Town of Mansfield authorizes settlement in landlord lawsuit

The Town of Mansfield voted unanimously to approve a settlement in a landlord lawsuit and authorized the acting town manager to execute the agreement after the council returned from an executive session.

A council member told colleagues the lawsuit arose from a landlord challenge to the town’s overcrowding enforcement policy, saying some claims had already been dismissed by the court while others remained pending. The council member described the agreement as "a very advantageous settlement to the town," saying it will include revisions to enforcement policies and payment of roughly $12,500 in attorneys' fees, which the council member said will most likely be covered by the town's insurance; the member also said the town's deductible has already been exhausted.

The council first moved to add the settlement item to the published agenda before taking the authorization vote. After the motion to authorize the settlement was seconded and discussed, the council voted and approved the measure unanimously; the transcript records the motion as passing unanimously but does not include a roll-call tally of individual votes.

The authorization directs the acting town manager to execute the settlement as approved to form by the town’s legal counsel. The council then moved to adjourn and closed the meeting.

The meeting transcript uses two similar spellings for the cited case ("Trilion" and "Triglion"); the record does not provide a definitive case citation. Details on the exact enforcement-policy revisions were not specified in the public discussion.