Court of Appeal Upholds San Francisco’s Expanded Ellis Relocation Benefits

by Casey Mills via Beyond Chron (reposted)

Thu, Feb 23, 2006 6:59AM

The State Court of Appeals ruled unanimously yesterday that San Francisco can require landlords to pay Ellis relocation benefits to all tenants, not just those with low incomes. The battle over such benefits began when a group of landlords represented by attorney Andrew Zacks hoped to strike down legislation passed last year requiring greater payments to tenants evicted with the Ellis Act. While local Superior Court Judge James Warren granted Zack’s plea the first go-around, yesterday the Court of Appeals reversed Warren’s ruling and upheld the law. San Francisco tenants can now celebrate a substantial increase in the amount of money they will receive should they be forced out of their homes under the Ellis Act.

The ruling in yesterday's case, Pieri v. CCSF, represents a landmark victory for tenants. A 1986 Court of Appeal ruling limited cities requiring landlords to provide Ellis Act victims with relocation benefits to only being able to require that low-income tenants be compensated. Assemblymember Mark Leno’s historic AB 1217 legislation in 2003 - known for exempting SRO's from the Ellis Act - reinstated the original broad intent of the relocation benefits. Now, the Court of Appeals has affirmed the intent of Leno's legislation.

Yesterday's litigation has its roots in February of 2005, when a wave of Ellis Act evictions swept across North Beach. Supervisor Aaron Peskin sought to increase the relocation benefits tenants affected by this trend received. At the time, landlords had to provide $4,500 to every low-income household forced out of their homes, and an additional $3,000 to every senior or disabled tenant.

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