RARE - Suing Landlord for Damages! Help Please

[xyberz]

Honolulu, HI

First off, I would like to say that this is a rare case in Hawaii apparently because we've called a bunch of lawyers and they all pretty much said they only represent landlords.

Hopefully we can get some great legal advice from people who aren't as biased and don't mind helping out the small guy. It's pretty sad how we get kicked around in the dirt as if we're nothing.

Need some advice or more like help probably on legal procedures as we feel our case against our prior landlord in really strong with all the evidence we have against them.

Our case is actually a counterclaim against our previous landlord's original eviction case. We stopped paying rent the last couple of months because we got fed up with the problems that we notified our landlord of from the beginning of the rental and was never fixed.

Let me try to recap everything as short as possible without writing a novel.

When my wife first went to look at our unit, she specifically and clearly asked the landlord if the have had ever had any problems with roaches or other insects because of our problem with our previous apartment. The landlord stated that they have never had a problem so we took that she disclosed correct information and trusted her and went to rent the unit. Also our daughter was just born to us prior to moving in so we were really concerned about her health should there have been a problem. Little did we know what we were headed in for!

Well a short while after, within 2 months time, we had a nice little infestation on our hands. Of course we had roaches before then but we didn't think much about it considering that we thought we could control the problem with over the counter stuff. Unfortunately we couldn't so we notified our landlord, and was promised that the literally next door handy man would come in and put some boric acid within 5 days. He NEVER showed up for that problem. So we felt as if we were abandoned by our landlord (at this time we never knew about the laws as we never had a need to know and assumed the landlord should know what to do and what was legal or not). So time went by and other problems had occurred both with the landlord, the handymen that lived next door to us, and other drug selling/using tenants. In a nutshell my wife got harassed by our next door handymen who were brothers, and even minor assault. One of the brothers happens to be a convicted criminal with assault against a previous girlfriend. We had a problem with another tenant selling and using drugs in the building while our children and other tenants children. After notifying the landlord of the problems, she took no serious actions what so ever as we felt she was biased against us probably for the reason that we paid late rent, but still paid and paid the fee that was within our rental agreement. At one point the landlord was viewed trying to break into kitchen window, I'm assuming to see if we were home as we were on a short trip to LA and witnessed by the next door neighbors.

As mentioned previously, our daughter had just been born and unfortunately she has eczema. It's not serious but due to the uncleanliness of the roach droppings everywhere in the house, it caused constant inflammations on her face to the point that she would scratch and blood would be all over her hands and face. We were so distraught to see how serious it had gotten. You would have thought she cut her face with a knife or something. Luckily we took pictures of the seriousness of her condition while we were living there.

Anyway, we got so fed up that we stopped paying the rent and sent a letter to the landlord indicating all of these serious problems and her failure to correct the problems and sent it certified mail. We even called a state inspector to come see the problem, and to our surprise when he arrived to check the infestation, he said that he wasn't surprised to hear that we had such a big problem because of a previous and recent serious rat problem the had by the garbage bins about 15-20 feet away from our unit! He didn't even need to see inside the unit, and said he would call our landlord. So I'm assuming that from his call and or our letter she finally got up and called a pest control company. Then FINALLY about 1-1/2 months later the pest control company came to take care of the infestation for the whole buidling! Not just our unit but the whole building! We had to have 2 different sprayings because the first one wasn't nearly enough. We saw live roaches running over the dead ones and over the insecticide within minutes of coming back into the house! Also they left a huge disgusting mess that we had to clean up. We notified the landlord and they scheduled the 2nd spraying. When we spoke to the technician he said this was one of the worst problems they had ever seen and the only real way to control it was to have a month to month inspection and spraying in order to control the seriousness of the infestation. This all happened right as we were getting ready to pack up and move!

There are a lot more details but this is just a short recap of the most major problem we had with our previous landlord.

So we filed the counterclaim when she filed for our eviction. Our suit is for $25,000 which is the limit in Hawaii for small claims court. We tried to mediate but they denied. We then went to pre-trial where the judge ordered court mediation anyway and surprise surprise, the landlord said she would be willing to drop her case for the amount of $3900 if we would be willing to drop our case! Who in the living hell would say no to $3900 if the believed they were truly right and that we were in the wrong??? To me that helps prove her guiltiness then and there! $3900 is a lot of money in pretty much anyone's book. Of course we declined as we felt we were misled right from the beginning and treated unfairly and suffered losses emotionally, physically, and personal effects.

Afterwords I contacted our free legal aid and consulted with 2 lawyers. I explained the whole case and showed them the evidence. They felt that in their opinion, we have a really strong case especially with all the damning evidence and also witnesses that we have to stand for us. Because both parties denied attempts to resolve the case out of court, the case is now being sent to jury trial and is now moved over to civil court from district court.

