Landlords with written leases, who could not evict tenants that failed to pay rent during the COVID-19 eviction moratoria, may be entitled to recover damages from the government entities that imposed the moratoria.
In Iten v. County of Los Angeles (Filed August 30, 2023), The Court of Appeals reversed the district court’s dismissal for lack of standing of commercial property landlord Howard Iten’s complaint alleging that the County of Los Angeles’ 2020 eviction moratorium, enacted following the outbreak of COVID-19, violated his rights under the Contracts Clause of the United States Constitution.
The District Court had dismissed Iten’s case finding he did not have standing to bring the action against the County based on the facts he presented as they indicated that, factually, the County may have had a total defense to Iten’s claim. Iten appealed.
Although the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals panel also questioned whether Iten could prevail, the panel found that the District Court had conflated Iten’s chances of recovery with his standing to bring the lawsuit against the County in Federal Court.
The panel reversed the District Court and held that Iten had standing to bring his Contracts Clause claim. Iten’s injury for Article III purposes did not depend on whether Iten’s tenant provided notice or was otherwise excused from doing so, or any other of the facts alleged by Iten. Those questions went to the merits of the claim rather than Iten’s standing to bring suit. Iten alleged that the moratorium impaired his contract with his tenant because it altered the remedies the parties had agreed to at the time they entered into the lease. The panel held that these allegations were sufficient to plead an injury in fact and to state a claim under the Contracts Clause and remanded the case to the district court for further proceedings.
If you are a landlord, especially a commercial landlord who had a written lease with a tenant who failed to pay rent and you were unable to evict them during the COVID-10 eviction moratorium, contact your business attorneys for an assessment of your chances of recovery from the government for violation of your Constitutional rights.
The information presented is not intended to be, and does not constitute, “legal advice.” Because each situation varies, and only brief summary information is provided here, you should not use this information as a basis for action unless you have independently verified with your own counsel that it applies to your particular situation.
Leave a Reply