Reported on the successful results of a class action suit brought against a landlord’s attorney to prevent collection of back rent when the landlord had not complied with Philadelphia law requiring tenants to be provided with a Certificate of Rental Suitability when a lease was signed. Baker v. Ross
The case was successfully settled with payment of damages and the ending of the practice. Thereafter, the Board of Judges of the Philadelphia Municipal Court enacted rules to end this practice by all lawyers, not just the defendant lawyer in the settled case.
“Through the grant from the Barbara McDowell Foundation we confronted a system that long saw low-income people sued for money they did not owe resulting in a change not only for the class, but for all Philadelphia renters.” Dan Urevick-Ackelsberg, Staff Attorney.
Click here to see the original grant, including the six-month and year-end reports.