Landlord Retaliates Against Housing Rights Activists

Moratorium NOW! coalition is a grassroots activist organization in Detroit that focuses on economic justice issues such as foreclosures, evictions, and utility shutoffs. In 2022 the organization began to call public attention to what it perceived to be extremely poor conditions in low-income housing owned by local landlord Gaston Munoz, whose company has been cited for city violations. Munoz responded by suing Moratorium NOW! and its members, accusing them of defamation and interfering with his business interests. This is a classic case of what’s known as a “Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation,” or SLAPP, where a lawsuit is used to retaliate against people who speak out on issues of public concern and deter others from joining them for fear of also being sued. In March 2023 the ACLU of Michigan stepped up to represent Moratorium NOW! and its members to fight back against this abuse of the legal system. Our defense included filing counterclaims against the landlord seeking damages. In August 2024 we reached a favorable settlement agreement that did not require Moratorium NOW! or its members to pay any money or relinquish their First Amendment rights, and in fact required the landlord to pay our clients. (Munoz Realty v. Flores; ACLU Attorneys Syeda Davidson, Mark P. Fancher, and Dan Korobkin; Co-counsel Kathryn James, Julie Hurwitz, Bill Goodman, and Holland Locklear of the National Lawyers Guild; defense attorney Allison Kriger of LaRene & Kriger PLC.)