Lloyd v. Murphy,

25 Cal.2d 48, 153 P.2d 47 (1944)

Facts

Lloyd (D) leased premises to Murphy (P) to be used to sell new cars only but was occasionally permitted to sell used cars. The federal government restricted the sale of new cars on January 1, 1942, due to WW II. That order was modified to permit only a certain class of persons to buy new cars. P was amendable to allow D the latitude to stay in business, but D informed P that he could not operate and vacated the premises. P rented the property to others and then sued for declaratory relief to determine the rights under the contract and for unpaid rent. The trial court found that the war-time conditions did not terminate the lease. D appealed.