§ 871-15. Court Action.

The obligations imposed upon landlords and tenants of this chapter, including the duty of the landlord to maintain the rental unit in substantial compliance with the Cincinnati - Ohio Basic Building Code, the Cincinnati Fire Prevention Code, and the Regulations of the Board of Health confer in the other party to a rental agreement a concomitant right to enforce those obligations. A landlord or tenant may bring an action for mandatory or injunctive relief to secure compliance with these obligations.

A landlord or tenant may recover damages, including damages for injury to person or property, for the breach of any obligation imposed by this chapter.

A tenant may seek the appoint of a receiver for the building in which he resides only in any pending action where the tenant and landlord are parties. The tenant shall show that a city official has ordered the landlord to make repairs to the building, that such order has not been complied with within the time allotted for compliance, and that there is a pattern of neglect of the building on the part of the landlord. The tenant shall also show that the orders are for the correction of conditions which are in violation of the Cincinnati - Ohio Basic Building Code, the Cincinnati Fire Prevention Code, the Regulations of the Board of Health, or related laws and ordinances. Finally the tenant shall show that the conditions of the building impose a serious threat to the life, health or safety of the occupants.

Upon appointment, a receiver shall collect all rents for the building due the landlord for a period not to exceed six months and use the sums collected for the purpose of correcting violations of the Cincinnati - Ohio Basic Building Code or for such other purposes authorized by the court. The obligation of a tenant to pay rent shall be discharged upon payment of rent due to the receiver. A building may not be placed under a receivership more than once in a period of 365 days to run from the time of appointment.

A receiver may be allowed out of the rents collected a fee for services. The fee allowed shall be as determined reasonable by the court but shall not exceed 20 percent of the amount actually and reasonably expended for repairs.

If a receiver is appointed at the request of the tenant, the tenant may be allowed as part of the costs of the action expenses and a reasonable attorney's fee for services relating to the appointment and service of the receiver.

(C.M.C. 871-15; ordained as C.M.C. 871-17 by Ord. No. 314-1973, eff. Aug. 4, 1973; amended and renumbered to C.M.C. 871-15 by Ord. No. 39-1975, eff. Feb. 4, 1975; a. Ord. No. 462-1984, eff. Nov. 9, 1984)