Employment Discrimination Case Could Help Landlords

By Robert Cain

Ameritech Corp. has taken an unusual approach to employment discrimination complaints that could aid landlords in defending themselves against complaints under the Fair Housing Act.

The Oct. 3, 2000, Wall Street Journal reports that after some of its employees took discrimination complaints to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in 1997, Ameritech sued its employees in a Chicago federal court, demanding a legal declaration that the company hadn't violated any laws.  Senior attorney for the EEOC sputtered, it's "an end run around our process."

The idea was that by suing in this manner, it allowed Ameritech to settle the issue before any suit by the EEOC was completed.  Other companies had filed suits against the commission itself as a counter attack, but these have been tossed by the courts.  Ameritech's tactic worked, though.  This past summer a federal appeals court ruled in favor of Ameritech, saying that it had violated no equal employment law.

This tactic holds promise for landlords in cutting off the fair housing enforcers at the knees.  The situation could play out like this.

A fair housing complaint is filed against you.  You know it is baseless, but, as you probably know, with the fair housing people you are guilty until proven innocent, and they will try to force you to settle regardless of your guilt or innocence by running up your legal fees.  To counter the Fair Housing enforcers you file suit against the tenant who filed the complaint, asking the court to rule that you violated no law.

The court rules in your favor, cutting off any action by the fair housing enforcers.

This is a tactic that would, of course, require careful planning by your attorney before you could proceed with it.  I kind of like the idea, since it puts the landlord on the offensive instead of having to sit and wait for the next shoe to drop from the fair housing authorities.

Reprinted courtesy of the Rental Property Reporter.