AB 863 rewrites court procedures for eviction and legal notices—applying to all property, not just residential—imposing open-ended translation mandates on property owners. The bill opens the door to endless delay tactics, imposes legal risk on attorneys, and threatens the right to representation for property owners. The bill is currently in the Assembly Appropriations Committee. 

What the Bill Does: 

• Applies to Commercial Property: Key provisions—Summons, Pay Rent Notices, and Complaints—apply to all real property, dragging commercial leases into a housing-based policy with no justification. 

• Translation on Demand: Any individual “acting on behalf of the tenant” can trigger a translation obligation at any time—even in the middle of legal proceedings. 

• Threatens Legal Counsel: Attorneys would be forced to sign and submit legal filings in languages they don’t speak, risking their license or abandoning their client—leaving property owners without representation. 

• Retroactively Applies to Existing Leases: Leases negotiated years ago, without documentation of negotiation language, would still be subject to these vague mandates. 

Why Commercial Must Be Removed: 

• Commercial leases are negotiated business-to-business and carry no power imbalance requiring state intervention. 

• Commercial tenants typically use the property to generate income and spend a small share of revenue on rent. 

• The state exempted commercial from eviction moratoriums during COVID for this exact reason—AB 863 reverses that logic and punishes businesses unfairly. 

AB 863 is Unworkable as Written:

Without a full commercial carve-out, this billyet,again, ignores the fact the commercial leases are B2B contracts and the state should not intrude in business agreements.