The unlawful detainer court in California is a court of limited jurisdiction.  The unlawful detainer court has jurisdiction to determine the right of possession for real property.  The court can also determine a limited number of items incident to possession – like back rent.  As a Los Angeles Real Estate attorney, often times midway through a case, before trial, possession is returned […]

When a tenant gets sued in a California eviction action, an unlawful detainer, the tenant will often want to file a cross-complaint against the landlord for some issue relating to the tenancy.  Unfortunately or fortunately, depending on how you look at it, unlawful detainers are summary proceedings.   As summary proceedings, the court does not […]

Whenever you get served with an unlawful detainer complaint that you plan on contesting, a good Los Angeles Unlawful Detainer Attorney will send discovery to find out the facts and contentions that support the landlord’s case.  The discovery can be as simple as form interrogatories and a document request.  Form Interrogatories, in particular, can be […]

In Los Angeles, as well as throughout California, landlords frequently try to evict tenants despite poor rental conditions.  In 1974, in Green v. Superior Court, the California Supreme Court determined a “warranty of habitability” is a part of all residential rental agreements.  That means that the landlord has an affirmative obligation to maintain the leased […]