Over many years, the Apartment Association of Greater Los Angeles (AAGLA) has initiated numerous legal changes seeking to protect the interests of all rental housing providers. Some of the more recent legal changes include the following matters:
Currently Outstanding Matter
- vs. City of Los Angeles – Constitutional challenge to the City’s rent stabilization ordinance. The case was filed on behalf of two current members of AAGLA and is being funded by a broad coalition of interested parties throughout California.
Recent Past Litigation Efforts
- vs. City of Los Angeles – State court challenge in conjunction with the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association to overturn Measure ULA.
- vs. City of Los Angeles – State court challenge to overturn two renter protection ordinances: (i) economic eviction threshold requirement equal to one month of fair market past due rent before eviction may proceed, and (ii) relocation fees payable for rent control exempt properties (non-RSO and A.B. 1482 exempt) in the event rent increase in excess of state limits (CPI+5% up to 10%).
- AAGLA prevailed with respect to the relocation fee challenge of the lawsuit and will pursue the economic eviction threshold aspect on appeal.
- vs. City of Los Angeles – State court challenge regarding COVID-era rent increase freeze.
- vs. City of Los Angeles – Constitutional challenge regarding imposition of rental registry requirement and required disclosure of deemed confidential business data.
- vs. City of Beverly Hills – Constitutional challenge regarding imposition of rental registry requirement and required disclosure of deemed confidential business data.
- vs. City of Beverly Hills – Constitutional challenge to rental registry.
- vs. City of Los Angeles – Constitutional challenge to City’s RecycLA trash hauling monopoly.
- vs. County of Los Angeles – State constitutional challenge to COVID-era eviction moratorium in a joint lawsuit filed by AAGLA and AOA.
- AAGLA prevailed and was awarded a preliminary injunction and legal fees.
- vs. State of California – In conjunction with the state association, California Rental Housing Association, state constitutional challenge against COVID-era eviction moratorium
- Numerous amicus briefs were filed in support of related Constitutional challenges.
Apartment Association of Greater L.A. Lawsuits Against the City of Los Angeles
In April 2026, AAGLA announced that it had prevailed in its lawsuit against the City of Los Angeles seeking to overturn the city’s Ordinance No. 187764 (“Relocation Assistance Ordinance”), which forced rental housing providers to pay substantial relocation fees when implementing a rent increase exceeding a specified amount with respect to rental housing that was otherwise legally exempt from local and state rent stabilization rules. On March 3, 2023, AAGLA filed a lawsuit against the City of Los Angeles seeking a writ of mandate and declaratory and injunctive relief to prohibit the City’s enforcement of two renter protection ordinances: (i) Ordinance No. 187763 requiring a financial threshold of past due rent (equal to one month’s fair market rent) be met prior to initiating eviction proceedings, and (ii) Ordinance No. 187764, the Relocation Assistance Ordinance, which force rental housing providers to pay substantial relocation fees when imposing a rent increase above a specified maximum amount on housing legally exempt from either local or state rent stabilization rules exceed a specified percentage. Read More
The Apartment Association of Greater Los Angeles (AAGLA) on July 24, 2023, filed a lawsuit against the City of Los Angeles (“City”) the Superior Court of the State of California seeking to nullify and enjoin the City from enforcing the City’s Ordinance No. 186607prohibiting rental housing providers from increasing rent (“Rent Freeze Ordinance”) as violative of the United States and California Constitutions on the grounds that it deprives the Association’s members of due process by effectively denying property owners from implementing annual rent increases mandated by the Rent Stabilization Ordinance.
