City Attorney’s Office obtains judgment and injunction against landlord in tenant harassment case
February 26, 2025 3:29 PM
SANTA MONICA, Calif. (Feb. 26, 2025) — In a case brought under the city’s Tenant Harassment Ordinance by the Santa Monica City Attorney’s Office, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Mark H. Epstein has signed a stipulated judgment and injunction against the Defendants, landlord Nahid Jahanbin and her son, who acted as her agent and property manager.
In City v. Nahid Jahanbin et al., Case No. 21SMCV05298, the city alleged that the Defendants engaged in a campaign of harassment against a family of four with two young children, trying to drive them out of their long-term rent-controlled home. The allegations include four bad faith baseless evictions, shutting off utilities, filming the tenants and their children without their consent, an unlawful forced entry and entries without proper notice or consent, bad faith removal of parking and laundry amenities, and using fraud and intimidation to try to pressure the family to move out.
The Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles represented the tenants in defending the four evictions and the cases were resolved in the tenants’ favor. The tenants brought a private lawsuit in addition to the city’s case and were represented by the law firm Trygstad, Schwab & Trygstad.
As a part of the settlement with the city and a separate settlement resolving the tenants’ private lawsuit, the Defendants agreed to:
- Pay $450,000, including a portion to be used by the city to support housing protection work in Santa Monica.
- No longer manage any residential rental property in Santa Monica and hire a city-approved third-party property manager to manage any residential rental property they own in the city.
- Attend a city-approved landlord-tenant training.
- Pay a minimum penalty of $10,000 per violation if they are found to violate the agreement.
Under the terms of the stipulated judgment, the owner must comply with the city’s tenant protection laws, including the Tenant Harassment Ordinance, the Rent Control Law and the law regulating entry into tenants’ homes.
“Every family deserves dignity, respect and stability in their home,” said City Attorney Doug Sloan. “That’s why we take every case of tenant harassment seriously. This continues our long tradition of strong enforcement of tenant protection laws.”
Media Contact
Tati Simonian
Public Information Officer
Tati.Simonian@santamonica.gov