Evictions

My landlord retaliated against me because I complained about repairs that need to be done. Is that legal?

Many types of retaliation are illegal, but not all.

The landlord changed the locks, turned off utilities, or did something else to turn me out of the property. What are my rights?

This is called a “self-help” eviction or what the law calls an “unlawful ouster.” This happens when a landlord removes a tenant from the property, does something to bar a tenant from possession (such as changing the locks), or causes an interruption in water, heat, hot water, electricity, plumbing or sewer systems.

A FINAL WORD ON CAUTION ABOUT COUNTERCLAIMS

If you raise a counterclaim and the court finds that the counterclaim has no merit and is not raised in good faith, then the landlord may recover, in addition to actual damages, reasonable attorney's fees.

Failure to maintain counterclaims can be technical, so you should consult with an attorney to determine whether or not you have one.

AN IMPORTANT WORD ON NOTICE

Do you have to give WRITTEN notice?

You should give written notice to the landlord for all repair requests.

HOW DO YOU ASSERT A COUNTERCLAIM?

You have the right to say the landlord's failure to maintain the property after receiving your eviction notice as your counterclaim in the eviction. The eviction is the landlord's claim against you, and the landlord's failure to maintain is your counterclaim against the landlord.

To raise a counterclaim based on the landlord's failure to make required repairs you must file a written answer with the magistrate OR you must personally appear at the magistrate's court and have your verbal statement taken down.

What if the landlord has not made repairs to the property like I asked?

In this case, you could have what the law calls a "counterclaim" if your dwelling unit is not fit and habitable and it's the landlord's fault.

Repair issues come up a lot in residential landlord-tenant eviction cases. The landlord has the duty, under state law, to keep the rental premises "fit and habitable." There is no precise definition of what "fit and habitable" means, but at a minimum it includes making sure that the essential services for the house to work.

What if I am buying the property, not leasing it?

The Magistrate's Court does not have the authority to hear disputes over real estate unless there is a landlord-tenant relationship between you and the opposing party. If you and the opposing party are not in a landlord-tenant relationship, then an eviction is not proper, and the Magistrate's Court should dismiss the eviction.

EXAMPLE

Assume that your lease says you cannot have other people living with you who have not been approved by the landlord. Your friend moves in and has not been approved by the landlord. If the landlord finds out about that and lets it go for a while without saying anything and continues accepting your rent, the landlord is waiving that breach.

What are some possible defenses to an eviction?

A legal defense is any reason that the law recognizes as a valid reason for not granting the eviction. In some cases there are no legal defenses. But in many cases there are if you know where to look.

The video you watched mentioned a few common defenses, which are

HOW DO YOU RESPOND?

Before doing anything else, decide whether you intend to seek legal advice or representation on your case. If you intend to seek legal counsel, it is best to consult with an attorney before you respond to the Rule, unless you are at the end of your ten day period and do not have time to wait.

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