Housing Laws

If you are denied an early termination after following the steps laid out above, you may file a lawsuit (civil action) against your landlord in state district court within one year of the denial.¹ If you did not provide the required documentation of the domestic abuse to your landlord prior to the denial, however, you will not be able to win a case against your landlord for violation of this law.² A landlord who has not been given the required documentation will similarly not be prevented from refusing to enter into a lease, terminating your lease, failing to renew your lease, or evicting you for any otherwise acceptable legal reason.³ If the landlord has already filed for an eviction against you due to a single incident of domestic abuse and you provide the appropriate documentation of the abuse prior to a judgment or notice of eviction being issued, the landlord is required to withdraw that judgment or notice once your documentation is provided.⁴

If you or your household member knowingly allow the abuser into your home after requesting the lease termination, you lose your protection under this law. Therefore, you will not be able to file a civil action against your landlord for failure to follow this law if the landlord evicts you or refuses to end your lease.⁵ The landlord will also still have the right to evict you if the abuser remains near or in the rented home against your will and this results in additional violent disturbances that pose a threat to the safety or peace of other nearby tenants. In this situation, the landlord may allow you to relocate to another unit that they own, if one is available and you meet the qualification standards to rent that unit, but this is solely at the landlord’s discretion and is not required under the law.⁶

Note: It is important to understand that landlords are still allowed to evict domestic abuse victims, terminate their lease, or refuse to enter into or renew a lease for other legal reasons that are unrelated to the domestic abuse. ⁷

¹ La. Rev. Stat. § 9:3261.1(I)
² La. Rev. Stat. § 9:3261.1(D)(2)
³ La. Rev. Stat. § 9:3261.1(D)(3)(a)
⁴ La. Rev. Stat. § 9:3261.1(D)(3)(b)
⁵ La. Rev. Stat. § 9:3261.1(K)
⁶ La. Rev. Stat. § 9:3261.1(D)(1)(b)
⁷ La. Rev. Stat. § 9:3261.1(G)