Property — landlord-tenant — retaliatory eviction

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Wisconsin Court of Appeals

Civil

Property — landlord-tenant — retaliatory eviction

Bruce and Dorothy Buschman appeal the “eviction judgment” entered by the circuit court. They were periodic tenants and were properly served with a twenty-eight-day notice to vacate. The Buschmans contend that the circuit court improperly prevented them from asserting at the eviction hearing that the eviction was an unlawful retaliation for them having made, as phrased by their brief on this appeal, “requests for accommodation of their disabilities” because they had not formally filed a complaint before they were served with the eviction papers, even though Mr. Buschman also testified that he had also complained to the City of Milwaukee about defects in the premises, which is also a protected tenant-activity for which a landlord may not retaliate. See Wis. Stat. § 704.45(1) (unlawful retaliatory eviction). This opinion will not be published.

2011AP2634 Samex 1 LLC, et al. v. Buschman

Dist I, Milwaukee County, Van Grunsven, J., Fine, J.

Attorneys: For Appellant: Templin, Thor H., Milwaukee; For Respondent: Winter, Michael S., Milwaukee