A. A landlord shall not issue or cause to be issued a notice of termination of tenancy in order to circumvent the application of this chapter. For the purposes of this section, a notice of termination of tenancy shall include any notice, oral or written, given to a tenant for the purpose of having the tenant vacate an apartment unit. The failure of a landlord to withdraw any such notice of termination of tenancy after the landlord has been given written notice by the City Manager or his designee or by the City Attorney that such notice of termination of tenancy is in violation of the provisions of this chapter shall constitute prima facie evidence of the intent of the landlord to circumvent the application of this chapter and shall be unlawful.
B. It shall be unlawful for a landlord to evict, or to attempt to evict, a tenant or to regain, or attempt to regain, the possession of an apartment unit upon a pretext that the landlord desires occupancy for himself or herself or some relative in order to circumvent the application of this chapter. A tenant in such circumstances may refuse to deliver possession of the apartment unit and may establish the landlord's subterfuge as a defense in any action brought by the landlord to recover the possession of the apartment unit. Additionally, in the event a violation of this section is discovered by the tenant after the possession of an apartment unit has been regained by the landlord, such landlord shall be liable to the dispossessed tenant in a civil action for treble the amount of the rent which would have been payable by the tenant had the tenant not been dispossessed, and for the entire period of the dispossession, not exceeding six (6) months; and in any such action the tenant shall also be entitled to payment by the landlord of the tenant's reasonable attorney fees and costs as determined by the court. (1962 Code § 11-7.03)