Used to handle eviction cases like a rookie until a tenant sued me

For 3 years I would just file eviction notices without checking if the property was properly registered with the city of Chicago. Last summer a tenant brought up the Residential Landlord and Tenant Ordinance and I got slapped with a $2,000 fine plus their legal fees. Now I spend 15 minutes before every case verifying the rental license is current and the lease has all 7 required disclosures. The ordinance basically says no license means no eviction, period. Has anyone else lost a case over something as simple as a missing fee schedule in the lease?

3 comments

3 Comments

iris_schmidt2d ago

...and honestly the part that gets me is how nobody talks about the bad faith angle. You can have all your paperwork perfect but if the tenant can prove you were retaliating or picking on them for something, it doesn't matter what else is in order. I had a buddy who lost a case even though his license was current and disclosures were fine, because the judge decided that he only filed after the tenant complained about a broken heater, which is technically legal here but the ordinance has this broad clause about "unreasonable conduct." They don't even need to prove it was retaliatory, just that it looked bad enough. It's wild how subjective these hearings can get when the tenant has a halfway decent lawyer.

ivan_harris2d agoMost Upvoted

Unreasonable conduct" is so vague it basically gives the judge a blank check, I can't believe that's real @iris_schmidt.

pat_roberts551d ago

Funny you mention that, because I actually think that "unreasonable conduct" clause exists for a reason. Landlords have all the leverage in most cases, money and lawyers and property rights on their side. A tenant's word against a paper trail usually doesn't stand a chance unless the landlord really did something shady. Your buddy probably timed it badly, sure, but if the heater was broken in winter and he filed right after, well, that's kind of on him for making it obvious. The system tilts toward property owners 90% of the time anyway.