Domestic Violence Protections — HRS §§ 521-80 to -81

The rule

Since 2015, the L-T Code gives a tenant who is a domestic violence victim — or whose immediate family member is — three specific protections:

Early termination of a rental agreement of one year or less, without liability
The right to require the landlord to change the locks
Court-ordered vacate procedures when the person who committed the violence is ordered out

Early termination notice — the mechanics

Notice must be given at least 14 days before the early termination date
The termination date can be no more than 104 days after the most recent act of domestic violence
Notice must include proof of domestic violence — e.g., a TRO order, a police report filed with any state agency, or a conviction
Notice must include a written statement by the victim that the person who committed the violence knows where the victim resides
Sole tenant: the agreement ends on the date in the 14-day notice; the victim pays rent through that date
Multiple tenants: the victim's release does not end the other tenants' agreement — provided they can pay the rent, as determined by the landlord
If the remaining tenants can't demonstrate ability to pay, the landlord may terminate the whole agreement with at least 14 days' notice

Security deposit

Landlord must refund the security deposit as of the date in the 14-day notice
The victim is entitled to a prorated share
The landlord may not disclose any information about the domestic violence issue — unless the victim consents in a signed statement, it's required in a lawsuit, or disclosure is required by law

Landlord's remedy against the perpetrator

The landlord may recover actual damages from the person who committed the domestic violence
If that person is a co-tenant, the landlord may hold them liable for all future rent — or terminate the rental agreement with at least 5 days' prior written notice

Change of locks

The landlord must change the locks within 3 days of the victim's request
Exception: if the person who committed the violence is a co-tenant, the lock is not changed unless a court order requires that person to vacate — and the order has been furnished to the landlord

⚠ Practice pointer — read this twice

Know the clock before you act. The 14-day notice, the 104-day window from the most recent act, the 3-day lock change, the 5-day co-tenant termination — each runs on its own timeline, and missing one can cost your client their remedy.

And guard the victim's privacy like the statute does: no disclosure of the domestic violence information without a signed consent, a lawsuit requirement, or a legal mandate. A well-meaning comment to the wrong person is a violation.

Fourteen days' notice, proof attached, deposit refunded, locks changed in three. Run the checklist, protect the victim.