San Francisco Apartment Assoc. v. City and County of San Francisco, No. 15-17381 (9th Cir. 2018)
Annotate this CaseThe Ninth Circuit affirmed the district court's judgment on the pleadings in an action challenging a city ordinance that limits the rights of landlords to commence and conduct buyout negotiations. The panel held that the Ordinance did not prevent plaintiffs, an individual property owner and several landlord organizations, from commencing buyout negotiations if a tenant refuses to sign the disclosure form; the Disclosure Provision did not violate plaintiffs' First Amendment rights; the creation of a publicly searchable database of buyout agreements did not violate landlords' right to privacy under the California Constitution; the Ordinance did not violate landlords' rights to equal protection or due process; and the Condominium Conversion Provision did not violate landlords' "liberty of contract."
Court Description: Civil Rights The panel affirmed the district court’s judgment on the pleadings in an action brought by an individual property owner and several landlord organizations challenging a San Francisco City Ordinance that limits the rights of landlords to commence and conduct buyout negotiations. The panel first held that plaintiffs’ contention that the Ordinance prevents them from initiating buyout negotiations unless tenants sign the disclosure form failed under the plain language of the Ordinance. The panel then held that the Ordinance’s disclosure provision, which requires landlords to disclose contact information for tenants’ rights organizations prior to the commencement of buyout negotiations, did not violate plaintiffs’ First Amendment rights. In so holding, the panel determined that the Ordinance pertains to commercial speech, that the asserted government interest in enacting the Ordinance was substantial, and that the Ordinance was sufficiently narrowly
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