Residents of residential health care facilities (RHCFs) licensed by the New Jersey Department of Health are not protected by the Just Cause for Eviction Act. However, such residents are entitled to at least 30 days advance written notice of a transfer or discharge from the facility. Additionally, except in an emergency, residents of RHCF’s may only be removed from the premises (1) for medical reasons; (2) for their welfare or the welfare of other residents; (3) for non-payment of rent; or (4) for repeated violations of the facility’s written rules and regulations. Residents may also be transferred or discharged if required by the department of health.
Elderly residents of nursing homes, residential healthcare facilities, boarding homes or any other such state-regulated facility offering health or health-related services to the institutionalized elderly, who experience abuse or exploitation from care providers, family members or strangers, should report these incidents to the Office of the Ombudsman for the Institutionalized Elderly at 1-877-582-6995.
6. How canI protect my legal rights?
The operator of a boarding house must make sure that a written notice of the rights of boarding home residents is given to every resident upon admittance to the boarding home and to each tenant already living there. The operator must also post the notice in a conspicuous public place in the boarding facility. The notice shall include the name, address and telephone numbers of the Office of the Ombudsman for the Institutionalized Elderly, county welfare agency and county office on aging.
Where their rights have been violated, residents can sue for damages, costs and attorney’s fees. Any boarding or rooming house resident whose rights are violated has the right to bring a lawsuit against any person committing such a violation. The action may be brought to enforce such rights and to recover actual and punitive damages for their violation. A tenant who wins any such lawsuit is also entitled to recover reasonable attorney’s fees and costs of the action.