On Tuesday, November 4, the Iowa Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in Jefferson, Iowa. The proceedings will take place in the Greene County High School auditorium, 1901 North Grimmell Road. The oral arguments are open to the public and will begin at 7 p.m.

The court will hear attorneys argue in the following case:

Alex Butter and Sydney Stodola v. Midwest Property Management, KMB Property Management, and Ruby Investments, case number 24-1752 from Johnson County District Court

Case summary: Iowa’s Residential Landlord and Tenant Law, Iowa Code chapter 562A, provides that tenants may not unreasonably withhold permission for landlords to enter their rental unit to show the unit to prospective tenants. Landlords may not abuse their right to show the unit and must give tenants 24 hours’ notice of the landlord’s intent to enter the unit at reasonable times. In this case, the tenants claim the landlord showed or attempted to show the rental unit an excessive  number of times and that the district court’s damages of one day’s rent per occurrence and half that for additional trespasses on a single day were too low and that the court improperly denied plaintiffs’ claim for attorney fees under the statute.

Attorney briefs for the case are posted on the Iowa Judicial Branch website at https://www.iowacourts.gov/iowa-courts/supreme-court/supreme-court-oral-argument-schedule/case/24-1752.

A public reception with the supreme court justices sponsored by the Greene County Bar Association will follow the oral arguments.

Note to Media: News media are invited to attend the oral arguments. Court rules apply regarding still cameras, video cameras, audio recording devices, and other electronic devices used during the oral arguments. Information on expanded media coverage is available on the Iowa Judicial Branch website at https://www.iowacourts.gov/newsroom/expanded-news-media-coverage/.

The Iowa Court Rules regarding cameras and other electronic devices in courtrooms are on the Iowa Legislature website at https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/ACO/CR/LINC/09-30-2022.chapter.25.pdf.

For more information about Iowa Supreme Court off-site oral argument community visits (Court on the Road), go to https://www.iowacourts.gov/iowa-courts/supreme-court/court-on-the-road.