Legal Question in Real Estate Law in California

Re: What are my rights as a sub-leaser?

If the one year lease is no longer in effect with your roommate, you can be terminated on 30 day notice. If you want to subject yourself to an unlawful detainer, you would probably be able to stall the process to stay or stay for at least 2 months after you were served if you answered the complaint. If both you and your roommate fight the eviction, you would win. A 30 day notice does not have to have a reason to be given; however, it cannot be given for a bad reason such as retaliation.

Re: What are my rights as a sub-leaser?

I have read the other responses.

My input is that if YOU have no written lease, you will loose an unlawful detainer by the roomate.

Re: What are my rights as a sub-leaser?

Yours is an intriguing question that raises almost as many issues as a law school exam question.

First, it appears that the landlord knows of and has consented to your living in the condo. It is not clear whether you are a co-tenant in contract with the landlord, or a sub-tenant in contract with your roommate, or both. The facts you give tend to suggest you are a subtenant only, and your agreement with the landlord is not in the nature of a lease but rather only his assent to the sublease to you.

If so, the next question is the validity of your oral sublease. It is valid if it was for a year or less, which it seems to be. Oral agreements of any kind are hard to prove and enforce, even if they are valid, but you have some additional written proof of the oral lease, e.g. the PG&E account and the written 30-day notice.

If you are not in breach of the oral sub-lease, and you can convince a court of its existence and that you are not in breach, the tenant (your roommate) has no valid ground to break the sub-lease and evict you.

Therefore, in theory, you should win any unlawful detainer action brought to evict you.

In the real world, theory and practice often diverge. You could lose based on some point you haven't mentioned, or because your roommate has conflicting "proof," etc.

Furthermore, winning is losing. Why would you want to live with someone whom you've had to sue (or have had to win in their suit) in order to have the "privilege" of staying under their roof?

I would look for an opportunity to escape this situation and take it!