2025 -- S 0719
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LC002077
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S T A T E O F R H O D E I S L A N D
IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY
JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2025
____________
A N A C T
RELATING TO PROPERTY -- RESIDENTIAL LANDLORD AND TENANT ACT
Introduced By: Senators Bissaillon, Mack, Britto, Acosta, Gu, Murray, and Bell
Date Introduced: March 07, 2025
Referred To: Senate Housing & Municipal Government
It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:
SECTION 1. Section 34-18-37 of the General Laws in Chapter 34-18 entitled "Residential 1
Landlord and Tenant Act" is hereby amended to read as follows: 2
34-18-37. Termination of periodic tenancy. 3
(a) The landlord or the tenant may terminate a week-to-week tenancy by a written notice, 4
in a form substantially similar to that provided in § 34-18-56(c), delivered to the other at least ten 5
(10) days before the termination date specified in the notice. 6
(b) The landlord or the tenant may terminate a month-to-month tenancy or any periodic 7
tenancy for more than a month or less than a year by a written notice, in a form substantially similar 8
to that provided in § 34-18-56(c), delivered to the other at least thirty (30) sixty (60) days before 9
the date specified in the notice, or at least one hundred twenty (120) days before the date specified 10
in the notice for tenants aged sixty-two (62) years or older. 11
(c) The landlord or tenant may terminate a year-to-year tenancy by written notice, in a form 12
substantially similar to that provided in § 34-18-56(c), delivered to the other at least three (3) 13
months prior to the expiration of the occupation year. 14
SECTION 2. Section 34-18-56 of the General Laws in Chapter 34-18 entitled "Residential 15
Landlord and Tenant Act" is hereby amended to read as follows: 16
34-18-56. Notices and complaint forms. 17
(a) A notice in substantially the following language shall suffice for the purpose of giving 18
a tenant a five (5) day demand for payment of rent prior to commencement of an eviction pursuant 19
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to § 34-18-35: 1
FIVE-DAY DEMAND NOTICE FOR NONPAYMENT OF RENT 2
R.I.G.L. 34-18-35 3
Date of Mailing: _____________________ 4
TO: __________________________ 5
(tenant) 6
_____________________________ 7
_____________________________ 8
You are now more than fifteen days in arrears for some or all of the rent owed under your 9
rental agreement. State law requires that you be sent this Notice of arrearage. 10
Unless you make payment of all rent in arrears within five days of the date this notice was 11
mailed to you, an eviction action may be instituted in court against you. You can prevent the 12
eviction by paying all rent owing within five days of the mailing of this notice. 13
If you believe you have a legal reason for not paying this rent, you will be able to present 14
that defense at the eviction hearing. The rent in arrears as of the above date is $_____________. 15
_______________________________ 16
(signature) 17
_______________________________ 18
_______________________________ 19
(name and address of land-lord/owner) 20
I certify that I placed in regular U.S. mail, first class postage prepaid, a copy of this Notice, 21
addressed to the tenant, on the ________ day of ________________________, 20______. 22
______________________________ 23
(landlord or owner signature) 24
(b) A notice in substantially the following language shall suffice for the purpose of giving 25
a tenant a notice of noncompliance with the rental agreement pursuant to § 34-18-36: 26
NOTICE OF NONCOMPLIANCE 27
R.I.G.L. 34-18-36 28
Date of Mailing: ____________________ 29
TO: __________________________ 30
(tenant) 31
_____________________________ 32
_____________________________ 33
(address) 34
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You are in breach of your rental agreement, or of your legal duties under R.I.G.L. 34-18-1
24, because you: 2
________________________________________________________________________ 3
________________________________________________________________________ 4
________________________________________________________________________ 5
(provide details) 6
To remedy this situation you must do the following within twenty days of the date of 7
mailing of this Notice: 8
________________________________________________________________________ 9
________________________________________________________________________ 10
________________________________________________________________________ 11
If you do not remedy this situation within twenty days, your rental agreement will terminate 12
without further notice on __________ (date, which must be not less than twenty-one days from the 13
date of mailing of this Notice). (NOTE: Under the law you lose this right to remedy your 14
