Under the law (Real Property Law 234), where a lease allows a landlord to recover attorneys’ fees, the tenant has an equal right to recover attorneys’ fees if the tenant is the prevailing party in a court dispute. The lease also stated that its terms were binding upon successors-in-interest.
To recover attorney’s fees, however, the landlord must meet several criteria. First, the lease must expressly state that the landlord is entitled to recover attorneys’ fees as additional rent or in connection with the collection of rent.
When a contract contains a provision granting either party the right to recover attorney fees in the event of litigation on the contract, Civil Code section 1717 (hereafter section 1717) gives the “party prevailing on the contract” a right to recover attorney fees, whether or not that party is the party specified in the contract.
First, the court will look to the rental contract to determine if the attorney fee provision is a two way street giving either the landlord or the tenant the right to collect legal expenses if they are the prevailing party in an Unlawful Detainer case.
Many tenant defense attorneys love unlimited attorney fee provisions because they can push the case to a jury trial believing that the landlord has deep pockets to pay for an attorney fee award while realizing that the tenant (s) will probably not have the funds to pay for any attorney fee awarded to the landlord.
A: California Code of Civil Procedure Section 1033.5 details recoverable costs. Such costs include court filing fees, law and motion fees, jury fees, expert witness fees (if ordered by the court), service of process, and transcriber expenses associated with depositions.
An Unlawful Detainer is a lawsuit that is filed with the civil court. The filing fee for an unlawful detainer varies from $250 to $400 depending on the amount of damages- hiring an attorney will cost $600 to $1,000 just to get started with a notice. Uncontested Unlawful Detainer usually takes 30 days.
Can I force a tenant to move out in California? No. California law requires the landlord to issue a written notice according to state law before legally terminating the tenancy. The landlords cannot force to evict the tenants without due process.
The eviction process can take 30 - 45 days, or longer. The time starts from when you have eviction court forms delivered to your tenant to the time they must move out. Choose any box, below, to learn more about the eviction process and get step-by-step instructions.
Eviction PricesResidential Uncontested Eviction (does not include $175 sheriff fee)$965 and upLA County Commercial Uncontested Eviction$1,395 and upTrial – 1st hour$350 and upDeed Retrieval$50 and upDeclaration of non for stipulation$250 and up15 more rows
It costs either $240 or $385 to evict someone in California, depending on whether less than $10,000 is owed to the landlord, or more than $10,000 is owed. However, in Riverside County, it will cost $270 or $410, and in San Bernadino County it will cost $255 or $395.
An Unlawful Detainer, more commonly known as an eviction, is used when a landlord wants to get tenants out of a rental property - either commercial or residential. Only a sheriff can evict someone. Even if a tenant is months behind on rent, the landlord cannot evict the tenant or get rid of the tenant's belongings.
Under California state law, a landlord can terminate a month-to-month tenancy by serving a 30-day written notice if the tenancy has lasted less than one year, or a 60-day notice if the tenancy has lasted more than one year.
And, in Kentucky, the landlord’s right to recover costs and attorney fees depends on the circumstances surrounding the tenant’s breach of the lease. Kentucky has adopted the Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act (KRS 383.500 to 383705) (hereinafter the “Act”), which governs transactions between those parties in jurisdictions where ...
However, there are circumstances where attorney fees are recoverable. In Palladino v. Shropshire, 2013 WL 6730733 (Ky. App. 2013), the Kentucky Court of Appeals held that a tenant’s deliberate damaging of the premises and keeping a pet in contravention of the lease rose to the level of willfulness as envisioned by the statute and left an award of attorney’s fees intact.
In most situations, landlords will not be entitled to recover attorney fees when seeking damages from tenants for the nonpayment of rent. However, the landlord may be entitled to its attorney fees and costs where there is deliberate damage to the premises by the tenant and for other willful violations of the lease.
However, while lease agreements may not require the payment of attorney fees from the outset, the recovery of attorney fees and costs by the landlord is permitted under other parts of the Act. For instance, KRS 383.660 (3) states that “If the tenant’s noncompliance is willful the landlord may recover actual damages and reasonable attorney’s fees.”. ...
As set forth by the Court in <strong>Matter of Casamento</strong>, in March 2007, the landlord served a Notice to Cure alleging that the tenant violated specified paragraphs of their lease by physically assaulting landlord and making alterations to the bathroom and kitchen without landlord’s prior written consent.
