The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) filed a class action complaint with the National Housing Law Project (NHLP) and civil rights attorney William Patrick Quigley on behalf of a tenant in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, against a justice of the peace in East Baton Rouge Parish. The complaint states that Louisiana law creates an unconstitutional financial incentive for justices of the peace who conduct eviction cases to rule against tenants and in favor of landlords.
In Louisiana, justices of the peace officiate weddings and handle small claims disputes as well as eviction proceedings. Many justices of the peace are not lawyers and did not attend law school.
State law allows justices of the peace to supplement their salaries and court operating costs through filing and other fees in eviction proceedings. The money that justices of the peace earn from filing and other fees pays for staff salaries, utilities, office supplies and rent as well as most of their salaries. The suit alleges that this creates a financial conflict of interest that violates tenants’ constitutional right to a fair and impartial judge.
Furthermore, according to Louisiana law, tenants evicted by justices of the peace, instead of city or district court judges, have less due process and fewer appellate rights. Unlike tenants facing eviction before a city or district court, these tenants have no right to appeal an eviction brought before a justice of the peace. The suit alleges this is an unequal system of justice that leads to more evictions and violates the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment.
The complaint was filed in the U.S. District Court Middle District of Louisiana.
