Ohio Code 5321.02 – Retaliatory action by landlord prohibited
(A) Subject to section 5321.03 of the Revised Code, a landlord may not retaliate against a tenant by increasing the tenant’s rent, decreasing services that are due to the tenant, or bringing or threatening to bring an action for possession of the tenant’s premises because:
Terms Used In Ohio Code 5321.02
- Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
- Landlord: means the owner, lessor, or sublessor of residential premises, the agent of the owner, lessor, or sublessor, or any person authorized by the owner, lessor, or sublessor to manage the premises or to receive rent from a tenant under a rental agreement. See Ohio Code 5321.01
- Rental agreement: means any agreement or lease, written or oral, which establishes or modifies the terms, conditions, rules, amount of rent charged or paid, or any other provisions concerning the use and occupancy of residential premises by one of the parties. See Ohio Code 5321.01
- Tenant: means a person entitled under a rental agreement to the use and occupancy of residential premises to the exclusion of others. See Ohio Code 5321.01
(1) The tenant has complained to an appropriate governmental agency of a violation of a building, housing, health, or safety code that is applicable to the premises, and the violation materially affects health and safety;
(2) The tenant has complained to the landlord of any violation of section 5321.04 of the Revised Code;
(3) The tenant joined with other tenants for the purpose of negotiating or dealing collectively with the landlord on any of the terms and conditions of a rental agreement.
(B) If a landlord acts in violation of division (A) of this section the tenant may:
(1) Use the retaliatory action of the landlord as a defense to an action by the landlord to recover possession of the premises;
(2) Recover possession of the premises; or
(3) Terminate the rental agreement.
In addition, the tenant may recover from the landlord any actual damages together with reasonable attorneys’ fees.
(C) Nothing in division (A) of this section shall prohibit a landlord from increasing the rent to reflect the cost of improvements installed by the landlord in or about the premises or to reflect an increase in other costs of operation of the premises.