Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in Ohio

In Ohio, a landlord can evict you for a breach of the lease agreement. However, if the breach of the lease agreement was also a breach of Ohio Revised Code Section 5321.05 (and you can argue that this eviction was for a breach of that) then the landlord would have had to give you a 30 day notice to fix the problem first and then evicted you. However, if you did not argue that at the hearing, you may have waived the issue.

There is likely a second cause of action now for unpaid rent through the end of the term (which is where the $7k is likely coming from). The landlord will be under a duty to mitigate its damages by seeking new tenants and applying whatever rent they pay towards the amount you owe.

You need to file an Answer to the second claim for relief. You could assert that the landlord's failure to follow R.C. 5321.05's 30 day notice requirement is a defense to the unpaid rent the landlord seeks.

If you need help defending this case, I am in the Columbus area. You can email me at [email protected] and we can set up a meeting. I don't charge for an initial consultation to look over your paperwork to see if I can assist you.