Also known as:self-help remedies · self help remedy · selfhelp remedy · self-help · self help
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
An extrajudicial remedy by which a party enforces a legal right without resort to judicial process. The remedy is available only when the controlling law expressly preserves it.
Sources & Authorities
How it applies
Common Examples
6
Landlord Attempts Lockout After Lease Ends
Stonehaven Properties leased a warehouse bay to Sentinel Security. After the lease terminated Sentinel remained in possession. State law supplied a speedy judicial remedy for recovering possession from holdover tenants but did not preserve any right of self-help. Stonehaven directed its employees to change the locks and immobilize Sentinel's vehicles. Because the statute supplied prompt judicial relief and did not authorize self-help, the lease clause purporting to permit lockouts was void and Stonehaven's actions were unlawful.
Injunction Versus Self-Help in Nuisance Dispute
Southland Foods operated a processing plant whose odors repeatedly invaded neighboring residential lots owned by Sasha Stone. Stone considered cutting off the plant's drainage pipe herself rather than suing. Under the factors that compare the adequacy of damages to injunctive relief, the availability and effects of self-help measures weighed against finding the damage remedy adequate, so Stone pursued an injunction instead of taking direct action.
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Uniform Acts
Restatements
Hornbooks
Dictionaries
Lease Clause Authorizing Self-Help Declared Void
Synergy Systems leased retail space from Sebastian Santos. The lease stated that Santos could change the locks if Synergy held over. State law provided a speedy judicial remedy for possession but did not preserve self-help. After the term ended Synergy remained in the premises. Santos attempted to enforce the lockout clause. The clause was unenforceable as contrary to public policy, forcing Santos to pursue the judicial remedy instead.
Landlord Uses Force to Remove Holdover Tenant
Santiago Sanchez leased an apartment to Scott Summers. After the lease terminated Summers continued to occupy the unit. State law permitted self-help only if accomplished without physical harm or damage to the tenant's property and within a reasonable time. Sanchez and two assistants entered the apartment while Summers was present, removed his belongings by force, and changed the locks. The method violated the requirements of reasonable care and absence of harm, rendering the self-help improper.
Public Figure Considers Media Rebuttal
Sydney Santos, a well-known business executive, was the subject of a magazine article she believed contained falsehoods. Rather than immediately filing suit she prepared a detailed written response and sought publication in the same outlet. The availability of this rebuttal option was treated as a limited form of self-help that bore on whether she qualified as a public figure for defamation purposes.
Time, Inc. v. Firestone424 U.S. 448 (1976)
Private Individual Weighs Rebuttal Option
Seth Shapiro, a local attorney not involved in public controversies, learned that a newsletter had published statements he regarded as defamatory. He considered issuing his own press release to correct the record before deciding whether to sue. The limited effectiveness of such self-help measures was noted as a factor distinguishing private individuals from public figures in defamation analysis.
Gertz v. Robert Welch, Inc.418 U.S. 323, 94 S. Ct. 2997, 41 L. Ed. 2d 789 (1974)
Common questions
Frequently Asked
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When does the availability of a speedy judicial remedy bar a landlord from using self-help against a holdover tenant?+
When state law supplies a prompt judicial remedy for recovering possession and does not expressly preserve self-help, neither the landlord nor an incoming tenant may resort to self-help. Any lease clause purporting to authorize self-help is void as against public policy.
What conditions must be satisfied before self-help recovery of leased property is lawful?+
Recovery must occur within a reasonable time after termination, without causing physical harm or the reasonable expectation of harm to the tenant or permitted occupants, and with reasonable care to avoid damage to the tenant's property. Any agreement waiving these requirements is void.
Does a lease clause authorizing self-help remain enforceable when state law provides a judicial remedy?+
No. When the controlling law supplies a speedy judicial remedy and does not preserve self-help, any contractual authorization of self-help is unenforceable as contrary to public policy.
How does the adequacy of damages versus self-help affect the choice between injunction and damages in tort cases?+
The relative adequacy of the damage remedy compared with injunctive relief takes into account the effects of resort to self-help measures along with the nature of the interests harmed, the cost of assessing damages, and related factors.
418 U.S. 323, 94 S. Ct. 2997, 41 L. Ed. 2d 789 (1974)Torts
…Indeed, the law of defamation is rooted in our experience that the truth rarely catches up with a lie. But the fact that the self-help remedy of rebuttal, standing alone, is inadequate to its task does not mean that it is irrelevant to our inquiry. [^maj-10]: Our caveat against strict liability is the prime target of MR. JUSTICE…