Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in California

Breaking unsigned lease

I am unable to afford the rent on my apartment anymore and gave notice to my landlord. She said that according to our lease we continue to pay rent and foreit our security deposit. When I looked at what we had signed the actual lease agreement was not signed by either my roomate or myself where it says acceptance. We only intialed the back where it said the concerns about lost keys and a tenancy agreement that states nothing about us having to continue rent or loose our security deposit. Since the actual leasing part was not signed doesnt it make our tenancy there on a month to month basis and our 30 day notification grounds for us to leave without paying any extra fees? (She refuses to show us her copy of the lease stating we have the same copies)


Asked on 10/03/03, 3:45 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Martin Snitow

Re: Breaking unsigned lease

Here are some general contract rules concerning signatures. I won't try to apply them to your situation without seeing the document.

Poag v. Winston (1987) 195 C.A.3d 1161, 1179, 241 C.R. 330: "The name of the party to be charged with execution of a written document satisfies the statutory requirement of 'subscription' if it is intended as a signature, i.e., authentication of the document, regardless of where in the writing it appears. (Marks v. Walter G. McCarty Corp. (1949) 83 Cal.2d 8144,820, 205 P.2d 1025; Rader Co. v. Stone (1986) 178 Cal.App.3d 10, 23, 223 Cal.Rptr. 806.)

The essential element is an intent to appropriate the name as a signature; it need not be the full handwritten name to qualify. (Marks, supra, 33 Cal.2d at p. 820, 205 P.2d 1025..) Hence, even initials may qualify. (See, e.g. Berdan v. Berdan (1940) 30 Cal.App.2d 478, 483, 103 P.2d 622)."

In Skirball v. RKO Radio Pictures, Inc. (1955) 134 C.A.2d 843, 863 a typewritten name at the end of the document was adopted by initialling the memorandum.

Kadota Fig Assn v. Case-Swayne Co. (19 ) 73 C.A.2d 815, 819 ruled that a signature: "...may be written, printed, stamped, typewritten, engraved or photographed."

Cf. Commercial Code � 1201 (39): "Signed" includes any symbol executed or adopted by a party with present intention to authenticate a writing.

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Answered on 10/03/03, 4:40 pm


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