Action Apartment Ass'n v. City of Santa Monica, 41 Cal. 4th 1232 (2007)

Citation: Action Apartment Ass'n v. City of Santa Monica, 41 Cal. 4th 1232 (2007)
Parent Document: Action Apartment Ass'n v. City of Santa Monica, 41 Cal. 4th 1232 (2007)
Jurisdiction: California (state)
Effective Date: 2007-08-02
Original Source: https://www.courtlistener.com/opinion/5608052/action-apartment-assn-v-city-of... ↗

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Plaintiffs alleged that the City had “engaged in a custom and practice of threatening housing provider class members with criminal and civil prosecution ... for simply talking to their tenants, and/or serving their tenants or having their attorneys serve their tenants with a Notice to Cure or Quit or Notice to Terminate Tenancy; and/or filing an unlawful detainer complaint or having their attorneys file an unlawful detainer complaint against their tenants.” They further alleged that the City had threatened Dennis with *1240criminal and civil prosecution for “speaking to her tenant,” and for directing her attorney to serve her tenant with a notice to quit and to file an unlawful detainer lawsuit for the purpose of allowing the owner to retake possession of the rental unit. Plaintiffs contended that section 4.56.020(i)(l) abridges a landlord’s rights to free speech, to petition the government for redress of grievances, and to due process under the federal Constitution; violates a landlord’s civil rights under title 42 United States Code section 1983; and is preempted by Code of Civil Procedure section 128.7 and the litigation privilege of Civil Code section 47, subdivision (b). With respect to their claim that the litigation privilege preempts section 4.56.020(i)(l), plaintiffs sought a writ of mandate directing the City to “vacate and annul section 4.56.020(i)(l)” as preempted by the litigation privilege. The City demurred as to each cause of action, contending that plaintiffs lacked standing and failed to state a cause of action. The trial court sustained the demurrer without leave to amend and entered judgment for the City.

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