We are currently at the point where the opposing lawyer has sent us a discovery request for both myself and my wife. Because of the unwilling local lawyers, we feel as if we may have to represent our case pro se. I don't mind as I feel pretty confident that I can learn the court procedures in a fairly short amount of time with help from friends and incredible books written about representing yourself.

Hopefully I'm looking for advice on the discovery request. I understand that we must fill it out and send any evidence along with a witnesses list and our side of the story for them to examine. I feel as if we should request the same but obviously there won't be nearly as much information to ask from the landlord as they are the ones who did not were really wronged against. What would be good things to request from the other party in our discovery request? Also would there be any other good advice anyone else may have or any other questions that we could answer to help better understand the whole scope of this case?

Sorry for such a long post, but as unbelievable as it is, there's more.

 

[moburkes]

My one question is if the LL tenant laws in your state allow you to simply stop paying rent OR do they require you to send certified letters to your LL detailing the problems, and then require you to deposit your rent moeny in an escrow account until the problems are fixed OR do they require you to use your rent money to fix/mediate the problems (with the knowledge of your LL through a certified letter) yourself and subtract the costs from your rent?

 

[xyberz]

My one question is if the LL tenant laws in your state allow you to simply stop paying rent OR do they require you to send certified letters to your LL detailing the problems, and then require you to deposit your rent moeny in an escrow account until the problems are fixed OR do they require you to use your rent money to fix/mediate the problems (with the knowledge of your LL through a certified letter) yourself and subtract the costs from your rent?

Actually it only allows you to deduct up to $500 for 1 month if you pay to remedy the problem yourself and up to 2 months out of a 6 month period. In all honesty we didn't have the money to hire a professional pest control company to come and fix the problem. I literally bought my own stuff and spent about 4-5 hours on two seperate occasions, one in the kitchen and one in the bathroom to help control the situation and it was very short lived. Within a day or two the roaches came right back out, as if on a short term vacation.

The technician had told us that the problem was something that only a one time spraying would not solve. They recommended that once a month they come out to fix the problem. So even more so I couldn't afford such a thing. I'm living paycheck to paycheck and don't have the resources or borrow to do such things.

Also we did send letters to our landlord about the problem and I belive I did send it certified. Everything I'm talking about is documented on paper.

 

[Gail in Georgia]

Yes; your option was the the latter choice moburkes described:

REPAIRS — Department of Commerce & Consumer Affairs

It does not appear that Hawaii landlord/tenant laws simply allow the tenant to withhold rent for repairs not addressed by the landlord.

In addition, you'd have to justify the $25,000 in your lawsuit with specific evidence that you sustained this amount in damages. You can't simply sue for this amount because this is the amount your state allows. It may be that your lack of actual evidence of sustained damages is why the attorneys you've contacted won't touch the case.

Gail

P.S. Roach abatement typically takes routine spraying in an attempt to knock down the population, especially in states with moderate climates. It's rarely successful as one shot approach.

 

[xyberz]

Yes; your option was the the latter choice moburkes described:

REPAIRS — Department of Commerce & Consumer Affairs

It does not appear that Hawaii landlord/tenant laws simply allow the tenant to withhold rent for repairs not addressed by the landlord.

In addition, you'd have to justify the $25,000 in your lawsuit with specific evidence that you sustained this amount in damages. You can't simply sue for this amount because this is the amount your state allows. It may be that your lack of actual evidence of sustained damages is why the attorneys you've contacted won't touch the case.

Gail

P.S. Roach abatement typically takes routine spraying in an attempt to knock down the population, especially in states with moderate climates. It's rarely successful as one shot approach.

Yes I understand that I'm not suing because the max is $25,000 in circuit court. I'm asking for that amount because of the following:

1. Paid rent for 9 months that would have otherwise gone to a non-infested apartment had the landlord disclosed the truth when asked
2. Value of furniture permanently damaged, food lost, and non-recoverable items such as pictures
3. Physical damage my daughter received from the disgusting habits and uncleanliness of the roaches and their droppings. (If you saw my daughters bloody face you would understand, seems like someone gouged her face with their fingernails and just let it bleed out) And this happened way more than once, it was an ongoing issue that we had no control over. How can you tell a child less than a year old to stop scratching her face and it may cause PERMANENT damage if she continues to do so?
4. Emotional stress of having to freak out EVERY time you turn on the lights and watching hordes of roaches scatter into the cabinets, which was poorly put together and had no caulking to prevent them from running and hiding in little nooks and cracks that is almost impossible to get to!

