Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in California

We have been renting townhouse located in Sherman Oaks for 5 years. All that time, we have been working from the home. We have interior design and construction company. Three years ago, I began having symptoms such as shortness of breath, �dry hacking cough, throat irritation, itchy skin, itchy eyes, throat scratchy, dry skin and terrible headaches on a daily basis. I went to the doctor to report these symptoms along with debilitating fatigue. Concerned that I was having heart problems, an echocardiogram was done showing a normal heart. Pulmonary Function Tests test also showing good result. There were doctor visits year after the year. I was prescibed Advair, Singulair, Albuterol, Seretide, Fluticasone and Proair..

Every year the symptoms kept increasing and for the last 10 months, I was coughing continuously. It constantly plague by attacks of breathlessness. I have to make inhalation of up to 6 times a day. Also I had �severe muscle cramping throughout my body and extreme lower back pain. I had a hard time concentrating on and retaining information on the more complicated mathmatical processes.

Three months ago,at night I was taken to an emergency medical center with the shortness of breath attack where I was discharged antibiotics, corticosteroids, and inhaled. The pain of the muscle cramping in all parts of my body was so severe. I was referred to the disease of ear, nose and throat specialist (Dr.Oded Gilad) for possible nose and throat infection. I underwent medical examination, endoscopy and x-ray but the doctor found nothing just suggested that perhaps this is an allergie.

�Now, I have finished treatment with corticosteroids and antibiotics. I keep taking asthma and allergy medication and have same symptoms. I'm suffering emotionally, physically, and financially.

The doctor advised me to check premises for the presence of mold, as well as to test the air, and remove all carpeting in the house.�

I �believe that my illness is building related .

I've noticed that after the street cleaners use leaf blowers, the symptoms dramatically worsen.Workers use the leaf blower for the cleaning of dusty driveway and sidewalk around the building. Leaf blowers are regularly used in my block and pollutes the air on a weekly basis. It exhausts dust that is caused by the airflow which is unacceptable. Please consider all the different substances on front lawn: lead, mold, pollen, dry dead plant particulate, and so forth. �I have to clean dust in my apartment at the day they use dust blowers and the day after. The amount of dust that collects in the apartment is ridiculous. I can write my name in the dust on my windowsill. I clean carpets every week by steamer and after cleaning the water is full of mud and has a black color.

According to the ordinance that city of Los Angeles that passed in 1998, the use of leaf blowers is prohibited within 500 feet of a personal residence.

We asked our building owner stop to use leaf blowers, test indoor air quality and remove the carpets from all rooms. �So he called same day to company that clean and asked not to clean under our windows, but they keep doing it and huge amount of dust which rises in the air settles on windows, floor, wall and furniture. About the carpet he says that he can only �replace old carpet with new one or we can replace with woodfloor and pay the difference.

�We did the test and it says that we have very high level of :

1. "Opaque Particles" These particles may originate from inorganic or organic sources in nature. Commonly these particles include but are not limited to dust & debris, paint, combustions,emission, ash, silica and others.These particulates are significant from a health/allergy point of view especially in case of respiratory disorder.",

2. Cladosporium species ( Spores / Fungal Elements)

-the most common fungi found in the air, soil,foodstuffs, paint, textiles, bird feathers, and on plants. The hyphae, conidiophores, and conidia are pigmented olivaceous-brown (dematiaceous). Rarely, they can be an opportunist human pathogen causing chromoblastomycosis. They can cause a hypersensitivity pneumonitis known as "hot tub lung disease" and an immediate-type hypersensitivity-type I (IgE-mediated) extrinsic asthma.

�Also has been found Pollen Species and other particles that "may influence health and hygienic condition of dwellers" .

My son who has lived and worked with us for these years also has same symptoms of cough, headache, itchy skin and attacks of breathlessness.

My husband is very healthy man but few month ago he began having symptoms such as headache, itchy skin, snuffles and extreme lower back pain. Month ago he got severe vertigo ( dizziness, blurred vision and balance disorder). He went to the doctor to report these symptoms along with debilitating fatigue. Now he's on the treatment, he can not walk and work at that time.

I have all the video proof and A huge pile of paper work with proofs from the doctor, letters to lardlord, etc...

I'm looking for a lawyer that is willing to work on this case on commision and sue the landlord for a lot of money, because this is something that me and my family are going to live with these symptoms for the rest of our lives. This is a winning case because there is a law that prohibits the kind of things that there doing.


Asked on 8/10/10, 11:52 am

2 Answers from Attorneys

Daniel Bakondi The Law Office of Daniel Bakondi

You may email me your contact info to discuss.

Best,

Daniel Bakondi, Esq.

[email protected]

415-450-0424

The Law Office of Daniel Bakondi, APLC

870 Market Street, Suite 1161

San Francisco CA 94102

http://www.danielbakondi.com

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Answered on 8/15/10, 7:45 pm

Be careful of Mr.. Bakondi. He is only a few years out of law school and yet claims to be an expert in dozens of areas of the law and to have personally handled numerous huge cases of all kinds. Get references and follow up on them if you are thinking of using him. You would probably be better off contacting your local bar association referral service and finding a local attorney anyway.

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Answered on 8/18/10, 8:05 pm


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