License to Occupy v. Lease Agreement (Commercial)

Campbell v. 1493951 Ontario Inc., 2020 ONSC 4029 (CanLII)

[11] An agreement will constitute a lease if it grants, and was intended to grant, exclusive possession of the premises to the occupant. I am satisfied that the agreement between Mr. Campbell and Tri-Echo was a sub-lease.

Harvey v. Bingemans and Waterloo Region Police, 2022 ONSC 3905 (CanLII)

[26] There is a difference between a license and a lease. A license is a permission to use a property. It does not convey a leasehold interest in the land. With a license, one becomes a licensee; with a lease, one becomes a tenant. There are similarities between the rights of tenants and licensees, but they are not the same. The concepts cannot be used interchangeably.

[27] A licensee is permitted to enter onto lands, with the permission or consent of the owner. A license gives the licensee the right to do something on the owner’s property, which the owner could otherwise prevent.

[28] Generally, a lease exists where the owner agrees to turn over exclusive possession of the property to another for a period of time. The conveyance of exclusive possession is an essential characteristic of a lease. A license, on the other hand, is an agreement that gives the licensee permission to use the land only at the owner’s discretion. A license is a revocable privilege.