Like I said, I saved explaining everything as what I mentioned is only a small part of the whole picture. I have over 100 high resolution pictures to prove what I have said, including videos! We have witness statements that help prove that it wasn't just us that caused this condition that it was a matter of fact that previous tenants and their habits turned the unit into a basically roach motel and also the damning evidence of having one of our witnesses performing a roach bombing of the unit because of the previous tenant, not only once but 16 times! Why the heck would you need to bomb a less than 700sq ft unit more than twice?

So I did consult with 2 lawyers at a legal aid appointment and even though they weren't in the field of my dispute, they said from their own opinions that we have a very solid case. With the evidence that I showed to them and all the witnesses we have the believe that our chances are very good.

Also our witnesses include previous and current tenants of the building, the pest control technicians, a state inspector, and my co-workers for another issue that we are suing her for in this case. Invasion of privacy and endangerment of personal safety. So it's not only the roach case we're suing for, but for 4-5 different reasons.

And yes I did read the link that you posted. I have the whole code book for Hawaii sitting here right next to me. I understand that there can always be exceptions in extreme cases and I honestly feel that this is an extreme case where personal effects got unrepairably damaged and also physical damage. Now there is no statutes regarding things of that nature hence the reason why we're counter suing for the damages.

Also have to mention, which we'll also use in court, is the fact that I can prove this lady is no experienced landlord and doesn't understand the landlord/tenant laws along with health code violations. Previously in one of the units in our building, an unfortunate incident happened where a tenant had died in the bathtub and had been sitting there unnoticed until the other tenants noticed a weird smell. Of course they also realized at that point they haven't recently seen the tenant out and about. Well sure enough they called the cops and found the body and notified the landlord. They paid one of the other tenants to help clean up the apartment after the body was removed and the DAY AFTER rented the unit out to someone! That's disgusting and by law she has to have the unit inspected by officials or authorized people to make sure the unit is habitable and clean for obvious reasons. And she never disclosed the fact that it had happened! Then they moved out and she rented that unit to supposedly one of her family friends and never said jack again!!! They also moved out because of the infestation they were having and the mosquito problem right out their front door.

The landlord's family that owns the building is Chinese. Unfortunately they do fit the profile of being called "Chang" is the slang term, which basically means cheap or tightwad. They put barely any effort and money into making the units appear "habitable" and rent it for a pretty high amount.

So that's her character which we'll easily prove in court.

 

[moburkes]

There are herbal anit itch salves or meds that would have made your daughter not scratch so much; I'm not believing your statement that to pay a pest company would have been more than your monthly rent, so if the law allows once or twice to pay them instead of rent, that is what you should have done. Did you call the health department to express your concerns?

 

[Zigner]

The landlord's family that owns the building is Chinese. Unfortunately they do fit the profile of being called "Chang" is the slang term, which basically means cheap or tightwad. They put barely any effort and money into making the units appear "habitable" and rent it for a pretty high amount.

So that's her character which we'll easily prove in court.

Yeah - go in to court with THAT - that'll help!

Disgusting (not your apartment - YOU)

 

[xyberz]

We have medical creams for my daughter. They might have not made her scratch as much. We put that stuff on her face EVERY day! Imagine if we didn't. I'd swear that most likely she would have gouged her face even much deeper to the point that cosmetic surgery would have been the only fix for it.

As mentioned previously, I contacted the proper state official which was the dept of health and they came out to inspect. He wasn't surprsied when he got there because he had been there right before we moved into the unit for a serious rat problem. These are his words exactly, "when you have rats, they go hand in hand with roaches". Not good fighting words for my landlord I gotta say.

 

[xyberz]

Yeah - go in to court with THAT - that'll help!

Disgusting (not your apartment - YOU)

Why in the hell are you mocking me for? Do you even understand why I put that? Have you ever had someone be so cheap on something that was so important to you that it caused harm to your family member? Obviously you don't see the picture and all you could muster up was your insulting and ridiculous post. Stop wasting forum space and other people's time by posting garbage. This isn't some game forum where anyone could care less.

It's not my fault that my previous landlords were cheap as hell people. The place might as well have been held together with duct tape considering the type of work that was done. Everything that was done to "fix" the apartment was a facade to make it seem as if it was done the correct and legal way. Please tell me you're a complete saint and honestly never once in your life stereotyped anyone before. Please make it an open invitation to flame you out of here.

In actuality I wasn't trying to stereotype my landlord either. That was just the plain flat out old truth. One example was the crappy refrigerator that she bought for the unit, it was "new" and some name brand I've never heard of in my life, which help prove what a piece of garbage it was. The fan inside the freezer abruptly stopped working and in turn caused our food to melt and I had to stick a chopstick inside and fiddle around with it to get it to start turning again. After a while that didn't work any longer so I took of the guard and found out that the fan was not mounted against the back of the fridge but just hanging there by the power wires. That's pretty cheap and pathetic. I'm pretty sure most fridges have it firmly mounted to the back of the unit to ensure stability and long life.

