Another federal judge rules CDC cannot enforce its eviction ban

Washington, D.C.; May 5, 2021: In yet another rebuke of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s nationwide eviction ban, a federal judge set aside the moratorium in Alabama Association of Realtors v. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. U.S. District Court Judge Dabney Friedrich ruled that the CDC cannot enforce its eviction ban against landlords nationwide. 

“Today’s decision vindicates what we’ve argued from the start: the CDC has absolutely no authority to enforce its eviction moratorium against anyone,” said Luke Wake, an attorney at Pacific Legal Foundation, which won an important early victory in Skyworks v. CDC. “This is the fifth court to rule against the CDC, and it’s clear that the agency doesn’t have the authority to implement an eviction moratorium. Today’s decision builds on our victory in Skyworks and affirms that landlords should be allowed to use the eviction process and not be compelled to provide housing for free.” 

Pacific Legal Foundation represents landlords in Ohio and Louisana who filed lawsuits against the CDC. Another case against the CDC, litigated by Texas Public Policy Foundation and Southeastern Legal Foundation, received a favorable ruling from a district court judge. A case litigated by the New Civil Liberties Alliance is on appeal at the 11th Circuit.