Legal Question in Real Estate Law in California

Re: Filing an unlawful detainer before 3-day notice expires

no they may not.

Re: Filing an unlawful detainer before 3-day notice expires

It is not illegal (as a crime). In a civil matter, if the landlord proceeds to file an unlawful detainer action, it is a defense. Make sure that the date on the 3 day notice is within the 3 days. Some landlords may lie about the date. Please call our office for free consultation if you have any other questions.

Re: Filing an unlawful detainer before 3-day notice expires

The point of giving you three day notice is to give you a grace period in which to pay the rent due. So list the defect in filing the complaint early as an affirmative defense. Then raise it at the trial. If the rent was not tendered during the three days. The judge will probably ignore the defect. If you tendered the rent on the third day (the day the U. D. complaint was filed) the judge would probably not ignore it. And you should prevail.

Re: Filing an unlawful detainer before 3-day notice expires

Dear Inquirer:

Nothing herein shall create an attorney-client relationship, unless a written retainer agreement is executed by the attorney and client. This communication contains general information only. Nothing herein shall constitute an attorney-client communication nor legal advice. There likely are deadlines and time-limits associated with your case; you should contact an attorney of your choice for legal advice specific to your personal situation, at once.

If you haven't already done so, please visit my

web site at --

http://home.pacbell.net/edbjr/ OR

http://www.CaliforniaDivorceAttorney.com

The site contains quite a bit of general information about California Family Law, Tenants' Rights, and Juvenile Dependencies, and EDD (California's unemployment agency) hearings and appeals, as well as information about me (education, experience, et cetera) and my office (location, hours, fees, policies).

NOW, IN RESPONSE TO YOUR INQUIRY --

Filing the complaint before the three-day notice expires is not ILLEGAL but could be an affirmative defense (in your answer) to the complaint. Also, if the the notice itself is defective (and a lot of them are) that too could an affirmative defense. This situation also might provide grounds for a motion to quash and/or to demur. See a local attorney who represents tenants. (I charge $95 for a 45 minute office consultation and there are a few other attorneys who offer a similar consultation service.)

Thanks for sharing your interesting inquiry with us on LawGuru, and good luck with your case.