Chicago and Cook County Tenant Law Firm

Excerpt from Press Release  ….

Chicago Tenant Law Firm, Aaron Krolik Law Office Certifies Class Action Defending Renters’ Security Deposit Rights Under The Chicago Landlord Tenant Ordinance

06-19-2025 10:42 PM CET | Business, Economy, Finances, Banking & Insurance

Press release from: Getnews / PR Agency: YES! PRESS

“In a huge city where tenants often feel powerless, Aaron Krolik Law Office, LLC is helping Chicago renters recover more than their security deposits – renters are reclaiming their voice,” said Aaron Krolik.

For Chicago and Cook County renters who often feel unheard and unsure of what to do next, the Aaron Krolik Law Office stands out in the vast world of law practices. Since 2004, this Chicago-based law firm has successfully helped hundreds of tenants navigate landlord-tenant disputes, lease breaks, and security deposit battles with compassion, creativity, and competence on the largest of scales.

Cook County, Chicago, Illinois – After graduating from Indiana University School of Law in 2003, Aaron Krolik has led one of the few Chicago law firms that represent tenants in class action disputes arising under the Chicago Landlord Tenant Ordinance (RLTO) and Cook County Residential Tenant Landlord Ordinance (RTLO).

Aaron Krolik’s law firm focuses on the strict liability provisions of the RLTO and RTLO, helping renters recover the statutory penalty equal to two (2) times the security deposit. Since 2004, attorney Aaron Krolik has served as class counsel in over thirty (30) class actions related to violations of tenants’ rights under the Chicago RLTO – mainly Section 5-12-080 (security deposits) and Section 5-12-170 (failure to attach the RLTO Summary to leases).

Passed in 1986 and amended numerous times since, the Chicago RLTO governs landlord-tenant disputes in the City of Chicago. The language under Section 5-12-080(f)(1) pertaining to security deposit violations mandates that, “if the landlord fails to comply with any provision of Section 5-12-080(a) – (e), the tenant shall be awarded damages in an amount equal to two times the security deposit plus interest at a rate determined in accordance with Section 5-12-081.”

The strict liability penalty of two (2) times the security deposit has been upheld by the highest court in Illinois. As written by the Illinois Supreme Court in Lawrence vs. Regent Realty Group in 2001, “The purpose of the law is to help protect the rights of tenants with respect to their security deposits…Nothing in section 5-12-080(f) requires proof that the landlord’s actions were knowing or willful. A landlord’s duty to comply with the statute is absolute. There are no exceptions,” said Aaron Krolik. The Lawrence Case has served as the key precedent for Aaron Krolik’s firm’s success.

Recently, in Beldon and Bond vs. Related Management Company L.P. & Lathrop Homes IA, L.P., Krolik’s firm represented a class of 270 tenants whose landlords failed to disclose in leases the address of the bank holding their security deposits in violation of RLTO Section 5-12-080(a)(3).

On January 8, 2025, First District Chancery Judge Sophia Hall approved a class settlement totaling over $540,000 in payments to Chicago renters. Under the agreement, most tenants received up to 90% of two times their security deposit, and Krolik’s firm along with Mark Silverman Law Office, LLC were awarded $200,000 in reasonable attorney’s fees and costs

Beyond the numbers, Krolik’s firm is widely known for its honesty, accessibility, and getting (awesome) results. A simple Google search shows his 4.9/5 star rating with over eighty (80) positive reviews stemming back years. When visiting his website, https://securitydepositlaw.com, interested parties will find full disclosure of the relevant landlord tenant laws including links to the primary resources of the Chicago RLTO and Cook County RTLO. “I often see tenants at their most frustrated and scared,” says Aaron Krolik. “They don’t know laws exist that actually protect them. So, we start by saying: we can help you because you do have rights!,” emphasized Aaron Krolik

One client, Dallas Lukwago had this to say about The Aaron Krolik Law Office’s expertise:

“Our landlord refused to give us our security deposit back and even though we knew our landlord was breaking the RLTO, we didn’t initially realize the ordinance also calls for the landlord to pay lawyer and court fees when you win in this situation. (We almost tried to sue on our own which would have been a nightmare!) We decided to Google lawyers, discovered Aaron, left a message, and he personally called us right back. We didn’t have to pay Aaron anything and he helped us easily and quickly get the full settlement from our landlord (plus recover his own fees). He knew everything about landlord/tenant law inside and out and made everything so easy. We just wish we would have called him sooner!”

“In a huge city where tenants often feel powerless, Aaron Krolik Law Office, LLC is helping Chicago renters recover more than their security deposits – renters are reclaiming their voice,” said Aaron Krolik.

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