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DRAFT FOR ATTORNEY REVIEW — NOT FINAL

Battis v. Hofmann, 832 S.W.2d 937 (1992)

Citation
Battis v. Hofmann, 832 S.W.2d 937 (1992)
Parent Document
Battis v. Hofmann, 832 S.W.2d 937 (1992)
Jurisdiction
Missouri (state)
Effective Date
1992-06-16

Other Sections in This Document (38)

Full Text

573 chars
The court has the discretion to impose a penalty within the statutory range, after consideration of the attendant circumstances. There is no mandatory penalty. This limitation complements our interpretation of what constitutes a “wrongful” withholding in violation of the statute. A landlord should never be unduly penalized for violation of the statute because a court is allowed to consider the reason a security deposit was withheld. A reasonable explanation might persuade the court to minimize the penalty, and conversely, an improper motive would enhance the penalty.