noncompliance if this is the second notice on the same subject within the past six months.) After 15
that date an eviction case may begin in court, and you may be served with a complaint. You will 16
have the right to a hearing and to present any defenses you believe you have. 17
__________________________________ 18
(signature) 19
__________________________________ 20
(name and address of land-lord/owner) 21
I certify that I placed in regular U.S. mail, first class postage prepaid, a copy of this Notice, 22
addressed to the tenant, on the ________ day of ________________________, 20______. 23
__________________________________ 24
(landlord or owner signature) 25
(c) A notice in substantially the following language shall suffice for the purpose of giving 26
a tenant notice of termination of tenancy pursuant to § 34-18-37: 27
NOTICE OF TERMINATION OF TENANCY 28
R.I.G.L. 34-18-37 29
Date of Mailing: _______________________ 30
TO: _________________________ 31
(tenant) 32
_____________________________ 33
_____________________________ 34
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(address) 1
You are hereby directed to vacate and remove your property and personal possessions from 2
the premises located at _______________________________________________________ 3
(address of premises) 4
and deliver control of the premises to the landlord/owner on the first day after the end of your 5
current rental period, namely ____________________, 20_____ rental period. 6
(insert date) 7
This notice is given for the purpose of terminating your tenancy. You must continue to pay 8
rent as it becomes due until the date indicated above. If you fail to pay that rent, a nonpayment 9
eviction action may be instituted against you. 10
If you fail to vacate the premises by the date specified, an eviction may be instituted against 11
you without further notice. If you believe you have a defense to this termination, you will be able 12
to raise that defense at the court hearing. 13
_______________________________ 14
(signature) 15
_______________________________ 16
_______________________________ 17
(name and address of land-lord/owner) 18
I certify that I placed in regular U.S. mail, first class postage prepaid, a copy of this Notice, 19
addressed to the tenant, on the ________ day of ________________________, 20______. 20
__________________________ 21
(landlord or owner signature) 22
(d) A complaint in substantially the following language shall suffice for the purpose of 23
commencing an eviction action for nonpayment of rent pursuant to § 34-18-35: 24
State of Rhode Island 25
_______________________, Sc. DISTRICT COURT 26
____________________________ _____________ DIVISION 27
PLAINTIFF DEFENDANT 28
____________________________ __________________________ 29
(Landlord's Name) (Tenant's Name) 30
V 31
__________________________________ ______________________________ 32
__________________________________ ______________________________ 33
__________________________________ ______________________________ 34
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(address) (address of rental premises) 1
COMPLAINT FOR EVICTION 2
FOR NONPAYMENT OF RENT 3
R.I.G.L. 34-18-35 4
1. Plaintiff is the owner/landlord of the rental premises listed above, in which the Defendant 5
Tenant currently resides. 6
2. Defendant is more than fifteen days in arrears in rental payments due to the plaintiff from 7
the defendant. The rent is $__________ per __________, and the amount in arrears is $________ 8
as of the __________ day of __________, 20____. 9
(month) 10
3. Plaintiff has served the five-day demand notice as required by law, and a copy of that 11
notice is attached to this complaint. The notice was mailed to the defendant on the __________ day 12
of ________, 20____. 13
4. Defendant has not paid the rent in arrears or offered the full amount in arrears, either 14
before or after the demand notice. Defendant remains in possession of the rental premises. 15
WHEREFORE, Plaintiff requests that this Court grant a judgment for possession of the 16
premises (eviction of the tenant) and for back rent in the amount of $______________, plus costs. 17
__________________________________________ 18
(Name & address of landlord/owner 19
or attorney for landlord) 20
__________________________________________ 21
Date complaint filed with clerk __________________ 22
(e) A complaint in substantially the following language shall suffice for the purpose of 23
commencing an eviction action for noncompliance with the rental agreement pursuant to § 34-18-24
36, or an eviction action for unlawfully holding over after expiration or termination of the tenancy 25
pursuant to § 34-18-38: 26
STATE OF RHODE ISLAND 27
_______________________, Sc. DISTRICT COURT 28
____________________________ _____________ DIVISION 29
PLAINTIFF DEFENDANT 30
