Wolfberg v. Hunter

The Hunters (defendants) reported a persistent mouse infestation to their landlord Wolfberg (plaintiff) that went unresolved for five months; after two months of continuing to pay rent despite the problem, they withheld rent for the next three months until the mice were addressed. Wolfberg sued for the unpaid rent, and the Hunters counterclaimed for breach of the implied warranty of habitability; the trial court found for the Hunters but excluded from their damages the three months they had withheld rent, and both sides appealed.

Whether, if a tenant withholds rent because a residence is uninhabitable, the tenant may still recover damages for the landlord's breach of the implied warranty of habitability.