Dear LANDLORD S NAME

[NAME] [ADDRESS]

[DATE]

Dear [LANDLORD’S NAME]:

I have researched my rights regarding your threat to throw me out of the property that I rent from you. It is illegal for a landlord to use self-help to evict a tenant in the District of Columbia.

Landlords are required to file a complaint in the Landlord and Tenant Branch of D.C. Superior Court in order to lawfully evict tenants, according to the decision of the D.C. Court of Appeals in the case of Mendes v. Johnson, 389 A.2d 781 (D.C. 1978). You must follow the court procedure at every step of the eviction process, including scheduling an eviction with the U.S. Marshals Service.

I have been advised that I can file a case in D.C. Superior Court and ask the judge to order you to immediately stop taking steps to illegal evict me and to require you to let me back into the property. I have also been advised that I may be entitled to sue you for compensatory and punitive damages if you illegally evict me.

Please note that I will exercise every legal option I have if you illegally evict me. You must not take any action to evict me without use of lawful court process.

Sincerely,

[NAME]