Should Husband or Wife be named on "Certificate of Assumed or Fictitious Name for Individuals" form?

[Chris111]

That's a whole different ball of wax. A "DBA" won't protect your personal information in the case of filing a lawsuit.

Yes, you're right about that! But from other landlords, we know that once tenants are served with an unlawful detainer, they usually pay up and the court case is dismissed. A DBA name protects privacy up until actual court proceedings, though!

 

[Chris111]

A DBA is not a person can cannot sue in court. A DBA is simply a name that a person/entity uses for business other than the person's/entity's legal name.

The landlord would have to sue the tenant, and if the trust owns the property then the trust should also be the landlord and enter into the rental contract with the tenants. Then if there is a need to sue tenants, it would be the trust that would have to sue. The downside to that is that the trust must use an attorney to do it, you could not represent the trust yourselves. Although, even if you were the landlords yourselves it would still be a good idea to hire a lawyer to sue the tenants for you.

 

[Chris111]

That is interesting as we've looked at other unlawful detainer proceedings in our court website and see other DBA names suing tenants for unlawful detainers. Many are ruled for the plaintiff in the DBA name unless they're still pending. Some are dismissed and some are garnished or still have outstanding judgments - all in the name of the DBAs.

 

[Zigner]

That is interesting as we've looked at other unlawful detainer proceedings in our court website and see other DBA names suing tenants for unlawful detainers. Many are ruled for the plaintiff in the DBA name unless they're still pending. Some are dismissed and some are garnished or still have outstanding judgments - all in the name of the DBAs.

If you look at the actual court filing, you will see the real story.

I would suggest that you have a conversation with a local business attorney to discuss your strategy moving forward. This is not something for which you want to rely on internet searches and random forums.

 

[Taxing Matters]

Yes, you're right about that! But from other landlords, we know that once tenants are served with an unlawful detainer, they usually pay up and the court case is dismissed. A DBA name protects privacy up until actual court proceedings, though!

Be careful. For the notice you give to the tenant, it generally must come from the landlord. A trade name (DBA) is not the landlord; it is just an alternative name used by the landlord to conduct business, but in legal matters the landlord generally needs to use its own name. So if the trust owns the property and is the landlord, it may be that you'll have problems just using the trade name. You should consult an attorney prior to setting this up so that you know exactly how things are going to work and what uses you may make of the trade name.

 

[Chris111]

If you look at the actual court filing, you will see the real story.

I would suggest that you have a conversation with a local business attorney to discuss your strategy moving forward. This is not something for which you want to rely on internet searches and random forums.

That's a good idea to confirm. But we actually did talk to an attorney who represented a local landlord under his DBA name in our local court and won for the landlord. At least that was the name on the docket and on the unlawful detainer summons and on the court website. But there may be some hidden detail somewhere else that I never heard about....

 

[Chris111]

Be careful. For the notice you give to the tenant, it generally must come from the landlord. A trade name (DBA) is not the landlord; it is just an alternative name used by the landlord to conduct business, but in legal matters the landlord generally needs to use its own name. So if the trust owns the property and is the landlord, it may be that you'll have problems just using the trade name. You should consult an attorney prior to setting this up so that you know exactly how things are going to work and what uses you may make of the trade name.

Sounds like good advice - we'll double-check. Thanks....