What A Lease Cannot Say
G.L. c. 186, § 15 — a lease clause that excuses the landlord's own negligence is void
Void. Any lease or rental agreement provision, in whatever words, whose effect is to have the tenant indemnify the landlord or hold the landlord harmless, or to exonerate the landlord from liability, for injury, loss or damage arising from the landlord's omission, fault, negligence or other misconduct on the premises, or in the elevators, stairways, hallways and other parts used with them, is against public policy and void.
Who it protects. The liability the section preserves runs to the tenant and to any other person.
Whether a particular clause is enforceable, and what follows if a landlord relies on one, are questions for a licensed Massachusetts attorney.
Sources for this section (1)
- G.L. c. 186, § 15 — Non-liability of landlord; provisions in lease or rental agreement
Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of September 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed Massachusetts attorney.