Health & Safety Receiverships

Jones Mayer is one of California’s leading law firms experienced in handling health and safety receiverships as authorized by the California Health & Safety Code. Receiverships for severely substandard properties are quickly emerging as the future of code enforcement across the state.

Jones Mayer offers a unique mix of services not found at any other law firm. Our City Receivership Division routinely provides legal representation to public agencies in obtaining a court-appointed receiver to abate substandard conditions and bring properties into full legal compliance. We initiate the litigation for the agency and manage all aspects of the case in court. Alternatively, if the public agency wishes to use its own legal counsel, cities and counties routinely nominate us to serve as the court-appointed receiver through our Receivership Division. Our broad experience allows us to efficiently manage resources and obtain desirable results for problem properties.

Local governments can use receiverships to rapidly eliminate substandard conditions and violations of law, such as health and safety code, building code, municipal code, and other violations that pose a life-safety risk to any occupants and the community. Upon nomination by the local enforcement agency, a court-appointed neutral, the receiver, takes temporary possession and control of a property. The receiver is charged with bringing that property into compliance with state and local codes, all at the expense of the property and its owner. Orders to vacate come from the supervising court, and property clean-outs, rehabilitation, demolition, or sale are supervised by the court and performed by the receiver.

The benefits of health and safety receiverships include:

• The ability to present an emergency application and obtain the appointment of a Receiver immediately, if applicable.
• Recovery of attorney’s fees and costs to the agency, including enforcement/staff costs directly from the property and its owner.
• Coordinating resources and obtaining funding to perform required work and relocate occupants if applicable.
• Visibly communicates dramatic efforts to rehabilitate neighborhoods.

Sample cases qualifying for consideration of this remedy include:

• Hoarder properties.
• Owners/occupants unable or unwilling to comply with abatement orders.
• Police and fire referrals.
• Illegal construction or occupation.
• Multi-unit/apartment complex cases.
• Fire-damaged properties.
• Slumlord/deceased owner and/or trust-owned properties.
• Bank-owned/abandoned properties.