This webinar is brought to you by
Your Legal Rights: a website of legal
information for people in Ontario.
www.yourlegalrights.on.ca
Your Legal Rights is a project of CLEO and funded by the Law Foundation of
Ontario.
About our presenter…
Chris Woodall is a Community Legal
Worker and Paralegal with Niagara North
Community Legal Assistance (NNCLA), a
legal clinic based in St. Catharines. Chris
joined NNCLA after 25 years as a
newspaper editor and journalist.
Your Legal Rights is a project of CLEO and funded by the Law Foundation of
Ontario.
The “in and ouT” of
EVICTIONS
Your rights as a Tenant
Presented by –
Chris Woodall,
Paralegal/Community
Legal Worker
Brought to you by
Niagara North Community Legal Assistance
The Players:
Meet your
landlord:
(as seen by You)
Meet yourself:
(as seen by the landlord)
Brought to you by Niagara North Community Legal Assistance
Who is a
Tenant?
EVICTIONS
Covered by the Residential Tenancies Act?: YES or
NO
RTA, YES =
 Regular tenants
 Boarders
 “Motels/hotels”
 Social housing (partly)
 Care homes (partly)
 Cabins/mobile homes
RTA, NO =
 Live with Landlord
 Co-ops
 Vacationing public
 Student residence
 Live on the farm
 Occupant
Brought to you by Niagara North Community Legal Assistance
EVICTIONS
Who can evict/cancel
tenancy?
Landlord
Tenant
Both: Lease/rental agreement = contract
Both must provide proper notices
Don’t turn off heat, gas,
water, electricity to punish
Tenant for lack of rent
Don’t hold back rent to
punish landlord for fix-it
problems
Brought to you by Niagara North Community Legal Assistance
E
NOT
an RTA
Tenant
VICTIONS
Evicted at any time
Remedy
through Small
Claims Court
Co-ops:
follow
co-op bylaws,
processes
oRemember: Occupant is not a Tenant
oRemember: Social housing partly not RTA
Brought to you by Niagara North Community Legal Assistance
EVICTIONS
YES, an RTA Tenant
Landlord actions
Eviction ONLY through Landlord & Tenant
Board
 Starts with LTB Notice (the “red flag”)

Verbal “eviction” not any good
 Written “eviction” not any good
 Landlord can’t change locks, move your stuff

Brought to you by Niagara North Community Legal Assistance
Legal reasons for eviction:
o Didn’t pay/late pay rent
o Disturb neighbours
o Illegal business (usually drugrelated)
o Landlord/buyer wants to live
there
o Total renovation/destruction
needs Tenant out to complete
work
o Conversion to other use (condo,
Brought to you by Niagara North Community Legal Assistance
commercial)
“Popular” Notices
Common to all:
Check the termination date; Exact reasons only
N4 – non-payment of rent
Landlord can apply for eviction the day after termination date
Check the amount demanded: correct?
Got receipts?
Talk to the landlord: plan to catch up?
N5 – misbehaviour, over-crowding
General damage or negligence
Disturb neighbours (more than once)
Too many people (children not included)
Tenant has 7 days to correct (first time
only)
Corrected activity voids Notice
Brought to you by Niagara North Community Legal Assistance
Common to all:
Check termination date; Exact reasons only
N6 – illegal act or business
Specific to drug activity, or
Misrepresentation of Tenant income
Termination in 10 days
Landlord can apply for hearing right away
Landlord doesn’t need drug charge or conviction to act
N7 – end tenancy early
Similar to N5, but
Damage must be wilful
Tenant in same building as Landlord, and
Building has 3 or fewer units
Disturbances affect Landlord directly
Brought to you by Niagara North Community Legal Assistance
Common to all:
Check termination date; Exact reasons only
N12 – landlord, buyer own use
Or child/parent of Landlord/buyer to occupy
Affidavit of proposed occupant saying why
Tenant should demand presence of person at hearing
Bad faith by “occupant” voids application
N13 – conversion, demolition, large repairs/renos
Landlord needs building permit; needs vacant unit
Details of work, reasons needed
Termination date = 120 days, but 1 year if trailer park
Complex is 5+ units = Landlord to pay 3 months rent, or
provide another unit suitable to Tenant
Trailer park = Landlord to pay 1 year rent or $3,000
(BUT not if Landlord ordered by city to demolish/repair)
Brought to you by Niagara North Community Legal Assistance
Now you are served
Decision time: stay or go
STAY = FIGHT
GO (maybe fight)
o FIX the PROBLEM o Follow termination date on notice;
o Ignore notice, force o OR negotiate with LL when leave
LL to file at L&T,
o OR fight with Tenant application
$170 fee to you if
(eg maintenance, harassment)
you lose
o Gather evidence
o Call legal clinic for
advice
Brought to you by Niagara North Community Legal Assistance
At the Landlord & Tenant Board
Options:
Tenant Duty Counsel – last-minute advice
Mediation or “last chance romance”
– Board will support consents
OR …….
Brought to you by Niagara North Community Legal Assistance
The Hearing
o Not a “court” = flexibility, less formal
o Open to the public, parties/witnesses required to affirm to tell the
truth
o Applicant (Landlord) goes first, show evidence/witnesses
-- chance for Tenant to ask Landlord questions
o Respondent (Tenant) goes next, show evidence/witnesses
-- chance for Landlord to ask Tenant questions
o Board Member might step in to ask questions at any time
o Parties summarize their positions
o Board Member may decide right away or later
Brought to you by Niagara North Community Legal Assistance
What’s next?
Did the Tenant win?
Tenant not evicted, Or
Tenant requests termination at later date to assist with
move out
Award of damages = Small Claims Court money chase
Brought to you by Niagara North Community Legal Assistance
What’s next?
Did the Tenant lose?
Eviction Standard Order
Termination 10 days, or later with permission of
Board (s.83)
Pay up arrears before termination date = voids
eviction
But must pay application fee, too
Pay up arrears before Sheriff shows up = voids eviction
But must pay Sheriff fee, too
Brought to you by Niagara North Community Legal Assistance
What about your stuff?
Landlord can NOT seize Tenant stuff just because:
Tenant owes rent
Landlord has a dislike of Tenant
If Tenant “takes off”:
Stuff abandoned =
Landlord can sell, toss out, give away
Brought to you by Niagara North Community Legal Assistance
What about your stuff, 2
If properly evicted through LTB, or agreed termination
date
Take everything with you, or abandon your stuff
If Sheriff comes knocking
Locks changed, Tenant leaves asap, leaves stuff
Tenant has 72 hours to pick up stuff
Landlord must keep stuff safe, allow access
Landlord can throw out food, plants
Tenant may have other rights to recover stuff later
Landlord stored = pay storage fees to recover
Brought
to you bystuff
Niagara =
North
Community
Assistancearrears
Landlord
sold
can
go Legal
toward
Evicted by … life
If the Tenant dies
Landlord can get rid of anything unsafe (food, plants)
Landlord must keep items safe for 30 days for estate
recovery
After 30 days, Landlord can sell or throw out items
Brought to you by Niagara North Community Legal Assistance
EVICTIONS
HAPPY CASTLE
HUNTING!
Brought to you by
Niagara North Community Legal Assistance
This webinar was brought to you by
Your Legal Rights: A website of legal information
for people in Ontario
For more information visit Your Legal Rights at
www.yourlegalrights.on.ca
For more public legal information webinars visit:
www.yourlegalrights.on.ca/training