Residential rental properties: language requirements.

Assembly Member Kalra's legislation mandates language accessibility requirements for eviction-related legal documents in California, requiring landlords to provide translated versions of complaints and summonses in specific circumstances. Under the proposed changes, landlords must furnish these documents in Spanish, Chinese, Tagalog, Vietnamese, or Korean when lease negotiations occurred in one of these languages or when previously notified that the tenant's primary language is among them.

The bill modifies civil procedure requirements by establishing that failure to provide required translations constitutes an affirmative defense in unlawful detainer actions. Counties retain authority to mandate additional language requirements through local ordinances, provided translated summons forms are available on the California Courts website. The measure includes a five-day amendment period for landlords to attach missing required documents to their complaints.

These provisions apply specifically to residential tenancy cases, adding new procedural steps to the existing framework for unlawful detainer actions. The requirements encompass both the initial summons, which must include specific warnings and instructions, and the formal complaint detailing the basis for eviction. Courts must verify compliance with these language requirements before proceeding with eviction cases.