Legal Question in Real Estate Law in California
I am being sued for unlawful detainer. The complaint is wrong and I can prove it. The landlord says I moved in in NOV 10. I moved in on Sept 12-2011/ It further states that I have an agreement and we signed no such agreement and no lease was ever produced. . I also have receipts.and utility bills. I am in pro per and I need to know iof its better to file an answer or do I have grounds to demur to the complaint.
2 Answers from Attorneys
What are you trying to accomplish? What are the grounds for the UD suit? Are you trying to preserve your residency there long-term, or just get yourself a little more time? Knowing the answers would help an attorney give advice.
I am somewhat doubtful that the error in move-in date constitutes a defense, and as to the presence of absence of an agreement, (a) maybe the landlord means an oral agreement rather than a written lease, and (b) if you are in the landlord's building without an agreement of some kind, you are a trespasser.
Overall, you haven't shown me any sufficient ground for a demurrer, and I'm rather dubious that you have a defense, so I guess my advice would be to file an answer if buying a little time is going to help you.
An attorney would have to review the complaint to determine whether it is subject to demurrer. The move in date could be a defense in the long run, if it affected the calculation of unpaid rent that was in the 3 day pay or quit notice. Generally, a written lease does not a tenancy make. A tenancy is created when a person occupies property belonging to another and pays rent, so how this would be a defense is not clear.
Additionally a demurrer assumes that the facts plead in the complaint are true, and then determines whether they are sufficient to state a cause of action. If you disagree with the factual allegations, the property method is to file an answer in which you contest those allegations, which at one time in the law was called a "traverse."