And just to let you know, discrediting a person is what lawyers try to the other party in hopes that anything they say will be go on deaf ears with the jury. You should at least learn the sometimes unscrupulous tactics that unfortunately some of the best lawyers in this country use everyday to win cases.

Keep your 2 cents to yourself if you don't have anything good to offer here please.

 

[moburkes]

Why in the hell are you mocking me for? Do you even understand why I put that? Have you ever had someone be so cheap on something that was so important to you that it caused harm to your family member? Obviously you don't see the picture and all you could muster up was your insulting and ridiculous post. Stop wasting forum space and other people's time by posting garbage. This isn't some game forum where anyone could care less.

It's not my fault that my previous landlords were cheap as hell people. The place might as well have been held together with duct tape considering the type of work that was done. Everything that was done to "fix" the apartment was a facade to make it seem as if it was done the correct and legal way. Please tell me you're a complete saint and honestly never once in your life stereotyped anyone before. Please make it an open invitation to flame you out of here.


And just to let you know, discrediting a person is what lawyers try to the other party in hopes that anything they say will be go on deaf ears with the jury. You should at least learn the sometimes unscrupulous tactics that unfortunately some of the best lawyers in this country use everyday to win cases.

Keep your 2 cents to yourself if you don't have anything good to offer here please.

You'll likely not get any more responses after that racist comment. Had I read your entire post I would not have responded. Good bye.

 

[xyberz]

You'll likely not get any more responses after that racist comment. Had I read your entire post I would not have responded. Good bye.

That's odd, why is my statement about my landlord being cheap racist? It's not like I'm calling a black person the "n" word. I'm just stating how cheap my landlord was and helping prove why she probably never did anything to help resolve our situation.

Holy crap, it's like I'm being pinned to the cross for being screwed against in the first place.

And hello, it was Zinger who had to put such a ridiculous comment in the first place. I'm here just reporting my case exactly as it is, not making any racial slurs against anyone or stating false accusations.

But hey, I guess even here we can find ourselves all alone right? Can't count on your fellow brothers and sisters in life to help each other out. One slip about something you dislike and it's an instant turned back. Remember the old adage, "what goes around, comes around."

 

[moburkes]

The landlord's family that owns the building is Chinese. Unfortunately they do fit the profile of being called "Chang" is the slang term, which basically means cheap or tightwad. They put barely any effort and money into making the units appear "habitable" and rent it for a pretty high amount.

So that's her character which we'll easily prove in court.

That's just flat out wrong. You're correct, what goes around comes around.

 

[xyberz]

Wow, from that you made the assumption that I must be some racist punk ready to call out every racial slur against everyone huh? I said they fit the profile and is it my fault that they didn't want to spend the money to correct a serious problem?

Like I said, one thing wrong and something that was plainly misinterpreted and bam! Instant about face. What ever I guess. Like I said, say one thing wrong and especially the wrong way and I guess you're screwed. Thank God I have other resources to resort to and a shame I couldn't get my advice here.

Unfortunately we can't please them all in this world. I'll go take my racist questions elsewhere. I do appreciate all the consideration so far regardless of these last few posts. Just a request, please don't be so harsh and judgemental against others.

Aloha

 

[Silverplum]

That's odd, why is my statement about my landlord being cheap racist? It's not like I'm calling a black person the "n" word. I'm just stating how cheap my landlord was and helping prove why she probably never did anything to help resolve our situation.

Holy crap, it's like I'm being pinned to the cross for being screwed against in the first place.

And hello, it was Zinger who had to put such a ridiculous comment in the first place. I'm here just reporting my case exactly as it is, not making any racial slurs against anyone or stating false accusations.

But hey, I guess even here we can find ourselves all alone right? Can't count on your fellow brothers and sisters in life to help each other out. One slip about something you dislike and it's an instant turned back. Remember the old adage, "what goes around, comes around."

My "brothers and sisters" ARE Chinese, black, white, Hispanic, mixed.

It wasn't "one slip." It was a revelation of your character. As volunteers, we pick and choose who to help.

As my friend Mo said, goodbye.

 

[>Charlotte<]

Wow, from that you made the assumption that I must be some racist punk ready to call out every racial slur against everyone huh? I said they fit the profile and is it my fault that they didn't want to spend the money to correct a serious problem?

That's bull****. There's nothing wrong with calling someone cheap, but being cheap is about being cheap. It has nothing to do with being Chinese. You're the worst kind of racist idiot: one who doesn't understand what racism actually is.

Good luck with your "other" resources.

Take your ignorant hatefulness and get out.