Garcia v. Thong
New Mexico Supreme Court
895 P.2d 226 (1995)
Thong (defendant) paid Garcia (plaintiff) a $200 security deposit under their rental agreement; after he moved out, Garcia neither returned the deposit nor gave him a written itemization of deductions, and instead sued him for $1,763.05 in apartment damages. Thong counterclaimed for return of his deposit under a New Mexico statute requiring landlords to provide an itemized written statement of deductions and any remaining balance within 30 days, with forfeiture of withholding rights for noncompliance. The trial court sided with Garcia, ruling the statute didn't apply because her claimed damages exceeded the deposit.
Whether a statute requiring a landlord to provide an itemized written list of security-deposit deductions and any remaining balance applies even when the landlord's claimed damages exceed the deposit amount.