Number 72, April 2003 (Web site only):
Right to Get Out of Lease

By CAPT Samuel F. Wright, JAGC, USNR*

Q: I am an Army Reservist. I was called to active duty for a year and deployed to the D.C. area, more than 2,000 miles from home. I am now being released early, after just eight months. Shortly after I arrived at my mobilization duty station, the base commander pressed me (and the other recalled Reservists) to get civilian apartments, because there was no room on base and the commander wanted to avoid paying to put us up in hotels. I had to sign a one-year lease in order to get an apartment close to the military base in Northern Virginia. Now, I am concerned about having to pay four months’ rent for an apartment I no longer need, and for which I will not be reimbursed by the Army. Does the Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Civil Relief Act (SSCRA) give me the right to get out of this lease?

A: No. The SSCRA gives you the right to get out of the lease upon mobilization, but not upon demobilization. Fortunately, Virginia law gives you the right to get out of the lease under these circumstances, provided the landlord has at least five residential rental properties. I invite your attention to Code of Virginia, section 55-248.21:1 (2002 Cumulative Supplement). Like the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA), the SSCRA does not supersede a state law that provides greater or additional rights.

ROA is pushing for several improvements in the SSCRA. One of our proposed amendments would address the issue you raise.