Assistance Animals: What Housing Providers Need to Know

Event date: 
February 19, 2016 | 1:00 PM (EST)

Webinar Duration: 1 Hour, including 15 minutes for Q&A
 


 

This live program will focus on the legal, regulatory, and practical issues presented by resident requests for assistance animals as accommodations to disabilities under the Fair Housing Act.

The legal and regulatory schemes addressing these issues are complex, and this program will provide much-needed guidance to multifamily housing owners and managers for complying with their obligations to accommodate people with disabilities who require assistance animals. 

This 1-Hour Webinar Will Cover:

  • Qualifying Individuals and Required Exceptions to No-Pet Policies
  • Definition of “Assistance Animals”
  • Breed and Species Restrictions and Application of “Pet Rules”
  • Liability; Potential Damages and Penalties
  • Policies and Procedures for Housing Providers
  • Considering, Evaluating and Verifying Requests for Assistance Animals
  • Responding to Requests
  • Employee Communication and Training

This webinar is specially geared for Multifamily Property Professionals in conventional, government-assisted, senior, and community association housing, including:

  • Property Owners
  • Property Managers
  • Property Developers
  • Public Housing Authorities
  • Compliance Professionals
  • Attorneys

Please Note: The information contained in this webinar—Assistance Animals:  What Housing Providers Need to Know—is provided by Vendome Real Estate Media and is intended for educational and informational purposes only, and should not be construed as legal advice or as an offer to perform legal services on any subject matter.

About the Speakers: 

Theresa L. Kitay
Attorney at Law
Marina del Rey, California

For over 25 years, Theresa L. Kitay has provided general consultation and defense representation on civil rights issues in the real estate industry.  She spent the early part of her career as a trial attorney with the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), prosecuting fair housing cases throughout the Southeastern United States and the Caribbean. 

Since leaving government service, Terry has continued to practice exclusively in the field of fair housing and accessibility. Her expertise includes disability and accessibility issues for real estate, including reasonable accommodations and design and construction requirements. She represents owners, developers, managers, housing authorities, non-profit providers, architects, and engineers throughout the country. 

Terry is a frequent contributor on these and other housing civil rights issues to national publications, and a member of the Board of Advisors of Vendome Real Estate Media’s Fair Housing Coach. She has testified before the United States House of Representatives on accessibility issues. 

Terry is an honors graduate of both Smith College and the Emory University School of Law, and practiced law in Atlanta for seventeen years, before relocating to Los Angeles in 2004.  She is a member of both the California and Georgia state bars.