Part A is "Defenses based on Jurisdiction and/or Due Process."
"Jurisdictional defenses" means your landlord failed to take the steps necessary to evict you in court. If your landlord did not follow the proper eviction method, the judge MAY dismiss your case and order your landlord to start the process over from the beginning.
Read the following descriptions of jurisdictional defenses and determine which applies to your situation. These statements are included in your Answer/Counterclaim form.
1. "Landlord has not given me the required notice before starting this action."
Proper notice requirements are:
- All notices must be written
- The notice should give you the correct amount of time after you receive the notice to either resolve the problem or move out.
If you have a written lease or an oral agreement to rent monthly, or if your lease expired and you have paid rent for two months without signing a new rental agreement, you are entitled to the following notice requirements:
- Non-payment of rent: 5 business days
- Violation of house rules: 10 days
- No specific reason
- Month-to-month lease: 45 days
- Six-month or one-year lease, AND lease expired: no notice required
- Six-month or one-year lease, AND paid two month's rent after lease expired: 45 days
- Week-to-week lease: 10 days
- Landlord is demolishing unit/property: 120 days
- Landlord is converting unit to condominium: 120 days.
If you have a week-to-week lease, or if you work in exchange for rent, call the Legal Aid Intake Hotline to learn more about your situation. Phone number is (808)536-4302. Phone lines are open Monday to Friday at 9AM - 11:30AM and 1PM - 3:30PM.
Check this box if your landlord did not give proper written notice of his/her intent to evict you.
- "Landlord failed to properly serve the Summons & Complaint."
Check this box if the court papers were NOT hand-delivered by a sheriff, a legal process server, or someone over eighteen who is not your landlord.
- "Small claims court has jurisdiction over security deposit disputes."
Look at line 9 on your landlord's Complaint. If it says your landlord wants to keep your security deposit, then you may want to check this box.
Note: Security Deposit disputes are handled in Small Claims Court. Since your eviction case belongs to the regular claims division of District Court, the judge will dismiss the security deposit portion of your landlord's Complaint and reassign it to Small Claims Court. The remaining issues will be handled in District Court.
- "Other"
Usually this box is left unchecked. Do not check this box unless an attorney has informed you that you have additional jurisdictional defenses not listed above.