Recognizing the disparity of bargaining power that often exists between landlords and tenants, in 1966, Real Property Law §234 was enacted to level the playing field and permit tenants to recover legal fees from a landlord, if the lease contains a provision that the landlord may recover from tenant the legal fees incurred by the landlord in connection with an action or summary proceeding, but does not contain a reciprocal provision in favor of the tenant. RPL§234, in relevant part, provides:
It has long been the rule in New York that “attorneys’ fees are deemed incidental to litigation and may not be recovered unless supported by statute, court rule or written agreement of the parties.” Flemming v. Barnwall Nursing Home & Health Facilities, Inc., 15 NY3d 375, 379 (2010). A lease for residential property can constitute such a written agreement and residential leases often contain provisions permitting landlords to recover attorneys’ fees incurred with enforcing the terms of the lease, including commencing and prosecuting summary proceedings.
When a contract contains a provision granting either party the right to recover attorney fees in the event of litigation on the contract, Civil Code section 1717 (hereafter section 1717) gives the “party prevailing on the contract” a right to recover attorney fees, whether or not that party is the party specified in the contract.
Many tenant defense attorneys love unlimited attorney fee provisions because they can push the case to a jury trial believing that the landlord has deep pockets to pay for an attorney fee award while realizing that the tenant (s) will probably not have the funds to pay for any attorney fee awarded to the landlord.
Tenant eviction involves many legal details. You first have to properly serve the correct notice and give the tenant time to respond. If they do not, then a case has to be filed in court with an eviction notice and request a hearing. If as a landlord you miss out on any details, the judge may rule the case in favor of the tenant and you have to start the process over again costing more time and money. Read More...
The eviction defense industry uses the statutory provisions that awards attorney fees to the prevailing party – where the court finds the breach of the warranty of habitability – as a sword and will request thousands of dollars in attorney fees in a motion for the award of attorney fees in these types of situations
Why Are Routine Landlord Rental Property Inspections Necessary. Landlords have to make sure that their property remains in excellent condition. This is important because only by maintaining their property would they be able to get good rent for them.
For a landlord that analysis starts and stops with the rental agreement when a court determines if the landlord who prevails in an Unlawful Detainer case can recover legal costs enforcing the contract.
California Civil Code Section 1717, subdivision (a), provides in pertinent part that “In any action on a contract, where the contract specifically provides that attorney’s fees and costs, which are incurred to enforce that contract, shall be awarded either to one of the parties or to the prevailing party, then the party who is determined to be the party prevailing on the contract, whether he or she is the party specified in the contract or not, shall be entitled to reasonable attorney’s fees in addition to other costs.
Case update; The landlord has vowed to appeal this decision by the end of November, which will be very good for tenants if the appeal is in the tenant's favor -- an affirmance by the Appellate Term will have precedential value. In other words, Housing Court judges will be obligated to follow it.
Published by New York State Law Reporting Bureau pursuant to Judiciary Law § 431.
The landlord argued that the tenant was not a “prevailing plaintiff” because they were the defendant in the action and, at best, a counter-plaintiff in the counterclaim. The trial court agreed and dismissed the claim for attorney’s fees. From there, the defendant appealed the case.
You see, Section 5-12-180 of the CRLTO reads as follows: “Except in cases of forcible entry and detainer actions, the prevailing plaintiff in any action arising out of a landlord’s or tenant’s application of the rights or remedies made available in this ordinance shall be entitled to all court costs and reasonable attorney’s fees; provided, however, that nothing herein shall be deemed or interpreted as precluding the awarding of attorney’s fees in forcible entry and detainer actions in accordance with applicable law or as expressly provided in this ordinance. ( emphasis added )”
The Illinois First District Appellate Court issued an opinion in the case of Shadid v. Sims involving a case of first impression (ie. there was no existing published case law on this) regarding whether or not tenants who prevail in a counterclaim predicated upon CRLTO claims are entitled to recover their attorney’s fees.
As a result, the court noted that the term “plaintiffs” must be interpreted to include counterplaintiffs. The court then remanded the case to the trial court to determine the appropriate attorney’s fee award.
Landlords are sometimes surprised that a tenant can parse each and every word of the ordinance and hold the landlord to strict compliance with the “exact words” of the law but the landlord generally cannot.