____________________________ __________________________ 31
(Landlord's Name) (Tenant's Name) 32
V 33
__________________________________ _____________________________ 34
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__________________________________ _____________________________ 1
(address) (address of rental premises) 2
COMPLAINT FOR EVICTION 3
FOR REASON OTHER THAN 4
NONPAYMENT OF RENT 5
R.I.G.L. 34-18-36 6
R.I.G.L. 34-18-38 7
1. Plaintiff Landlord(s) owns the rental premises listed above, in which the Defendant 8
Tenant(s) resides. 9
2. CHECK ONE: 10
____ Defendant breached the tenant's obligations under the rented agreement or § 34-18-11
24 as set forth in the attached copy of the notice of noncompliance which was mailed to the 12
defendant. Defendant has not cured or remedied the breach. (Plaintiff must attach copy of required 13
notice of noncompliance.) 14
____ Defendant has remained in possession of the rented premises following the period set 15
forth in the attached notice of termination of tenancy which was mailed to defendant. (Plaintiff 16
must attach copy of required termination notice.) 17
____ Defendant breached the tenants' obligations under § 34-18-24(8), (9) or (10). 18
3. Plaintiff seeks judgment for possession of the premises plus judgment in the amount of 19
___________________________________________________for ________________________ 20
______________________________________________________________________________ 21
______________________________________________________________________________ 22
(explain basis for money claim) 23
Plaintiff seeks costs and fees (if applicable). 24
________________________________ 25
(Signature of Landlord/Owner or26
Attorney) 27
________________________________ 28
Date complaint filed with clerk __________ 29
(f) A complaint in substantially the following language, or in similar language, shall be 30
sufficient for use by landlords or by tenants to bring any claims or causes of action other than 31
eviction actions: 32
NOT FOR EVICTION 33
State of Rhode Island 34
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_______________________, Sc. DISTRICT COURT 1
____________________________ _____________ DIVISION 2
PLAINTIFF DEFENDANT 3
____________________________ __________________________ 4
(Name) (Name) 5
V 6
_______________________________ __________________________ 7
_______________________________ __________________________ 8
_______________________________ __________________________ 9
(address) (address of rental premises) 10
LANDLORD-TENANT COMPLAINT 11
(NOT FOR USE IN EVICTIONS) 12
1.Plaintiff is the ____ Tenant ____ Landlord/Owner of the rental premises at 13
______________________________________________________________________________. 14
(address of rental premises) 15
2. Defendant is the ____ Tenant ____ Landlord/Owner. 16
3. Plaintiff claims that defendant has breached the obligations of the rental agreement or 17
law in relation to this landlord-tenant relationship, as follows: 18
________________________________________________________________________ 19
________________________________________________________________________ 20
________________________________________________________________________ 21
(brief description of claim, attach extra sheet, if necessary) 22
4. Plaintiff seeks the following judgment or relief from the Court: 23
________________________________________________________________________ 24
________________________________________________________________________ 25
________________________________________________________________________ 26
Date Complaint Filed _______________________________ 27
With Clerk: __________ (Signature of plaintiff or plaintiff's 28
attorney) 29
_______________________________ 30
(address) 31
(g) The summons in an action for eviction for nonpayment of rent pursuant to § 34-18-35 32
shall be in substantially the following form: 33
STATE OF RHODE ISLAND 34
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DISTRICT COURT SUMMONS 1
EVICTION-NONPAYMENT OF RENT 2
DIVISION COUNTY CIVIL ACTION-FILE NO. 3
Address of Court: 4
____________________________ ______________________________ 5
____________________________ ______________________________ 6
____________________________ ______________________________ 7
(name & address of plaintiff landlord) (name & address of defendant-tenant) 8
TO THE TENANT: You are served with an eviction complaint for nonpayment of rent. If 9
you do nothing, you will lose by default and be evicted. If you claim any defense, you must 10
complete the enclosed ANSWER and file it with the Court Clerk at or before the hearing date. You 11
should also mail a copy to the landlord or the landlord's lawyer. Your hearing will be at 9:30 A.M. 12
on the hearing date, at the court address listed above. You should go to the hearing or you may lose 13
by default. If you think the case is "settled," you should still go to the hearing to make sure the 14
