They Found Mold in My Apartment

I’m Katelyn Holub, an attorney focusing on personal injury law in northwest Indiana.

Welcome to Personal Injury Primer, where we break down the law into simple terms, provide legal tips, and discuss personal injury law topics.

Today’s question comes from a caller concerned about the discovery of mold in her apartment. She said she has been feeling sick and seeing doctors for several months, and she wanted to know her legal rights.

It is important to note that humanity has been dealing with mold for thousands of years. The Bible mentions mold in several passages, primarily in Leviticus 14, where it discusses the procedures for dealing with mold in houses.

But what does Indiana law say about suing a landlord when mold is discovered?

Under Indiana law, to prove a negligence case, a person has to establish three things: 1) a defendant owed him or her a duty of care, 2) said duty was breached, and 3) the person was injured as a result of the defendant’s breach of duty.

The first element of duty is controlled by statute in Indiana.

The Indiana legislature has enacted a statute that requires landlords to furnish tenants with safe premises. A landlord is required to deliver a rental premises to a tenant that is safe, clean, and in a habitable condition.

A court could reasonably hold that providing an apartment free from toxic mold is part of the requirement for landlords to maintain a safe, clean, and habitable condition.

But our analysis doesn’t end there.

A tenant must prove that the landlord breached its duty to provide a safe, clean, and habitable apartment.

An Indiana statute provides that a tenant may not sue in most situations unless the tenant first gives the landlord notice of the landlord’s noncompliance with its obligations under a lease, and that the landlord be given a reasonable amount of time to remedy the condition described in the tenant’s notice.

Moreover, the tenant may not prevent the landlord from accessing the rental premises to make repairs.

In short, it may be challenging to proceed with a case unless the landlord fails or refuses to remedy the condition described in a tenant’s notice.

If the tenant fails to provide the required notice, it may still be possible to hold the landlord liable if it can be shown that the landlord was aware of the mold in the apartment but did not disclose that information.

This may not be easy to establish again.

Lastly, let’s examine the third element that someone suing would need to prove — that they were injured because the landlord failed to provide a safe, clean, and habitable apartment. This would require evidence from a medical doctor stating what the mold exposure caused and the precise medical conditions identified in a lawsuit.

I hope you found this information helpful. If you are a victim of someone’s carelessness, substandard medical care, product defect, work injury, or another personal injury, please call (219) 736-9700 with your questions. You can also learn more about us by visiting our website at DavidHolubLaw.com – while there, make sure you request a copy of our book “Fighting for Truth.”