Columbia Heights News - Washington, DC - Court Ruling In "95/5" Case

Councilmember Jim Graham

Councilmember Jim Graham has been serving Ward One for the DC Council since 1999. Ward One is the most diverse wards in the District of Columbia and it faces unique issues. Councilmember Graham has worked tirelessly as an advocate for the diverse interests of all the residents of Ward One.

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Court Ruling In "95/5" Case

Written by Columbia Heights News

Thursday, 23 March 2006

Councilmember Jim Graham - Press Release.

Washington, DC - The District of Columbia Court of Appeals ruled today that individual tenants in buildings sold in so-called "95/5" transactions cannot sue to challenge those transactions. The Court also ruled that 95/5 sales did not trigger the tenants right of first refusal.

The Tenant Opportunity to Purchase Act (TOPA) allows tenants the opportunity to buy their buildings before they are sold to a third party. In these so-called "95/5" transactions, the landlord would transfer most of the ownership interest (usually 95% or more) to a new owner and hold back the rest (usually 5% or less) for a year. This was done to avoid triggering the tenants' TOPA rights. Time after time, the District government determined that these transactions were not sales under the law. Today's court ruling reinforces these determinations.

"The first chance we got, we changed the law," said Councilmember Jim Graham (D-Ward One), chair of the Committee on Consumer and Regulatory Affairs. "Under the old law, tenants are very sadly out of luck. But we stopped new 95/5 transactions cold. The court has acknowledged this in its ruling today."

Councilmember Graham introduced a bill on January 18, 2005 to clarify the definition of "sale" and block future 95/5 transactions. This bill became law July 23, 2005.

The appeals court decision can be found online: DC Appeals.

New law covering 95/5 transactions: 95/5 Law.

Alan Heymann
Director, Constituent Services
Councilmember Jim Graham

http://www.grahamwone.com/

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