Housing Laws

If you changed your locks under this housing law, your landlord can refuse to give the abuser a new key. It doesn’t matter if the lease or rental agreement says s/he is entitled to one. Additionally, being excluded from the property as part of a protective order or no contact order doesn’t change any terms of the lease. So, an abuser is still responsible for any amount of rent s/he was responsible for before s/he was kicked out.¹

If you ended your lease early, the landlord could sue the abuser for money damages whether or not the abuser is listed on the lease or rental agreement. The lawsuit is due to the fact that the abuser “interfered” with the lease or rental agreement between you and your landlord, which caused the landlord to lose money.²

If you and the abuser are co-tenants, the landlord also has the right to:

• refuse to allow the abuser access to the rental property; and
• pursue all available legal remedies against the abuser, including lease termination, eviction, and suing for money damages.³

¹ Ky. Rev. Stat. § 383.300(4) (b), (4)(c)
² Ky. Rev. Stat. § 383.300(5)(d)
³ Ky. Rev. Stat. § 383.300(6)