Arkansas Law of Damages Released

One of our attorneys, Christian H. Brill, and his father, Prof. Howard W. Brill recently published the 6th edition of Law of Damages, a comprehensive treatise on damages law in Arkansas. The volume is now available for purchase from Thomson Reuters.

Completely rewritten for the first time in more than a decade, the 6th edition of Law of Damages covers both the general principles of damages law in Arkansas and the damages relating to substantive principles of the law.

Part one treats damages generally, discussing damages in their many forms. Part two puts these varieties into perspective, relating them to substantive areas of the law.

The text also:

• Provides in-depth discussions of different types of damages, including punitive damages, compensatory damages, attorneys fees, interest, and costs
• Includes instruction on procedural and evidentiary aspects of proving and calculating damages
• Discusses application of statutes and case law regarding damages to specific fields of law

With over 4000 judicial decisions and numerous statutory and secondary references, the new edition comprehensively covers Arkansas law. It includes expanded sections on compensatory damages, apportionment of damages, attorney fees, contracts, real property, restitution and wrongful death.

Previous editions have been cited over 200 times by Arkansas state and federal courts. As it has for 30 years, the volume will continue to be an essential text for every Arkansas attorney’s book shelf, and will serve as a tool for bench and bar.

Brill, an Arkansas and Ohio attorney, has been practicing with Mallory Law Office, LLC since 2013.

Your New Sidewalk: Who Pays?

Ohio municipalities have the power to levy charges known as “special assessments” against properties. These assessments – which are distinct from property taxes – are used for a variety of purposes, including building sidewalks, removing snow, planting shade trees, and laying water pipes.

The process begins when a city, either by its own determination or a citizen petition, passes a resolution of necessity declaring the need for the improvement. The city must also determine the cost of the improvement, and the amount of each special assessment can be calculated in one of three ways:

1. By a percentage of the tax value of the property assessed;
2. In proportion to the benefits that may result from the improvement;
3. By the front foot of the property bounding and abutting upon the improvement.

According to Ohio law, special assessments must be limited to the special benefits conferred upon the property. The cost of the assessment cannot outweigh the benefit to the property. For example, when a proposed sidewalk would harm a property’s value by destroying shrubs and eliminating the home’s privacy, the special assessment was declared unlawful. (Martino v. City of Sidney, 140 Ohio App. 3d 340 (2000)).

If a property owner objects to the assessment, he must act quickly – an objection must be filed with the city clerk’s office within two weeks of notice of the resolution’s passage.  As illustrated by this recent example from Cleveland Heights, objections are heard by a equalization assessment board, which then makes a recommendation to the city council. After all objections are resolved, the city council passes a final resolution to move forward with the project.

The final assessment will be added to the real property tax bill.  In most cases, a special assessment may be paid at once or over a period of years – however, assessments not paid at once may be subject to interest.

DeWine: Counties Can't Charge for Online Access to Public Records

Earlier this month, Attorney General Mike DeWine issued an advisory opinion that counties may not charge fees to access online copies of public records.

In the opinion, DeWine’s office noted that Ohio’s public records law requires that public records be made available for inspection and that, when requested, copies of the records must be made available at cost.

The Attorney General’s office determined that providing access to online documents is equivalent to allowing the documents to be inspected. Therefore, since the records were only being made available for inspection and were not copies, the county was not permitted to charge a fee.

The opinion was prompted by the Monroe County Auditor’s Office, which had contracted with a private company to provide online access to public records. The county charged users a monthly $15 subscription fee to access the records.

For more, read the full opinion or a report from the Columbus Dispatch.

A Tenant's Unpaid Water Bill: Who's Responsible?

Imagine this scenario. A tenant suddenly vacates her apartment and moves out of state, leaving her water bill unpaid. Who is liable for the outstanding bill?

Under Ohio law, landlords can be held responsible for a tenant’s unpaid water bills. A municipality has the power to place a lien on the property and collect the payment through property taxes or bring a lawsuit against the property owner to recoup the money.

Unpaid bills can mean a large financial loss for the city, so government leaders have a high incentive to collect. For example, a 2013 investigation in Toledo found that the city was owed almost $24 million in unpaid water bills.  If cities seek to recover these missing funds from property owners, a landlord's credit and bottom line can both be affected.

As a result, landlords should take some proactive steps to protect themselves and reduce their liability for a tenant's delinquent bills, such as:

1. Perform credit checks on prospective tenants as part of a background check. This can eliminate potentially risky tenants who might be unable to pay a bill. 
2. Consider requiring a co-signer for some tenants, such as students with limited income. 
3. Rather than putting water service in the tenant's name, put the service in the landlord's name and charge additional rent to cover the cost of water. 
4. Modify the lease to make a continued tenancy contingent on the payment of water bills. If the tenant does not pay the water bills, landlords may be able to begin eviction proceedings. 
5. In order to monitor and prevent potential problems, ask the utility company to send the landlord a copy of the tenant’s monthly bills.
6. Educate and encourage tenants to check for leaks or prevent wasteful water practices in order to reduce the possibility of unusually high bills.