Joint Litigation Seeking to Overturn City of Los Angeles’ Measure ULA Transfer Tax
On December 22, 2022, the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association and AAGLA filed a joint lawsuit against the City of Los Angeles seeking to overturn recently passed Measure ULA, which is the city’s real estate transfer tax on real property transactions over $5 million. The Measure ULA transfer tax, which took effect on April 1, 2023, imposes a tax at the time of sale of a real property at the rate of 4% for properties sold between $5 million and $10 million, and 5.5% for real property sales above $10 million or above (the thresholds are adjusted each year for inflation). The money raised by Measure ULA is to allegedly be designated for the production and acquisition of affordable housing, as well as homelessness prevention measures in the form of rent relief, income support for rent-burdened seniors, and legal counsel for tenants facing eviction.
Litigation Against the County of Los Angeles – Eviction Moratorium
On September 21, 2020, AAGLA filed a Preliminary Injunction Motion against the City of Los Angeles seeking to overturn the City’s Eviction Ban and Rent Freeze Moratoria. Following the U.S. District Court’s denial of injunctive relief in AAGLA’s Preliminary Injunction Motion against the City of Los Angeles, a Notice of Appeal was filed by AAGLA in the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, which appeal motion was also denied and then appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court which ultimately did not take up AAGLA’s Preliminary Injunction Motion.
Litigation Against the State of California – COVID-Era Eviction Moratorium
On August 5, 2021, the California Rental Housing Association (CalRHA) filed a lawsuit against the State of California in the federal district court for the Eastern District of California (Sacramento). AAGLA is the largest CalRHA affiliate and provided substantial funding to pursue the litigation. The CalRHA lawsuit challenged the constitutionality of Assembly Bill 832, the State’s third extension of a statewide COVID-era moratorium on evictions for nonpayment of rent. The lawsuit alleged that the statewide eviction moratorium unconstitutionally violates rental housing owners’ basic property rights, and substantially—and retroactively—impairs existing rental agreements and leases, which give owners the contract right to repossess their units for nonpayment of rent.
Joint Litigation Challenging County of Los Angeles’ COVID-Era Eviction Moratorium and Rent Freeze
In March 2022, the Apartment Association of Greater Los Angeles (AAGLA) and the Apartment Owners Association of California, Inc. (AOA) filed a joint lawsuit in Los Angeles County Superior Court for the State of California on behalf of their members and the County’s rental housing providers seeking a Preliminary Injunction against the County of Los Angeles’s residential eviction moratorium. A hearing on the matter was held in July, 2022, and on October 19, 2022, the District Court granted the joint plaintiff’s motion for preliminary injunction and gave Los Angeles County until December 1, 2022, to either modify or suspend enforcement of its eviction moratorium. In its ruling, the court made clear that in order for tenants to obtain eviction protections due to impacts of the global pandemic, tenants are required to prove such impacts existed for each month rent payments were missed or be subject to eviction proceedings. The court also awarded AAGLA and its co-plaintiff legal fees and costs.
Support Us – Let Us Undertake Legal Battles to Protect Your Interests
As housing providers, we cannot continue to accept our current situation as the new reality! WE MUST FIGHT BACK, AND THE TIME FOR THAT IS NOW! AAGLA, with the help of outside counsel, is constantly exploring legal strategies and litigation options to fight back and to protect the rights of rental housing providers. We believe there are multiple causes of action to ENGAGE IN LITIGATION in the future, and if we have the necessary financial resources, we are certain we can and will prevail.
PLEASE! Consider making a generous contribution to our ongoing legal efforts by providing the necessary financial resources to support us. By making your voluntary, annual contributions to the AAGLA PACs and AAGLA Legal Fund with your annual membership renewal, you are doing a great deal to help and support our advocacy efforts. But please consider contributing more and more often throughout the year. Your generosity is absolutely required to help us overcome harmful regulations and win in our ongoing fight for survival in the rental housing business. PLEASE GIVE TODAY! PLEASE GIVE GENEROUSLY!
Contributions to Apartment Association of Greater Los Angeles Legal Fund are not charitable contributions and are not deductible for tax purposes. All contributions will be utilized for legal research and litigation costs incurred in retaining outside legal professionals.
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December 7, 2020
