When Ms. J. moved into her apartment, she was met with mold, rodents, and signs of past sewage floods — not a livable home.
Instead of addressing the serious health hazards, her landlord tried to evict her for unpaid rent.
That’s when Ms. J. found help through the Atlanta Volunteer Lawyers Foundation. Through AVLF’s Saturday Lawyer Program, she was connected with pro bono attorney Jennifer Burbine of McGuireWoods, who stepped in to fight back. Jennifer filed a countersuit, arguing that the landlord had knowingly refused to make necessary repairs.
At the hearing in Fulton Magistrate Court, Jennifer presented video evidence of the sewage flooding. The judge ruled in Ms. J.’s favor, awarding her over $4,000 in damages plus attorney’s fees — and issued a five-page opinion holding that the landlord had intentionally neglected the repairs.
Ms. J.’s case could have ended very differently. Like many tenants facing eviction, she was up against a landlord likely expecting an easy win. But with a skilled advocate by her side, justice was served.