Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in Ohio

In Ohio, the question for the Court will be whether the renter abandoned the property. Ohio Revised Code Section 5321.15 prohibits what are called "self help" evictions of tenants living in residential rental property. That means that if the landlord wants to have a tenant and his/her belongings removed from the rented premises, the landlord has to go through the statutory eviction process laid out in Ohio Revised Code 1923.04.

If the landlord just tosses the stuff and the tenant comes back the next day and asserts that he had not abandoned the stuff but rather was just now getting round to pick it up, then he might sue the landlord for a violation of Ohio Revised Code Section 5321.15. If the tenant wins, the tenant could recover actual damages (and who knows what a judge or jury might believe the worth of the stuff left behind was) and get attorneys fees.

The landlord will naturally argue that the stuff was abandoned property and thus no self help eviction took place. Perhaps the judge will buy that and side with the landlord.

Perhaps not.

The safer way would be to proceed with the statutory eviction process and remove the stuff through a statutory eviction. Even if you do win on the tenant's R.C. 5321.15 claim, you will still likely have to pay an attorney quite a bit to take the case through trial. It's cheaper just to evict the tenant through the court.

If you need help with that, you can reach me at 614.580.4316 or you can email me at [email protected].