Revisiting the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA)
It’s been said that home is where the heart is, but what happens when that heart is broken? There is a specialized set of rules for housing providers to follow.
As reported by the San Francisco Chronicle, a large landlord enforced a blanket policy against “disorderly conduct” by trying to evict a woman who said she was the victim of domestic violence.
A settlement was reached with the state Civil Rights Department with a $7,500 payout to the survivor of domestic violence and a prohibition against such evictions.
This gives us a good opportunity to remind housing providers of federal and state laws that protect victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking, human trafficking, or elder abuse. The whole public policy behind this is that survivors of abuse should not be victimized twice by losing their housing.
When violence occurs between tenants, Bornstein Law is aggressive in serving a three-day notice to quit; whenever a resident lays their hands on someone, the act is so egregious that we don’t allow the tenant to cure the behavior.
It gets more convoluted when there is a familial or intimate relationship. We’ve taken on this subject in several venues, so let’s dive deeper into it. If you don't want to read the book, you can watch the movie.
