Detainer Court Project

Legal Aid of East Tennessee - 020097

Abstract Number: 020097

November 2002

Legal Aid of East Tennessee created the Detainer Court Project to educate tenants about their rights and prevent landlords from illegal evicting their tenants. There is a great lack of information about the respective rights of landlords and tenants and a good deal of misinformation concerning evictions among the general population. A majority of the tenant defendants (especially low-income defendants) in detainer actions are unaware of their rights under the Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act. Few have even heard of the Act. Even more surprising is that many landlords are also unaware of the legal process for evicting tenants. Some landlords who are aware of the ignorance of their tenants choose to ignore the legal process in order to evict a tenant quickly by self-help measures such as lock-outs, utility shut-offs and intimidation.

The Detainer Court Project was designed to address these problems and is based on the premise that our legal system works best when all the parties understand the process and know their rights and responsibilities under the law. A proposal was presented to the Knox County General Sessions Court judges, and permission was granted to set up a display and information table outside the courtroom.

Printed materials on landlord tenant law and other areas affecting low-income clients are distributed, including information on health law, employment problems, domestic violence, consumer problems, pro se representation, etc. Information specific to landlord tenant law includes "Your Rights as a Tenant Under the Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act," "How to Avoid Excessive Damage Charges," "A Guide to Subsidized Housing" (which includes addresses and telephone numbers of HUD funded projects and emergency numbers), and "Landlord Guide to the Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act." The "Landlord Guide" was specifically developed for the Detainer Court Project. It describes in detail what a landlord cannot do when evicting tenants, including warnings of the dangers of self-help evictions - a problem in some of the poorer neighborhoods where legal aid clients live. The Landlord Guide was developed because LAET believes that educating landlords is important in protecting the rights of LAET's clients and improving the quality of rental housing.

A paralegal, a law clerk, or a volunteer, in addition to one or more attorneys are available for consultation or representation as appropriate. Potential clients are screened for income and asset eligibility, and conflicts are checked with the LAET office by cell phone. Ineligible persons are referred to the private bar and are provided information on contacting the Bar Association's lawyer referral program and the University of Tennessee's Legal Clinic.

Depending on the nature of the case, LAET attorneys may give advice to the client, open a case, or refer the parties to the court mediation program which maintains a presence near the courtroom or to the private bar. The court mediators send us referrals on occasions where mediation fails. On more complex cases, LAET may accept a case for investigation and request a continuance in order to do an appropriate investigation, subpoena witnesses, etc. Some cases are placed through the LAET Pro Bono Project. On simple cases, attorneys may assist clients immediately in reaching agreements, thereby saving court time in hearing individual cases tried by uninformed parties.

An indication of the success of the project is the fact that the judges are referring more and more clients to LAET for advice or representation. LAET attorneys prevent evictions by asserting clients' rights. They negotiate agreements with landlords for clients to remain and work out payment plans. Where evictions cannot be prevented, LAET attorneys counsel clients in finding housing and other social services. Clients are provided with information aimed at preventing future problems with future landlords. To learn more about this project, access the project proposal and the educational materials below.

Contact Information:

Jerry Williams
Legal Aid of East Tennessee
502 S. Gay Street, Suite 404
Knoxville, TN. 37902
Phone: (865) 637-0484
Fax: (865) 525-1162
jwilliams@laet.org

Additional Information:

• Detainer Court Project Proposal ( 81k)
• Avoiding Excessive Damage Charges ( 90k)

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