An owner is directly liable for a third party's discriminatory conduct it knew of and had power to correct, and evicting the victim is not a correction

xp.fair_housing.direct_liability_for_third_party_harassment_and_vicarious_liability · v1.0.0

A person is directly liable for their own conduct that results in a discriminatory housing practice; for failing to take prompt action to correct and end a discriminatory housing practice by their employee or agent where they knew or should have known of it; and for failing to take prompt action to correct and end a discriminatory housing practice by a THIRD PARTY where they knew or should have known of it and had the power to correct it. That third-party limb is what reaches resident-on-resident harassment: the power to act depends on the extent of the owner's control or other legal responsibility for that third party's conduct, which for a tenant is ordinarily the lease. The regulation then closes the obvious escape: prompt action to correct and end the practice may not include any action that penalises or harms the aggrieved person, such as eviction of the aggrieved person. Separately and regardless of knowledge, a person is vicariously liable for a discriminatory housing practice by their agent or employee, consistent with agency law -- so a management company's conduct is the owner's whether or not the owner knew.

Confidence

high

Effective from

2016-10-14

Last reviewed

2026-09-07