Shires Housing, Inc. v. Carolyn S. Brown and William A. Shepard, II, 172 A.3d 1215 (2017)

Citation: Shires Housing, Inc. v. Carolyn S. Brown and William A. Shepard, II, 172 A.3d 1215 (2017)
Parent Document: Shires Housing, Inc. v. Carolyn S. Brown and William A. Shepard, II, 172 A.3d 1215 (2017)
Jurisdiction: Vermont (state)
Effective Date: 2017-07-21
Original Source: https://www.courtlistener.com/opinion/4489424/shires-housing-inc-v-carolyn-s-... ↗

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¶ 24. More important, this plain reading comports with the overall structure of § 6237 and evinces the Legislature's clear intent to treat eviction proceedings involving "substantial violations of the lease" differently from other eviction proceedings. Hill, 143 Vt. at 93, 463 A.2d at 233 ("Underlying all other rules of construction is the fundamental rule that we must ascertain and give effect to the true intent of the legislature ...."). In particular, § 6237's procedural mechanics for eviction proceedings create a progressive scheme tied to the leaseholder's culpability for lease violations. For those instances that the leaseholder bears no fault-"a change in use of the park land or parts thereof or a termination of the mobile home park"-he or she must have notice prior to an eviction proceeding. Id. § 6237(a), (a)(2) (providing no exception for these proceedings). Similarly, notice is still required the first time that a leaseholder does not pay rent. Id. § 6237(a)(3). But if the leaseholder does not pay rent within six months of an initial nonpayment of rent that triggers an eviction proceeding, this second failure by the leaseholder to pay rent can result in immediate eviction and does not require notice to initiate the proceeding. Id. Finally, a leaseholder who substantially violates the lease is not entitled to notice. This graduated scheme balances a leaseholder's interest with the park owner's interest by decreasing the leaseholder's procedural protections relative to the harm the leaseholder causes the park owner and any other leaseholders in the mobile home park. Similarly, this scheme provides the leaseholder with an opportunity to cure a violation if the violation does not rise to a substantial level.

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