Can I seek punitive damages against my landlord if in a lawsuit they baselessly claim delinquency in rent?
April 20th, 2011 | 
Author: I have the cleared checks to prove I have paid on time and in full for every month. I confronted them in writing and followed up with a phone call. Over the phone they apologized and seemingly realized their mistake. This evidently was not communicated well throughout the company because AFTER that, an attorney filed a lawsuit against me on their behalf.
If I cannot prove malicious intent. What about gross incompetence? In addition to the eviction, the landlord is also suing for attorney fees, arrears, and utilities.
Posted in Landlord Tenant Law
Unfortunately, unless you can prove that the lawsuit was filed maliciously as opposed to by mistake, you are not going to get punitive damages. If you hired an attorney to take care of the lawsuit for you, then you will be able to recover any money you had to spend to defend the suit. I am assuming that the landlord’s attorney filed a forcible detainer suit as opposed to a suit for monetary damages since that is the route the normally take. If the forcible detainer was filed by mistake, the suit will be dismissed (if it hasn’t already been dismissed).
What you really should be doing is getting them to dismiss their complaint. That should be your first worry, and not all this other stuff. Stop thinking about this emotionally and start thinking logically.
Why did they file a “lawsuit” and not a simple non-payment of rent complaint? Do you no longer live there?
Send your landlord a certified letter that basically repeats the conversation you had, with whom and when, and the end result (their mistake). Tell them that you expect the complaint to be dismissed immediately, and you want confirmation of that in writing. If they refuse, then you will have to appear in court to prove what you say is true.
Being wrong and “baseless” are two different things. What does “seemingly realized their mistake” mean? They either did or they didn’t. If they did, your records should have been corrected. If they didn’t, they would have taken it a step further, which it appears they did.
You will spend far more money in trying to punish them for their mistake, and I truly doubt you will ever see or recoup a penny from it.
It’s frustrating to be right and feel like you are being persecuted, but you aren’t going to get anywhere in trying to make them pay.
A simple dismissal being filed by them will make you whole again. You don’t have any real damages.