State ex rel. Sprague v. City of Madison
Wisconsin Court of Appeals
555 N.W.2d 409 (Wis. Ct. App. 1996)
Hacklander-Ready and Rowe (defendants), tenants with their landlord's permission to sublease rooms in a four-bedroom house, initially accepted Sprague's (plaintiff) rental application and deposit but then refused to let her move in, telling her they were uncomfortable with her sexual orientation; Sprague filed a complaint with the Madison Equal Opportunity Commission alleging a violation of a city ordinance barring anyone with rental rights from denying housing based on sexual orientation, the commission ruled for Sprague, and the trial court affirmed. Hacklander-Ready and Rowe appealed.
Whether a tenant with the authority to lease other rooms in her house may refuse to lease an open room to someone on the basis of her sexual orientation.