01-2341

05/09

HOUSE BILL 1253

COMMITTEE: Judiciary

ANALYSIS

This bill limits the procedural circumstances in which a landlord may obtain a default judgment in a possessory action against a tenant.

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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.

Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]

Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.

01-2341

05/09

STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand One

Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:

1 New Paragraph; Actions Against Tenants; Writ; Service; Discovery; Record; Default; Limitations on Default Judgments. Amend RSA 540:13 by inserting after paragraph VII the following new paragraph:

VIII. Any landlord who obtains a default judgment in a possessory action as a result of an oral or written agreement with the tenant that includes the provision or understanding that the tenant will not file an appearance or appear in court shall be void, shall be deemed to have violated RSA 358-A:2, and shall be subject to the remedies set forth in RSA 540-A:4 and RSA 358-A:10. In any proceeding to enforce this section, there shall be a rebuttable presumption that the landlord willfully or knowingly committed an unfair and deceptive trade practice, in violation of RSA 358-A:2.

2 Effective Date. This act shall take effect January 1, 2003.