Revision: Dec. 22, 2011, midnight
SB 301 – AS INTRODUCED
2012 SESSION
05/09
SENATE BILL 301
AN ACT relative to landlord-tenant remedies.
SPONSORS: Sen. Barnes, Jr., Dist 17; Rep. Reagan, Rock 1
This bill:
I. Requires 7 days notice for eviction from residential property, regardless of the grounds for the eviction.
II. Allows the landlord to amend a writ of summons to correct minor procedural defects.
III. Increases the amount of damages available in landlord-tenant disputes from $1,500 to $10,000.
IV. Requires former tenants to execute a financial affidavit and provide a forwarding address if they have been found liable for damages to the landlord.
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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.
Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
12-2906 05/09
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twelve
AN ACT relative to landlord-tenant remedies.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 Actions Against Tenants; Eviction Notice; 7-Day Notice Sufficient in All Cases. Amend RSA 540:3, II to read as follows:
II. For all residential tenancies, [30] 7 days’ notice shall be sufficient in all cases[; provided, however, that 7 days’ notice shall be sufficient if the reason for the termination is as set forth in RSA 540:2, II(a), (b), or (d)].
2 New Paragraph; Eviction Notice. Amend RSA 540:3 by inserting after paragraph V the following new paragraph:
VI. The court shall not find that notice to the tenant was insufficient solely based on a minor procedural or technical defect in the eviction notice.
3 New Section; Landlord-Tenant Actions; Amendment of Pleadings. Amend RSA 540 by inserting after section 13-d the following new section:
540:13-e Amendment. Within 7 days of filing the writ of summons, the landlord may file a motion to amend the writ to correct a procedural or technical defect. The motion shall be granted in matters of form and may be granted in matters of substance under such terms as justice may require.
4 New Paragraph; Actions Against Tenants; Judgments; Financial Affidavit. Amend RSA 540:14 by inserting after paragraph IV the following new paragraph:
V. If the court issues a money judgment in favor of the landlord, the court shall require the tenant to execute a financial affidavit, indicating the tenant’s address, source of income, assets, and liabilities within 7 days. The tenant shall indicate on the financial affidavit whether he or she intends to pay the judgment in a lump sum or to enter into a periodic payment plan under the terms and conditions established by the court. Any tenant against whom a money judgment has been awarded shall notify the court of a current address for service within 7 days of notice of the judgment from the court. If the tenant fails to provide the court with a current address and any subsequent change of address, the tenant shall be subject to a fine of $300. In addition, any service failure as a result of the tenant’s failure to notify the court of a current address shall provide grounds for the issuance of a bench warrant upon petition to the court. Any proof of failed service upon the tenant shall constitute prima facie proof of the tenant’s failure to comply with this section.
5 Actions Against Tenants; Recovery Limits. Amend RSA 540:13, III to read as follows:
III. The writ of summons and the notice provided in paragraph II shall be returnable 7 days from the date of service of the writ by the sheriff. The writ of summons shall provide an opportunity for the landlord, at the landlord’s option, to make a claim for an award of unpaid rent. If the landlord elects to make a claim for unpaid rent, the court shall consider any defense, claim, or counterclaim by the tenant which offsets or reduces the amount owed to the plaintiff. If the court finds that the landlord is entitled to possession on the ground of nonpayment of rent, it shall also award the landlord a money judgment. If the court determines that the amount owed by the landlord to the tenant, as a result of set-off or counterclaim exceeds or equals the amount of rent and other lawful charges owed by the tenant to the landlord, judgment in the possessory action shall be granted in favor of the tenant. If the court finds that the tenant’s counterclaim exceeds the amount of the nonpayment, a money judgment shall issue in favor of the tenant. Any decision rendered by the court related to a money judgment, shall be limited to a maximum of [$1,500] $10,000 and shall not preclude either party from making a subsequent claim in a court of competent jurisdiction to recover any additional amounts not covered by the [$1,500] $10,000 judgment. Nothing in this section shall preclude either party from requesting trial by jury as provided in RSA 502-A:15 if the damages claimed exceed $1,500.
6 Civil Causes; Exclusive Jurisdiction of District Court. Amend RSA 502-A:14, I to read as follows:
I. Exclusive Jurisdiction. All district courts shall have original and exclusive jurisdiction of civil cases in which the damages claimed do not exceed $1,500, the title to real estate is not involved, and the plaintiff or defendant resides within the district. District courts shall have original and exclusive jurisdiction of actions that arise under RSA 540 and RSA 540-A in which trial by jury is not requested under RSA 502-A:15 and the damages claimed do not exceed $10,000. In all such actions as herein provided the parties shall be heard by the justice or special justice and the findings of fact shall be final, but questions of law may be transferred to the supreme court in the same manner as from the superior court or as provided in RSA 502-A:17-a.
7 Effective Date. This act shall take effect January 1, 2013.