How to sue your landlord

There are many reasons why you would sue your landlord. Most commonly, the landlord has done something wrong and you have been forced to leave the unit or keep your deposit after you have already moved out. Now is not the time to play the victim and ask, “Why me?” Now is the time to make the owner regret violating this protected institution.

Now here’s a disclaimer: VANDALISM IS ILLEGAL. DO NOT go back on the property and spoil it. DO NOT harass or threaten the landlord with violence. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. Why risk going to jail when you can get your money back legally?

Take all the information you have, for example, the rental agreement, payment receipts, emails or other documented correspondence, signed photographs and organize it chronologically. Go consult an attorney. Present the evidence to them and see what their opinion is about the situation. If you have enough evidence, they will tell you to go ahead. If it was particularly bad, like entering the place without your knowledge and stealing things, then you need to file a police report. Starting a criminal case against a landlord is much less common than a civil case. If your deposit was kept for an illegal reason, this is the time to start a civil case.

You will be in small claims court. While there can be a lot of drama in these courtrooms, like some of those lawyer shows on TV, there is a big difference; legal advice is not allowed. This means that you are the attorney. You can only present the case in a particular court, as one court handles all legal matters for a particular area in the county. Lawsuit for the maximum amount according to the law. Depending on your situation, this could even double the deposit if it was not kept in good faith, meaning the landlord either failed to protect the deposit or spent it.

Your case presentation will include some service charges that, when you win, will be included in the amount the landlord will owe you. One of them is the cost of the service, which is the act of informing the landlord that you are being sued. You will need to know the landlord’s address in order to be notified to appear in court. If I lived in the place, this would be easy. If you live off-site, it will be more difficult, especially if you have been mailing your checks to a P.O. Box. When I needed to know where my landlord’s corporate office was, I called pretending I was a confused flower delivery man and needed his address to deliver some flowers to a receptionist. It worked. There are other ways, such as contacting the post office directly. They will give the address and phone number of the holder of the box if the box was registered with a company.

After that, do some homework. Go see a case. Yes, you can come in and look. On court day, you will confidently walk into the courtroom, well dressed and well organized to present your case to a judge, commissioner, or protective judge (an attorney who acts as a judge). You will be the plaintiff. You can also expect to see the owner there, as he is the defendant.

Stay calm and collected. Don’t be intimidated by the owner. He already has his money and there is little else they can do other than keep it in case the case goes wrong. Before your case, the court officials will ask you to try to resolve your differences outside of the courtroom. If the landlord doesn’t bring you a check, don’t be discouraged. Tell the officer that you did not reach an agreement and that you would like to make your case.

Refer to the judge as “your honor” and ask permission to do things, like present your evidence. If you did not take the oath, apply. This will put you and the landlord under oath. Just remember that anything you say from then on is under oath and if you lie about something, it will be perjury. The silver lining is that the same rule applies to the owner.

Present your evidence and your case. Once you’re done, the landlord will make your case. Don’t interrupt it. Don’t call him a liar and inform him that his pants are, in fact, on fire. Wait until it finishes. If there are direct discrepancies between what the landlord says and the evidence you have, ask the judge if you can dispute it. After the rebuttal and the landlords respond to your points, the judge will fire both of you while he makes his verdict. Depending on the jurisdiction, you can receive your verdict in a few days or a few weeks.

If the judgment is in your favor, hooray! But the landlord can file an appeal. If the judge rules for the landlord, you cannot appeal it. Just realize it sucks, go ahead and don’t let it happen again.