ICLC Case Sets Important Precedent Regarding CDC Eviction Order

Inner City Law Center successfully applied the protections in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) eviction order. With the threat of COVID-19 on public health, the federal order makes it illegal for landlords to evict tenants who cannot afford to pay their rent through the end of year.

Laura*, a single mother of two children, one of whom is disabled, contacted ICLC for help five days before she was scheduled to be locked out and evicted from her home. On the day of her hearing in September 2020, the CDC order was set to go into effect.

At the hearing, ICLC argued Laura’s pending eviction violated the tenant protections granted under the new CDC Order. A week later, the court issued a decision suspending the attempt by Laura’s landlord to move forward with her family’s eviction.

Our motion from this first case is regularly shared with other legal and tenants’ rights organizations as a model for stopping the rising uptick of evictions against vulnerable tenants.

*Name changed to protect identity of client.