The landlord-tenant law is a unique part of the real estate law. It sets up very strict rules and procedures to deal with landlord-tenant disputes. One of the most important rules for a landlord is that landlord can not resort to "self-help" to stop its service to a tenant or to throw out a tenant from the premises the tenant was occupying, even though such tenant is in default of the rent payment or otherwise in breach of the lease contract. 

A landlord can not withhold a tenant's security deposit without out a legal reason after the tenant moves out. A tenant should also understand his/her legal rights as well as the obligations within the lease agreement and protected by the tenancy law. If a tenant does not honor his/her obligations as a tenant, then the landlord has the right to kick his/her out by proper legal proceedings known as unlawful detainer action. It is very important to remember that an unlawful detainer action is a "fast-track" proceeding that the California court gives priority preference to move it to a final judgment within the shortest possible time. Once a judgment is entered by the court, no bankruptcy or appeal proceedings could stay the eviction. Therefore, if the tenant fails to defend itself properly in the lawsuit, he or she could be evicted by the sheriff within three weeks. 

Attorney John J. Ma has been representing both landlords and tenants in over a hundred of unlawful detainer lawsuits in California court, either for residential properties or for commercial properties. Attorney Ma handles various landlord-tenancy legal matters such as lease negotiations, rent adjustment, nuisance abatement, alternative dispute resolutions, and management take-over, etc. Especially, Attorney John J. Ma is experienced in handling the following matters:

· Unlawful detainer litigations,
· Residential and/or commercial property leasing, 
· Residential and/or commercial property management, and
· Other property management litigation matters (premises liabilities, breach of contract, etc.). 

If you are a landlord or a tenant and you need an experienced attorney to protect you in your tenancy dispute in California, whether it is a residential lease or a commercial lease agreement, please contact attorney John J. Ma at [email protected] for legal advise and you will see the difference!