Also known as: inquilini · tenant · lodger
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A tenant under Roman law who leases or occupies another's house or apartment, especially in an urban setting.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Igor Ito leased a downtown apartment from Ideal Solutions for a two-year period at a set monthly rent. The parties executed a written agreement specifying the exact duration and rent amount. When a dispute later arose over early termination, the court treated the arrangement as creating a valid inquilinus relationship that endured for the computable term.
Isaiah Ishikawa, a joint tenant, leased his undivided interest in a family home to Interlink Communications for eighteen months. The lease did not sever the joint tenancy. Upon Isaiah's death before the lease ended, the surviving joint tenant took the property free of the lease, leaving Interlink Communications without enforceable rights against the survivor.
Isabella Ingram conveyed a life estate in rural land to her brother with further language creating a remainder in his issue. The conveyance satisfied the requirements for creating a substituted fee tail estate in the brother's descendants. The brother's inquilinus interest therefore terminated at his death, passing the property to the designated issue.
Ike Ingram held property as a joint tenant with his spouse at the time of his death. Under the probate code, the value of the surviving spouse's fractional interest was determined immediately before Ike's death. The inquilinus rights of any tenant claiming through the decedent were thereby limited by the adjusted valuation rules.
Imran Iyer rented an apartment from Infinity Bank under an arrangement that continued month to month. When the bank decided to end the tenancy, it gave one month's notice as required by statute. The inquilinus relationship therefore terminated at the end of the notice period without further obligation.
Ivy Ibarra occupied commercial space owned by Inertia Dynamics under an agreement terminable at the will of either party. When Inertia Dynamics gave the required statutory notice, the inquilinus relationship ended immediately. No fixed term or renewal right survived the notice.
An inquilinus is specifically a Roman-law tenant who leases or occupies urban property belonging to another. The relationship requires a transfer of possession rights and mutual capacity to contract, distinguishing it from mere licensees or guests.
Supporting sources
Yes. The relationship may endure for a fixed or computable period, until proper notice terminates a periodic tenancy, or only so long as both parties desire, subject to any statutory notice requirements.
In modern jurisdictions, the lease does not sever the joint tenancy. The lessee acquires only the rights of occupancy held by the leasing joint tenant and loses those rights if the lessor dies before the lease expires.
…is premised solely on alleged infringement of associational and other constitutional rights of tenants . But the named tenant appellees have quit the house, thus raising a serious question whether there now exists a cognizable “case or controversy” that satisfies that indispensable requisite of Art. III of the…