Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in California
A Very Special Case
There was an eviction put on my credit that was not mine. It was from my parents apartment, I was not living with them at the time. I did grow up in the complex though. I had moved out of my parents house and had never filled out anything to put myself on the lease. They don't have the eviction on their credit because they paid the judgement. I was not on their lease and it was put on my credit and I went to the management and they are stating that they never put an eviction on my credit and they would not remove it. But, I have the credit report stating they as the plantiff asked their lawyer to do it. Now I cannot not qualify for a reasonably priced apartment for me and my 5 year old daughter. I don't know what to do. It has been about 8 months now that me and my baby have been staying at friends houses and I was wondering should I contact a lawyer and sue? I am a single parent with a very limited income. I also suffer from a mental disabiltly. Should I sue them? I have all the paperwork and all the evidence to win.
3 Answers from Attorneys
Re: A Very Special Case
As a way to speed up your ability to get into a reasonably priced apt., I suggest you get the case number and go to the court where the case was filed. Determine how it is that you were named and sued without having signed the lease. Have the case copied. Then show the management co. the copy of the court file and show the lawyer too. Then urge them to write letters ''to whom it may concern'' explaining the situation and submit those letters to prospective landlords. Good luck.
Re: A Very Special Case
Get the name of the lawyer who handled the landlord's case from your parents or the court, send a certified, return receipt letter (keep a copy) to the lawyer stating the facts and asking him/her to remove the eviction from your credit report and the report with the UD (Unlawful Detainer) Registry. Set a reasonable deadline to do so. Ask that the lawyer to confirm in writing that he/she has done so. Also ask the lawyer to file a satisfaction of judgment with the court(assuming there's a judgment against you) and send you an acknowledged (notarized) copy for you to record with the county recorder. Good luck.
Re: A Very Special Case
You probably cannot set aside the judgment and you cannot sue on it if it has been more than 6 months since you found out about it--since it can be shown your credit report was first pulled. In order to sue, you will have to set aside the judgment, assuming too much time has not elapsed. Should you set aside the judgment, then you may sue your past landlord and their attorney for malicious prosecution. The lawsuit will probably cost you over $100,000 in attorney fees, but it will be well worth it for the satisfaction you get when you win. Your landlord did not cause the eviction to be put on your credit report, the court did, and you cannot sue the court. Even if a satisfaction of judgment is filed with the court, it will do you absolutely no good. Even if the landlord's attorney calls the ud registry and tells them the judgment was entered in error--they still have the right to keep it on your credit report--there is a United States Supreme Court decision that says they do. Unless you get the court to set aside the judgment, your credit report will show the ud for 7 years. Now you know why it is called "malicious" prosecution.
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