It’s not every day that you see the words “reimburse” and “attorney’s fees” mentioned together. Today is one of those days.
In the United States, each party to a lawsuit is generally responsible for paying their own attorney, no matter who wins the case. This is commonly referred to as the “American Rule.” However, in Pennsylvania, there is a limited exception to this rule in the landlord-tenant context. Specifically, for filing a lawsuit to evict a tenant for violating the lease or not paying rent. The way you get the tenant to pay your legal fees is through an attorney fee-shifting provision in your lease.
Of course, the fee-shifting provision needs to be in your lease before you attempt to evict the tenant. Pennsylvania courts have ruled that attorney fee-shifting provisions in residential lease agreements are enforceable. This means that as long as your lease has a clearly drafted fee-shifting provision, the tenant can be forced to pay your attorney’s fees for the eviction lawsuit.
Evictions can involve many legal hurdles. There are notice requirements, pleading rules, defenses and procedures for collecting on a judgment for damage to the property or unpaid rent. Given these hurdles, it makes a lot of sense to hire a lawyer. Why not get reimbursed for that cost?
If you need an attorney fee-shifting provision added to your lease, or need to evict a tenant, we would be happy to help. Please contact the firm here or email Daniel J. Hinger, Esquire at [email protected] to schedule a consultation regarding your landlord-tenant problem.