Legal Question in Real Estate Law in Illinois

The last lease governs unless there is a clause referencing the first lease that you are missing. The provisions of the first lease expired when it did. The only way that those provisions would be in effect is if you had signed a lease and then continued without signing a new lease.

Without seeing the successive new leases, I would tend to agree w/ Mr. Palmer. Some successor "leases" are just amendments extending the original lease; some are completely new documents. However, if the landlord was "sneaky" there could be a provision even in a completely new lease that attempted carry forward the cancellation fee in the original lease. Just to be safe, have the leases looked at by an attorney.

Obviously, I have not seen the lease, but I would imagine the last document you signed obligated you to lease the property for a certain period of time. You state that you "had to move out early." Therefore, it is possible you violated the terms of that agreement. So, in other words, the amount the landlord is seeking is not necessarily an "early cancellation fee," but could be the last two months' rent you were obligated to pay. As previously noted though, have an attorney review the documents and give you an opinion as to your obligations.