Denise McGranahan summarized recent tenant-protection litigation handled or filed by the City Attorney's Office.

She described a triplex case filed in April 2024 in which tenants alleged disability discrimination, denial of mold testing, failure to register with rent control, harassment and other violations. McGranahan said the city and the tenants reached settlements in May 2025 for a total of $685,000; the city secured a stipulated judgment and an injunction that, among other things, barred the landlord from managing residential property in Santa Monica and required mold remediation and use of a third-party property manager.

McGranahan also reviewed City v. Nahid Jahannbin, described as an extended campaign of harassment resulting in a February 2025 settlement of roughly $450,000, injunctive relief, enhanced future penalties and mandatory landlord training. She said those defendants are restricted from managing properties in Santa Monica.

She noted an ongoing source-of-income discrimination matter involving two veterans seeking to use a VASH voucher; the city obtained a stipulated preliminary injunction to preserve the tenants' occupancy and the case is ongoing. McGranahan also described tenant-relocation enforcement, including a case seeking retroactive relocation payments from 2020 and other pending actions seeking roughly $16,000 per tenant in unpaid relocation payments.

Why it matters: the presentations illustrate enforcement tools available to the city, including injunctive relief, monetary settlements for tenants, and restrictions on property owners found to violate local laws.

What's next: Several cases remain pending; staff encouraged tenants to report harassment and noncompliance so the city can investigate and, where appropriate, litigate or mediate.