Senate Bill No. 541
(By Senators McCabe, Beach and Palumbo)
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[Introduced February 12, 2014; referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact §55-3A-1 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to remedies for wrongful occupation of residential rental property; defining “agent of the owner”; and providing certain rights to tenants who have the authority to sublet their leased premises.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §55-3A-1 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 3A. REMEDIES FOR WRONGFUL OCCUPATION OF RESIDENTIAL RENTAL PROPERTY.
§55-3A-1. Petition for summary relief for wrongful occupation of residential rental property.
(a) A person desiring to remove a tenant from residential rental property may apply for such that relief to the magistrate court or the circuit court of the county in which such the property is located, by verified petition, setting forth the following:
(1) That he or she is the owner or agent of the owner and as such has a right to recover possession of the property;
(2) A brief description of the property sufficient to identify it;
(3) That the tenant is wrongfully occupying such the property in that the tenant is in arrears in the payment of rent, has breached a warranty or a leasehold covenant, or has deliberately or negligently damaged the property or knowingly permitted another person to do so, and describing such the arrearage, breach or act or omission; and
(4) A prayer for possession of the property.
(b) Previous to the filing of the petition the person shall request from the court the time and place at which the petitioner shall be heard. The court shall fix a time for such the hearing, which time shall may not be less than five nor more than ten judicial days following such the request.
(c) Immediately upon being apprised of the time and place for hearing the petitioner shall cause a notice of the same hearing to be served upon the tenant in accordance with the provisions of Rule 4 of the West Virginia Rules of Civil Procedure or by certified mail, return receipt requested. Such The notice shall inform the tenant that any defense to the petition must be submitted in writing to the petitioner within five days of the receipt by the tenant of the notice, and in no case later than the fifth day next preceding the date of hearing. Upon receipt of the return of service or the return receipt as the case may be, evidencing service upon the tenant, the petitioner shall file with the court his or her petition and such the proof of service.
(d) For purposes of this article, the phrase “agent of the owner” includes any person who is authorized to act for or in place of the owner. A tenant whose written lease agreement explicitly gives the tenant the right to sublet all or a portion of the leased premises is an “agent of the owner” with respect to other tenants occupying the property as part of a subletting agreement for the purposes of this article only.
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(NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to ensure that tenants who have the right to sublet their leased property have remedies for wrongful occupation of residential rental property available to them with respect to the subletting individuals.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.)