![\"Eviction-Notice1\"](\"http:\/\/www.bevenandbrock.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/05\/Eviction-Notice1.jpg\")
<\/a>Actually, this one has not happened to me, but it could have.\u00a0\u00a0 But this actually happened to one of our FAA members.\u00a0 I am grateful to him for this lesson, and will describe it as best as I can.<\/p>\nThe tenant had been a problem, for years.\u00a0\u00a0 It was one relatively small breach-of-contract after another, such as violation of the parking rules.\u00a0 It was one complaint after another.\u00a0\u00a0 And the case ultimately turned on one of those complaints.<\/p>\n
Because of the string of violations and complaints, the owner finally just decided to end the frustration by evicting the tenant, and filed the appropriate papers in the Pasadena court to begin the process.\u00a0 The tenant in this case went further than most.\u00a0 He answered the complaint,\u00a0 and<\/span><\/b> requested a jury trial<\/span><\/b>.\u00a0 With the help of the local fair housing office, he had an attorney to represent him at the trial.<\/p>\n The tenant prevailed (and this was a big surprise to me), based on the theory of retaliatory eviction. <\/span><\/i><\/b><\/p>\n OK, so maybe it was retaliatory as the tenant was not currently in violation of any provision of his contract, but it had (and I stress the word \u201chad\u201d) been my understanding that retaliatory evictions only applied in situations where the tenant had complained to some sort of governmental or regulatory agency.\u00a0 Here, the tenant had only complained to the owner.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The jury, with the help of the judge, essentially held that the owner could not evict without \u201cjust cause\u201d.\u00a0 In other words, the finding was that there could be no eviction unless the tenant was in current violation of some provision of his lease.<\/p>\n Of course it was unusual to have a jury trial over an eviction.\u00a0\u00a0 What is not surprising is that a judge and a jury can have whatever outcome they think is right.<\/p>\n The new lesson from all of this is clear:\u00a0 if you are going to evict a tenant, it had better be for a good reason.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Non-payment of rent remains a very good reason to evict\u00a0\u00a0 However, if it is a behavioral issue, such as noise or parking or pets, I would recommend that the owner have very good documentation, both of the on-going violation,\u00a0 and\u00a0 showing a clear attempt to warn the tenant of the problem before initiating an eviction process.<\/p>\n Prepare for an eviction as if \u201cjust cause\u201d were the criteria.\u00a0 It makes good business-sense to me.<\/p>\n The owner in this case was very smart.\u00a0 He had followed advice that I and others had written about by limiting potential legal fees to $500 in his rental contracts, in the event he lost in court.\u00a0 This advice originally came to me from Craig Doolittle of AAA Lessor Services.\u00a0 Thank you, Craig.<\/p>\n Dear Readers: This article is the 154th in a series based on the lessons we have learned the hard way.\u00a0 The contents of these articles are merely opinions of the writer.\u00a0 They are not intended as specific legal advice and should not be relied upon for that purpose.\u00a0 Our practice is in constant refinement as we adjust the way we operate in an ever- changing rental market.\u00a0 I always appreciate your questions, comments, suggestions, and solutions.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Contact C. Finley Beven, CPM, CCAM, JD.<\/p>\n Beven & Brock Property Management Co., Inc.<\/p>\n 99 S. Lake Avenue,\u00a0 Pasadena.\u00a0 (626) 243-4145\u00a0\u00a0 \u2026.<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" [et_pb_section bb_built=”1″][et_pb_row][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text] Actually, this one has not happened to me, but it could have.\u00a0\u00a0 But this actually happened to one of our FAA members.\u00a0 I am grateful to him for this lesson, and will describe it as best as I can. The tenant had been a problem, for years.\u00a0\u00a0 It was one relatively small […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":"