Calif. Civil Code §3485
Added by A.B. 2310
Effective date: September 15, 2014

As part of an expanded pilot program, city attorneys in the cities of Sacramento, Oakland, Los Angeles or Long Beach may file an unlawful detainer (UD) action against a tenant for nuisance if the tenant unlawfully possesses weapons or ammunition on a property.

The city attorney is to provide the property owner and tenant a 30-day written notice documenting the tenant’s nuisance violation. Within 30 days of the notice, the owner is required to:

  • file a UD action against the tenant; or
  • release all relevant information regarding the UD to the city attorney and assign to the city attorney the right to bring the UD action against the tenant.

The property owner is responsible for paying legal costs of up to $600 once the assignment is accepted and filed by the city attorney.

The owner retains all other rights and duties as landlord.

Additionally, the city attorney is required to provide the California Research Bureau with data related to UD actions brought under these provisions to allow the state to evaluate the effectiveness of the pilot program.

This pilot program sunsets on January 1, 2019.

Editor’s note — Currently, this law only applies to a total of four cities, but has potential for broader application if the state finds the pilot program to be successful.

Read more:

Read the bill text.

See “The tenancies in real estate,” Chapter 2 of first tuesday Realtipedia Volume 12: Landlords, Tenants and Property Management. Current first tuesday students may access Realtipedia from the Student Homepage.