People Ex Rel. Kennedy v. Beaumont Investment, Ltd.

This civil appeal follows judicial proceedings involving San Jose’s mobilehome rent control ordinance.

The Parties: Appellants are Beaumont Investments, Ltd., which owns Lamplighter Mobilehome Park, and San Jose Investments, Ltd., which owns Casa Del Lago Mobilehome Park (collectively, defendants). Respondent is the People of the State of California (plaintiff).

The Ordinance: The City of San Jose (the City) has enacted and administers a mobilehome rent control ordinance (the Ordinance). (San Jose Municipal Code, tit. 17, ch. 17.22.) The Ordinance seeks to protect mobilehome park residents from unreasonable rent increases. (§ 17.22.020.) Residents may forgo those protections by voluntarily entering long-term leases, which are exempt from rent control. (§ 17.22.370, subd. A.)

Summary of Proceedings Below: Plaintiff’s complaint for unfair business practices alleged that defendants violated the Ordinance by unlawfully forcing mobilehome park tenants to accept long-term leases in order to avoid rent control. Following a lengthy bench trial, the court concluded that defendants had violated the Ordinance and that those violations constituted unfair business practices. The…