When the landlord evicted tenant without following the law

Many clients who retained our Paralegal for consultation about eviction matter couldn't recognize what the wrongful eviction was, and therefore, not knowing how to deal with this situation. In this post, Janna Le, Licensed Paralegal, will help you understand the eviction process upon the regulation of Residential Tenancies Act, 2006 (hereinafter referred as RTA)

WHAT IS WRONGFUL EVICTION?

Under the RTA, you have the right to live in your place unless you are legally evicted. Only the Board can order your eviction, and only a Sheriff can make you leave or lock you out. If you receive termination of tenancy (N4 Notice), it is a legal ground for the landlord makes an eviction application to the Board, not the eviction order. Therefore, you only have to move out of the rental unit if you are served the eviction order.

If your landlord has made you leave the place that you rent but has not followed the RTA rules, you may have been “wrongfully evicted”. For example, you may have been wrongfully evicted if: 

• Your landlord changed your locks and did not give you replacement keys, but did not obtain an eviction order from the Landlord and Tenant Board.  Your landlord moved your belongings out of your place without your permission.
• Your landlord moved someone else into the place that you rent.
• Your landlord has done something to prevent you from getting into your place. For example, your landlord has changed the locks to the main entrance of the building without giving you replacement keys or called the police to have you removed from the unit.
• You were not reasonably able to participate in the eviction hearing that the Board held before your locks were changed. In most cases, you have not been wrongfully evicted if your landlord obtained an eviction order from the Board and the Sheriff has evicted you. If you feel your eviction was wrong or if you did not know about the hearing, you need to act quickly. Contact your local legal clinic for help right away.

WHAT SHOULD YOU DO TO GET BACK INTO YOUR PLACE IF YOU WERE LOCKED OUT?

There are steps you can take to get back into your place after a wrongful eviction. You can:

• Call the Rental Housing Enforcement Unit of the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing. (Toll Free: 1-888-772-9277).
• Call the police for help.

CAN YOU GET BACK INTO YOUR PLACE BY YOURSELF?

If you try to get into your place by yourself, your landlord may take action against you. Get legal advice before you take any steps to get into the place yourself. If you try to get back into your place by yourself, you can:

• Hire a locksmith to change the lock. You must give a copy of the new key to your landlord.
• Replace the lock on the door yourself. You must give a copy of the new key to your landlord.

Make sure that:

• You do not damage the rental property. The landlord may sue you for the cost of repairing or replacing any damaged property.
• You avoid any form of violence. If anyone challenges you physically, leave the property immediately.

WHAT CAN YOU DO IF YOU CANNOT GET BACK IN BY YOURSELF?

1. Retain legal counsel is one of the options to protect your legal right. This option is not mandatory. The paralegal is more popular than the lawyer for the reason of lower fee.
2. You can apply by yourself to the Board to order your landlord to let you back into your place. You can also apply to have your landlord pay you compensation for wrongfully evicting you. To do this, you must fill out a form called an Application about Tenant Rights (Form T2) and give it to the Board. It costs $50 to apply, but you may not have to pay if you can get a fee waiver. To find out if you qualify, fill in a Fee Waiver Request and give it to the Board with your application.

To ask the Board to hear your case as soon as possible, complete a form called Request to Extend or Shorten Time. 

When your application is accepted, the Board will set a date for your hearing. The Notice of Hearing tells you the date, time, and place of your hearing.