Wiley Rein Achieves Favorable Result for Client in Landlord/Tenant Matter

July 29, 2014

Wiley Rein won a very favorable settlement this month for a client in a landlord/tenant dispute.  The firm’s client had experienced some traumatic events in her life, and her case came to Wiley Rein because she had stopped paying rent to her landlord, who had ignored numerous requests to bring her apartment up to code and fix existing problems.  The Wiley Rein team visited the client at her Washington, DC home and saw first-hand the state of the apartment, which was an eye-opening experience. 

During the pre-trial period, Wiley Rein filed various motions and discovery requests with the Landlord and Tenant Branch of the District of Columbia’s Superior Court – Civil Division, and attended hearings, continuances, and mediation sessions at the court while working to bring this to resolution without the need for a trial.  The firm even went as far as to file a counterclaim with the court and a petition in the Rental Accommodations Division of the District of Columbia’s Department of Housing and Community Development to have her rent increases over the past few years reviewed and reduced.  Under D.C. law, a landlord cannot raise rent if the apartment is not up to code.  While Wiley Rein was fully prepared for a trial to occur, the firm ultimately persuaded the landlord to agree to a settlement that was a favorable result for the client.

Some highlights of the settlement agreement were:

• The Client did not have to pay rent that had accrued during the time of the dispute;
• The Client was given a new lease agreement;
• The landlord committed to fixing the existing problems originally identified by the Client; and
• The Client’s current rent was reduced to what it was approximately two years ago when these problems first began.

The Wiley Rein team that achieved this outstanding result for the client included of counsel Jeremy J. Schofer and associates Ryan M. Corbett and Kyle Haley.