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Illegal Actions of a Landlord: Is Landlord Tenant Court Needed

The law prohibits a landlord from taking certain actions against a tenant. These illegal actions include:

Lockouts.
 The law prohibits landlords from changing locks, adding new locks, or otherwise making it impossible for the tenant to use the normal locks and keys. Even if a tenant is behind in rent, such lockouts are illegal.

A tenant who is locked out can file a lawsuit to regain entry. Some local governments also have laws against lockouts and can help a tenant who has been locked out of a rental. For more information contact your city or county government.

Utility Shutoffs.
 The landlord may not shut off utilities because the tenant is behind in rent, or to force a tenant to move out. Utilities may only be shut off by the landlord so that repairs may be made, and only for a reasonable amount of time.

If a landlord intentionally does not pay utility bills so the service will be turned off, that could be considered an illegal shutoff.

If the utilities have been shut off by the landlord, the tenant should first check with the utility company to see if it will restore service. If it appears the shutoff is illegal, the tenant can file a lawsuit. If the tenant wins in court, the judge can award the tenant up to $100 per day for the time without service, as well as attorney's fees.

Taking the tenant's property.
The law allows a landlord to take a tenant's property only in the case of abandonment.

A clause in a rental agreement which allows the landlord to take a tenant's property in other situations is not valid.

If the landlord does take a tenant's property illegally, the tenant may want to contact the landlord first. If that is unsuccessful, the police can be notified. If the property is not returned after the landlord is given a written request, a court could order the landlord to pay the tenant up to $100 for each day the property is kept (to a total of $1,000).

Renting condemned property.
The landlord may not rent units which are condemned or unlawful to occupy due to existing uncorrected code violations. The landlord can be liable for three months rent or treble damages, whichever is greater, as well as costs and attorney's fees for knowingly renting the property.

Retaliatory actions.
 If a tenant exercises rights under the law, such as complaining to a government authority or deducting for repairs, the law prohibits the landlord from taking retaliatory action.

Examples of retaliatory actions are raising the rent, reducing services provided to the tenant, or evicting the tenant.

The law initially assumes that these steps are retaliatory if they occur within 90 days after the tenant's action, unless the tenant was in some way violating the statute when notice of the change was received.

If the matter is taken to court and the judge finds in favor of the tenant, the landlord can be ordered to reverse the retaliatory action, as well as pay for any harm done to the tenant and pay the tenant's attorney's fees.

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