Dealing with tough tenant situations can involve various challenges, including claims of harassment, failure to maintain habitable conditions, and discrimination based upon disability or other reasons. In addition, housing providers face the ongoing issues of non-payment of rent, lease violations, property damage, and disruptive behavior, requiring housing providers to address these issues promptly and professionally.

Here in California, juries are handing down million-dollar awards in lawsuits alleging rental housing providers have failed to maintain ‘habitable’ properties, or they are harassing residents, or discriminating on the basis of disability or other factors.

DISCUSSION TOPICS INCLUDE:

• As California juries hand down million-dollar awards to tenants in lawsuits, insurers are taking steps to limit their exposure. Some carriers have already added exclusions to their policies with housing providers now lacking adequate protections from potential business risks.
• More and more, local and state regulations allow for recovery of attorney fees in certain habitability claims, which are in addition to compensatory damages award.
• The City of Los Angeles, among several California cities, provide for the payment of attorney’s fees as a component of any award for violation of applicable Rent Control Ordinances.
• The tripling of compensatory awards and the allowance for attorneys’ fees are far more onerous than those instituted by many other cities.

GUEST SPEAKER: David Canter, Partner, Nicolson Law Group
The lion’s share of Mr. Canter’s current practice focuses on representing property owners and property managers in the defense of claims asserting breach of the warranty of habitability, breach of the covenant of quiet enjoyment, negligence, and private nuisance. With 35 years of experience, Mr. Canter has successfully represented individuals and businesses, varying in size from independently owned local companies to publicly traded national corporations. He has litigated matters involving habitability claims, property disputes, short-term health insurance plans, insurance defense, insurance bad faith, first-party property loss, commercial transportation, premises liability, construction defect, assault and battery, defamation suits, wrongful termination, misappropriation of trade secrets, breach of contract, mortgage repurchase litigation, business disputes, fraud, breach of fiduciary duty, ADA compliance, nuisance abatement and law enforcement/internal affairs investigations.Throughout his career, Mr. Canter’s well-balanced approach remains the same: provide his clients with candid and thoughtful evaluation of claims and defenses; counsel his clients on the costs and benefits of each stage of litigation; communicate professionally and in good faith with his adversaries; and always zealously represent his clients’ interests through the conclusion of the matter. Mr. Canter is a member of both the Association of Southern California Defense Counsel and the Colorado Defense Lawyers Association.

GUEST SPEAKER: Christine Ghattas, Associate, Nicolson Law Group
Ms. Ghattas began her career as a public defender in the Denver office of the Colorado State Public Defender, where she developed her passion for litigation and trial. Through this work, Ms. Ghattas made client-centered representation the primary foundation of her practice. Ms. Ghattas then carried those skills into private practice, centered upon the handling of complex white collar criminal matters.  Throughout her career, Ms. Ghattas’ primary approach has relied upon transparent and authentic communication to achieve optimal results for her clients. While placing significant value on client input and insight, and by utilizing her ability to extract useful information from adversaries, Ms. Ghattas has been able to make informed