settlement is in the court record. 15
YOUR HEARING DATE IS: ________________________________. 16
(Proof of Service on next page) 17
________________________________________ 18
PROOF OF SERVICE 19
I hereby certify that I served a copy of the Complaint and Summons & Answer upon the 20
defendant(s) by delivering or leaving said papers in the following manner: 21
______ to the defendant personally; or 22
______ at his or her dwelling unit or usual place of abode at the address listed below with 23
a person of suitable age then residing therein; or 24
______ if none be found, by posting conspicuously on the door to the defendant's 25
dwelling unit. 26
ADDRESS OF DWELLING OR USUAL PLACE OF ABODE: 27
________________________________________________________________________ 28
NAME OF PERSON OF SUITABLE AGE: 29
________________________________________________________________________ 30
SERVICE DATE: ________________________________________________________ 31
DEPUTY SHERIFF/CONSTABLE: __________________________________________ 32
________________________________________________________________________ 33
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE 34
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I hereby certify that a copy of this Complaint and Summons was placed into regular U.S. 1
Mail, postage prepaid, on the __________________ day of ________________, 20____, addressed 2
to defendant at the following address: 3
________________________________________________. 4
_____________________________ 5
(Signature of ____________ Clerk) 6
(h) The summons in an action for eviction for noncompliance with the rental agreement 7
pursuant to § 34-18-36, or for unlawfully holding over after termination or expiration of tenancy 8
pursuant to § 34-18-38, shall be in substantially the following form: 9
State of Rhode Island 10
District Court Summons 11
EVICTION FOR REASON OTHER THAN NONPAYMENT OF RENT 12
DIVISION COUNTY CIVIL ACTION-FILE NO. 13
Address of Court: 14
_______________ ___________________ ______________________ 15
V 16
_______________________________ _______________________________ 17
_______________________________ _______________________________ 18
(name & address of plaintiff landlord) (name & address of defendant- tenant) 19
TO THE TENANT: You are served with an eviction complaint for noncompliance with 20
rental agreement (R.I.G.L. 34-18-36), or for unlawfully holding over after termination or expiration 21
of tenancy (R.I.G.L. 34-18-38). If you do nothing, you will lose by default and be evicted. If you 22
claim any defense, you must complete the enclosed ANSWER and file it with the Court Clerk 23
within TWENTY (20) days after you are served with this summons and complaint. You should also 24
mail a copy of the ANSWER to the landlord or the landlord's lawyer. If you file the enclosed 25
ANSWER, then you will receive another written notice telling you when the hearing will be. If you 26
have any questions, you may consult a lawyer. If you think the case is "settled" you should still file 27
the enclosed ANSWER or be sure that the written settlement is in the file at the Clerk's office. 28
(Proof of Service on next page) 29
________________________________________ 30
PROOF OF SERVICE 31
I hereby certify that I served a copy of the Complaint, Summons, and Answer form upon 32
the defendant(s) by delivering or leaving said papers in the following manner: 33
____ to the defendant personally 34
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____ at his/her dwelling unit or usual place of abode at the address listed below, with a 1
person of suitable age then residing therein 2
____ to an agent named below authorized by appointment or by law to receive service of 3
process 4
____ further notice as required by law was given as noted below 5
Address of dwelling or usual place of abode: 6
________________________________________________________________________ 7
Name of person of suitable age or of agent: 8
________________________________________________________________________ 9
Service Date: ____________________ 10
Deputy Sheriff/Constable (circle one): 11
__________________________ 12
(signature) 13
(i) The summons in an action relating to any claims by tenants, or by landlords other than 14
for eviction, shall be in substantially the following form: 15
State of Rhode Island 16
District Court Summons 17
______________ ____________________ _____________________________ 18
DIVISION COUNTY CIVIL ACTION-FILE NO. 19
_____________________________ __________________________ 20
PLAINTIFF PLAINTIFF'S ATTORNEY 21
__________________________ 22
ADDRESS 23
vs 24
_________________ ________________ 25
DEFENDANT 26
__________________________ 27
DEFENDANT'S ADDRESS 28
______________________________ __________________________ 29
TO THE ABOVE-NAMED DEFENDANT: 30
You are hereby summoned and required to serve upon the plaintiff's attorney, whose name 31
