PRESIDING JUDGE ERIC C. TAYLOR ANNOUNCES NEW ONLINE DISPUTE RESOLUTION PROGRAM COMING SOON FOR PARTIES WITH UNLAWFUL DETAINER CASES AS CERTAIN COVID-19-RELATED EVICTION PROTECTIONS EXPIRE SEPTEMBER 30
Unlawful Detainer Online Dispute Resolution with Free Mediation Services to Launch Next Month; Housing, Legal Resources Available Now on New Webpage
Presiding Judge Eric C. Taylor today announced the Court will expand its Online Dispute Resolution (ODR) program to Unlawful Detainer (UD) cases to enable parties to resolve their eviction cases online for free without Court involvement. Unlawful Detainer Online Dispute Resolution (UD ODR) is scheduled to launch next month to give litigants the option to conveniently and efficiently resolve eviction cases. With the launch of this new remote assistance option, the Court is again expanding its free online options to help parties access justice without having to enter a courthouse.
To assist parties as certain COVID-19-related eviction protections expire this week, the Court’s new UD ODR webpage offers an extensive list of valuable housing and legal resources provided by the state, county, and local governments as well as contact information for legal aid agencies. Registration for UD ODR will go live when the program is ready for launch. Watch for important updates about this first-of-its-kind UD ODR program in California. “The Court recognizes the tremendous stress experienced by people impacted by COVID-19-related economic hardships,” Presiding Judge Taylor said. “The UD ODR webpage will provide information on available resources now. When launched next month, UD ODR will encourage the resolution of eviction disputes before they are heard in one of our courtrooms. Through negotiation and free mediation, tenants and landlords will have the option of settling these cases online for free without delay.”
The UD ODR webpage can be accessed here, with a list of resources available under the “COVID-Related Eviction Resources – Available Now” tab at the top of the page. Resources include links to the State of California’s ‘Housing is Key’ website, contact numbers for legal aid agencies in Los Angeles County, and other resources offered by the Los Angeles County Department of Consumer and Business Affairs (DCBA) and the
Los Angeles Housing Department, including housing counselor assistance for both tenants and landlords. The page also is linked from the Court’s homepage, www.lacourt.org.
UD ODR is voluntary and modeled after the Court’s Small Claims ODR program, launched earlier this year, and ODR for parenting plan agreements, launched in 2019. With UD ODR, the Court will extend to both self-represented and represented UD litigants the same opportunity to fully resolve their cases online before a hearing. UD ODR is designed to facilitate online negotiations in ways that recognize the complexities of UD settlement, including those caused by the pandemic. Free mediation services will be provided upon request by DCBA and the Center for Conflict Resolution (CCR).
More information on UD ODR, including details on the Court’s partnership with DCBA and CCR to provide free mediation services, will be announced next month.
The full court notice can be viewed here. |
