Think Before You Sign That N11: What Tenants In Ontario Need To Know

Under the Residential Tenancies Act, 2006, S.O. 2006, c. 17 (RTA), a law that governs the rights, duties, and obligations of landlords and tenants in Ontario—residential lease agreements can only be terminated in accordance with legal provisions. This means that neither party has the unilateral power to end a lease at will. Instead, the Act outlines specific methods, reasons, and timelines for termination.

What is Bilateral Agreement to Terminate a Lease?

Despite restrictions under the RTA, this legislation allows both parties to mutually agree to terminate the lease. This type of bilateral termination is recognized under section 37 (3) and 77(1)(a) of the RTA, which permits a landlord to apply “without notice to the tenant to the Board for an order terminating and evicting the tenant if they have entered into an agreement to terminate the tenancy.”

Often, such agreements are documented using Form N11, available on the Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB) website. However, while a signed N11 can be useful to show that an agreement exists, certain issues can still arise after the execution of these agreements.

What If Tenant Later Challenges the Agreement?

Here’s where things can get tricky.

We often hear from tenants who say things like:

• “I felt pressured to sign.”

• “I didn’t understand what I was signing.”

• “The landlord lied to me.”

• “Now I can’t move out by the date I agreed to.” So, can a tenant take it all back?

Like many other areas of law, the answer is: It depends.

As in other contractual relationships, there must be a “meeting of the minds”; a mutual intent to be bound by the terms of the agreement. Therefore, it may be possible for one party to invalidate the agreement to terminate the lease by showing that their consent was not freely given.

In legal terms, this may involve proving misrepresentation, duress, undue influence, unconscionability, or mistake. The most common grounds in these disputes are misrepresentation and duress.

What Is Misrepresentation?

In short, misrepresentation is a false statement that induces someone to enter into an agreement. It usually happens during the discussions leading up to the agreement. For example:

• A landlord may induce a tenant to sign an N11 by falsely claiming that the unit is no longer safe to live in (when that’s not true).

• Promising compensation or alternative housing that never materializes.

• The landlord says the tenant has no choice but to sign.

  
  

If a landlord uses false or misleading information to obtain the tenant's signature, the agreement could be invalidated. However, if the tenant was aware the statement was false and still agreed to terminate the lease or if their decision wasn’t influenced by the misrepresentation then the agreement  remains  valid.  In  legal  terms,  there  was  not  a  material  representation.1

What About Duress?

Similarly, for duress to be a valid ground for invalidating the agreement, there must be evidence of coercion, threats, or some kind of violence that compelled the tenant to agree. Tenants often confuse feeling pressured or stressed with being coerced. But the law requires clear proof that the landlord made some sort of threat. For instance, feeling intimidated because the landlord showed up unannounced at night with an N11 form may not be enough to prove duress, if the tenant still signed voluntarily.2

In the Court of Appeal decision in Dos Santos v. Waite, 1996 CarswellOnt 3554 (C.A.) the Court noted that “settlements are not always equally beneficial to both parties, but this does not justify setting aside an agreement merely because one party later changes their mind.”3

So be careful! Just feeling pressured or stressed is not enough; there must be an actual coercion.

It is important to know as well that landlords are not required to tell tenants that they should seek legal advice before signing an N11—and the N11 would not be void simply because the tenant didn’t consult a licensed paralegal or lawyer, as the RTA imposes no such obligation on landlords.

Take Caution Before Signing an N11

As mentioned, tenants must be extremely careful before signing an N11 or agreeing to end a lease mutually. The law is not a tool to undo a bad bargain.

Even if a landlord offers to terminate the lease to pursue actions not permitted by law—such as illegally raising rent beyond the guideline or shifting obligations not agreed upon in the lease—and the tenant freely accepts, they likely cannot later back out just because they regret the deal or can’t move out on the agreed date.4

Assuming there was no misrepresentation, no mistake, and no duress, is it still possible to challenge a signed N11?

We could argue—without prejudice—that one possible approach would be invoking the doctrine of unconscionability. This focuses on the fairness of the agreement itself and the conduct of the other party during negotiations.

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1 Guarantee Co. of North America v. Gordon Capital Corp., 1999 CanLII 664 (SCC), [1999] 3 SCR 423

2 TSL-09947-19-SA (Re), 2020 CanLII 31434 (ON LTB)

3 Ibid

4 Shergill v Komolafe, 2023 ONLTB 13930

In this context, LTB may examine whether there was a severe imbalance in bargaining power, and whether the landlord exploited that imbalance to gain an unfair advantage. However, the legal threshold for proving unconscionability is very high, and it is a topic best explored in a separate blog article.

If you're a landlord or tenant currently navigating a situation involving a potential N11 agreement, don’t hesitate to reach out for legal advice. We're here to help guide you through the process, protect your rights, and ensure you're not walking into an agreement you'll regret.