and address appears above, an answer to the complaint which is herewith served upon you. Your 32
answer must be made within 20 days after service of this summons, excluding the date of service. 33
The original must be filed in writing with this court. If you fail to do so, judgment by default will 34
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be taken against you for the relief demanded in the complaint. 1
____________ _________________________ 2
DATE CLERK 3
________________________ __________________________ 4
SEAL OF THE DISTRICT COURT DATE RECEIVED 5
________________________________________________________________________ 6
PROOF OF SERVICE 7
I hereby certify that on the date below I served a copy of this summons and a copy of the 8
complaint received herewith upon the above-named defendant by delivering or leaving said papers 9
in the following manner: 10
□ to the defendant personally. 11
□ at his dwelling house or usual place of abode at the address entered below, with a 12
person of suitable age and discretion then residing therewith. 13
□ to an agent named below authorized by appointment or by law to receive service 14
of process. 15
□ Further notice as required by statute was given as noted on the reverse side. 16
________________________________________________________________________ 17
Address of Dwelling or Usual Place of Abode 18
________________________________________________________________________ 19
Name of Authorized Agent or Person of Suitable Age 20
______________________________ __________________________ 21
Date Deputy Sheriff/Constable 22
_________________________ __________________________ 23
SERVICE FEE $____________ 24
(j) The blank answer served in eviction actions shall be in substantially the following form: 25
State of Rhode Island 26
_______________________, Sc. DISTRICT COURT 27
____________________________ _____________ DIVISION 28
PLAINTIFF DEFENDANT 29
____________________________ __________________________ 30
(Landlord's Name) (Tenant's Name) 31
V 32
__________________________________ __________________________ 33
__________________________________ __________________________ 34
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(address) (address of rental premises) 1
INSTRUCTIONS TO THE DEFENDANT 2
Listed below are several possible defenses to the eviction action your landlord has filed 3
against you. If one or more of these defenses apply to your case, check the appropriate box(es). If 4
space is provided, write in facts in support of that defense. Use additional paper if necessary. Some 5
of these defenses are technical, and there may be others not listed here. You may consult a lawyer 6
and seek representation before filling out this Answer. 7
TENANT'S ANSWER 8
The complaint against me is untrue or fails to state the following facts: 9
I offered rent, but my landlord refused it. I am still able and willing to pay the rent. 10
I have a defense for nonpayment because the landlord has failed to maintain the premises 11
in a fit and habitable condition. 12
My rent has not been paid, but I have a legally justifiable defense for not paying: 13
I have a written lease which does not expire until: 14
I have not received the required notice from the landlord before this complaint was served 15
on me. 16
The landlord is trying to evict me because I have exercised my legal rights by calling code 17
enforcement officials, or by taking the following protected action: 18
I have other defenses as follow: 19
WHEREFORE: Because of the defense(s) indicated above, I ask the court to grant a 20
judgment in my favor and not order me to be evicted. 21
COUNTERCLAIM 22
Instructions: If you believe you are entitled to be awarded damages or money for any reason 23
from your landlord, you may fill out the statement below: 24
I hereby sue my landlord for the amount of $_____________. 25
I believe I am entitled to receive an award of this amount because 26
________________________________________________________________________ 27
__________________________________ __________________________ 28
Name of Defendant (or attorney) Signature of Defendant 29
___________________________________ 30
Address 31
___________________________________ 32
Telephone number 33
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SECTION 3. This act shall take effect upon passage. 1
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LC002077
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EXPLANATION
BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL
OF
A N A C T
RELATING TO PROPERTY -- RESIDENTIAL LANDLORD AND TENANT ACT
***
This act would increase the notification time about rent increases and termination of 1
tenancy for month-to-month tenants. 2
This act would take effect upon passage. 3
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LC002077
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