assignments of leases or rental agreements. The law seems to be that the residential landlord cannot unreasonably restrict a tenant making a sublease or assignment. What is reasonable and what is unreasonable are very circumstance dependent, and I can't give you any specifics based on the information given. Your sublease is presumably good until shown otherwise, at least as between Jack and you. Your right to reclaim any deposit depends upon who holds it; presumably Jack unless and until he notifies you that he's transferred your deposit to the landlord. Finally, you can't sublease (or sub-rent) once the primary lease or rental terminates. At that point, you aren't a trespasser, but you are subject to due-process eviction proceedings unless the landlord and you can agree on a new lease or rental with you as the tenant.

I disagree with Mr. Whipple. Civil Code sections 1995.010 through 1995.270 were passed by the California legislature in response to the California Supreme Court's decision in Kendall v. Ernest Pestana, Inc. (1985) 40 Cal.3d 488. It had nothing to do with giving the public the right to sublease to commercial tenancies.

The legislature has left the case law provisions regarding subleasing in residential contexts undisturbed. "It is the duty of a person contracting for a sublease to ascertain the provisions of the original lease; and a subtenant is charged with notice of the existence of the original lease, and is bound by its terms and conditions." (Pedro v. Potter (1926) 197 Cal. 751.) That means you are deemed to know the provisions of the master lease, including the prohibition on subleasing.

If the master lease did not prohibit the sublease, and you were in possession under a valid sublease, the surrender by the lessee to the landlord would not affect your right to remain in possession. But the master lease did prohibit the sublease, and you do not have a valid lease or a right to remain in possession.

To answer your other question, the tenant who you paid the deposit to (Jack) should return your deposit to you, although you are both guilty of unclean hands.