Landlord / Tenant Law Guide |
For the past several years Marcello Law Offices has been engaged as the consultation attorney to the students of The University of Pittsburgh as well as Carnegie Mellon University. Over the years we have come to learn that the reason this field is so unpredictable and difficult to navigate is because lawyers don't often get involved in these cases nor do they have much incentive to develop expertise. To complicate things even further, Covid-19 has added several tiers of issues to the mix.
Recently Melanie reached out to us and shared her story of fleeing from an abusive relationship. Sadly, we knew the story all too well and predicted what problems she had to face on her own in that circumstance and what problems her landlord had to contend with too. We had the opportunity to ask Mel what would have made her situation better. Turns out, the consultations that we provide to the university students is all that she would have needed. Ultimately, we have agreed to produce this Landlord / Tenant Law Guide to help educate our community.
Back when I was studying for the bar exam I would routinely call my father, a retired attorney himself, to air my grievances regarding the difficulty of the questions. I would read him a test question and then hurl out the multiple choice options to see if he could identify the nuanced correct answer. Without fail he would quickly respond with, “Well, that would be…” and he be right. Eventually, I had to know his secret. “Dad, this is tough stuff, stuff that you haven’t studied for a very long time, if ever! How could you be so accurate in your answers, how do you know?” “Because it’s right…” Yes, his choices were accurate but more important was his perspective on the law. He knew the correct answer because he picked the morally and ethically sound answer. I share this story and insight to frame our discussion on the law. We start by asking whether someone landlord, tenant, guest, or passerby is acting morally and ethically. If the answer is no we are likely going to have a law that will guard against those wrongful behaviours.
It goes without saying that if you need legal help that this guide will not be enough and discussing the matter with a lawyer is always advised. However, we will endeavor to not only produce as complete a guide as possible but to update it as much as possible. Any information provided should not be perceived as legal advice or the formation of an attorney-client privilege but as education.
Recently Melanie reached out to us and shared her story of fleeing from an abusive relationship. Sadly, we knew the story all too well and predicted what problems she had to face on her own in that circumstance and what problems her landlord had to contend with too. We had the opportunity to ask Mel what would have made her situation better. Turns out, the consultations that we provide to the university students is all that she would have needed. Ultimately, we have agreed to produce this Landlord / Tenant Law Guide to help educate our community.
Back when I was studying for the bar exam I would routinely call my father, a retired attorney himself, to air my grievances regarding the difficulty of the questions. I would read him a test question and then hurl out the multiple choice options to see if he could identify the nuanced correct answer. Without fail he would quickly respond with, “Well, that would be…” and he be right. Eventually, I had to know his secret. “Dad, this is tough stuff, stuff that you haven’t studied for a very long time, if ever! How could you be so accurate in your answers, how do you know?” “Because it’s right…” Yes, his choices were accurate but more important was his perspective on the law. He knew the correct answer because he picked the morally and ethically sound answer. I share this story and insight to frame our discussion on the law. We start by asking whether someone landlord, tenant, guest, or passerby is acting morally and ethically. If the answer is no we are likely going to have a law that will guard against those wrongful behaviours.
It goes without saying that if you need legal help that this guide will not be enough and discussing the matter with a lawyer is always advised. However, we will endeavor to not only produce as complete a guide as possible but to update it as much as possible. Any information provided should not be perceived as legal advice or the formation of an attorney-client privilege but as education.