By Esther Fung 

Simon Property Group, the country's largest mall owner, filed a lawsuit against Gap Inc. on Tuesday over unpaid rents and other charges it says amount to $66 million.

In the filing, Simon Property said the retailer has withheld rents for April, May and June. The landlord is seeking to be paid rent for those months, as well as for attorney fees and other charges, according to the lawsuit.

"The requirement that The Gap Entities timely pay rent due under the leases has not been excused," said the complaint, which was filed in the Superior Court of the state of Delaware.

Gap didn't comment on the lawsuit directly, but said it is committed to working with landlords on "mutually agreeable solutions and fair rent terms."

"It's important to note the profound effect that Covid has had on shopping centers as well, leaving them closed to us and our customers for months," said Mark Daniel Snyder, communications manager at Gap.

The Gap said in April that its stores are closed due to the coronavirus pandemic and it had stopped paying rent because of insufficient cash flow. The San Francisco-based retailer, which owns brands such as Old Navy, Banana Republic and Athleta, added at that time that it was looking to renegotiate leases with its landlords.

At the end of the first quarter, Simon Property, based in Indianapolis, had 412 stores operated by the Gap in its properties, making Gap one of its top U.S. store tenants apart from department stores.

Simon Property didn't respond to requests for further comment.

Write to Esther Fung at esther.fung@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

June 04, 2020 14:50 ET (18:50 GMT)

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