Taylor v. Beaudry, 82 Mass. App. Ct. 105 (2012)

Citation: Taylor v. Beaudry, 82 Mass. App. Ct. 105 (2012)
Parent Document: Taylor v. Beaudry, 82 Mass. App. Ct. 105 (2012)
Jurisdiction: Massachusetts (state)
Effective Date: 2012-07-09
Original Source: https://www.courtlistener.com/opinion/6589791/taylor-v-beaudry/ ↗

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Nor need we address in any detail the dissent. Its essential quarrel is with our decision in Taylor I, where we declined to dismiss the award of damages in favor of the tenant and held that under the statute a tenant who does not receive his security *111deposit on time may seek treble damages even after receiving it late. The statute states that if a landlord does not return a security deposit within thirty days of the termination of tenancy, the aggrieved tenant is entitled to treble damages, costs, and attorney’s fees. See G. L. c. 186, § 15B(6)(e), (7).6 In Taylor I we concluded that by its “unambiguous” language the statute does not require landlords to return security deposits only when threatened with litigation. Taylor I, 75 Mass. App. Ct. at 416. Rather, we said that the statute requires landlords to follow its “clear” terms and return security deposits within thirty days of the termination of tenancy or risk suits like this one for treble damages. See ibid. The strictness of the security deposit statute’s terms is well known; indeed, almost thirty years ago, the Supreme Judicial Court concluded that even “[a] finding of good faith” provided no “basis for an exception to the multiple damages provision of G. L. c. 186, § 15B(7).” Mellor v. Berman, 390 Mass. 275, 283 (1983). Taylor I reflects a conclusion that the Legislature thought the deterrent effect of suits such as this was necessary to ensure all landlords return security deposits on time and in full compliance with the statute. The landlord in this case, for example, could have avoided damages by complying with the statute and returning the security deposit within thirty days — sufficient time in the Legislature’s judgment to examine a vacant apartment and determine if any repair is needed — either in full, or in part, accompanied by proper evidence of damage and of repair costs, if any. See G. L. c. 186, § 15B(4)(iii). The dissent’s conclusion that the result in this case “advances no remedial or deterrent policy” thus amounts to a quarrel with this court’s reading in Taylor I of the Legislature’s judgment.

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