Seattle Sued Over Law Banning Landlords From Conducting Criminal Background Checks
2nd May 2018
On Tuesday, the Pacific Legal Foundation (PLF), a public interest law firm, filed suit on behalf of several small-time landlords who are concerned about the financial and personal safety risks of being unable to screen tenants for past wrongdoing.
The PLF’s complaint claims that the Seattle law violates landlords’ due process rights under the 14th Amendment by imposing an “unreasonable, overbroad, and unduly burdensome” regulation. The complaint also says the law runs afoul of the First Amendment by denying landlords access to publicly available records.