Homeless Rental Aid Questioned:  (CD Publications) A proposed change to the Los Angeles County Sec. 8 housing voucher program would eliminate setting aside vouchers to help increase the supply of permanent supportive housing for homeless persons. The proposal before the county Board...  Read More  03/12/2010 11:01 AM

Tenant's Case Against His Landlord Over A Criminal Attack Is Reinstated:  Lesson: Landlords have a duty to protect tenants from reasonably foreseeable criminal activity and the precautions the landlords must take will depend on the type of and frequency of past criminal conduct in the area. Here the landlord knew people w...  Read More  03/12/2010 09:57 AM

Judgment Increased From $1700 To More Than $41,000 Following Appeal:   Lesson: It took the landlord two years to evict this tenant and nearly $20,000 in attorneys' fees because the tenant took advantage of the system and his parents to drag out the appeals. The landlord did everything correctly and collected more than...  Read More  03/12/2010 09:52 AM

Odor-Producing Tenants Evicted After Violating Settlement Agreement:  Lesson: The courts will enforce settlement agreements in order to encourage parties to settle their disputes. The landlord here wisely chose not to include a "second chance" provision in its stipulation and the court could not add a second chance pro...  Read More  03/12/2010 09:43 AM

Court Allows Subrogation Lawsuit Against A Negligent Tenant Over Fire:  The lease must conform to state law in order for there to be a right of subrogation. Some insurance companies may require in their policy that the landlord's lease meet the legal requirements giving rise to the insurance company's subrogation right in order to provide coverage to the landlord.   Read More  03/12/2010 09:37 AM

New York Landlords Charged with Discriminating Against Vet with Disabilities:  The U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development has charged two Poughkeepsie, NY-area landlords with violating the Fair Housing Act for allegedly refusing to allow a Vietnam-era veteran suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder to have a t...  Read More  03/05/2010 12:12 PM

Atlantic Yards Complex Gets Green Light:  Following a court rejection of a legal challenge, developers of the massive Atlantic Yards Residential, Retail and Sports complex in Brooklyn are ready to launch the project. First on the list is construction of Barclays Center arena, the new home pf...  Read More  03/05/2010 12 PM

Tenants Win New Trial Because Court Refused To Consider Mitigation Claim:  Lesson: Landlords have an obligation to mitigate their damages in breach of lease cases by attempting to find a replacement tenant as soon as possible. The tenants in this case have evidence their landlords quickly replaced them but the landlords cl...  Read More  03/02/2010 3:01 PM

Landlord Wins Second Chance To Prove Damages Against His Tenant:  Lesson: The landlord lost the case initially because of his poor bookkeeping skills and an impatient judge. Landlords are entitled to withhold funds from security deposits to pay for damages caused by tenants that are beyond normal wear and tear and ...  Read More  03/02/2010 2:57 PM

Unruly Tenant Is Evicted After Violating Terms Of His Settlement Agreement:  Lesson: Courts will enforce stipulations and other settlement agreements that are fair to both parties because courts want to encourage litigants to settle their disputes prior to their trial dates. The tenant's attorneys and guardian signed off on ...  Read More  03/02/2010 2:53 PM