Mouzari

INTRODUCTION

Appellant Margaret Jiang appeals from the denial of her special motion to strike under the anti-SLAPP statute, Code of Civil Procedure section 425.16,1 filed in a landlord-tenant dispute. Respondents Azar Mouzari and Hassan Nafchi (the landlords) rented a guesthouse on their property to Jiang. The landlords sued Jiang, alleging that she engaged in various acts in breach of her lease agreement, including installing an unpermitted gas line, refusing to allow the landlords access to the property, and failing to pay her rent and utilities. The landlords also alleged that as a result of the improper gas line, the Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety (LADBS) issued a citation and required substantial repair work to be done, resulting in a loss of rental income for their property. In her special motion to strike, Jiang argued that the landlords’ claims arose in part from her communications with the LADBS, which resulted in the citation for the property. The trial court denied the motion, finding that any such communications would be protected activity, but that none of the claims in the complaint arose from Jiang’s communications. We agree with the trial court that…