In Illinois, a sublease agreement is a legal document that spells out the terms of an agreement between two tenants; a sublessor and a sublessee. This type of agreement is often used when the sublessor (the original tenant) can no longer, or no longer wishes to live in the rental but does not want to break the lease. Instead of breaking the lease, potentially incurring hefty fees, the tenant would seek to sublease the apartment. Once the sublessor has found a sublessee to live in the rental, the two parties may move forward with the sublease agreement. It is important for the sublessor to stay in communication with the sublessee, as the original tenant’s name will remain on the lease through the duration of the sublease agreement. This means that if the unit is damaged or if any rent is paid late, the sublessor will be held responsible.
Illinois Tenant Landlord Laws provide provisions for tenants to sublease their units unless their lease clearly prohibits it. If a tenant’s lease doesn’t prohibit subleasing, the tenant has the right to do so without notifying the landlord (a legal precedent set by Cole v. Ignatius)