NH landlord/tenant law as it applies to service animals?

I have been living in a 3-unit apartment building for a year now. My downstairs neighbors have recently taken in another roommate, along with his pitbull. The landlord gave verbal permission for this person to live in the apartment with the pitbull, on a trial basis. The landlord then found out what type of dog it is and asked them to get rid of the dog. This new resident is not on the lease - the landlord considers him a visitor. When the landlord asked that the dog be removed, the tenants in that apartment told him that the dog is a service animal and by no means would they be getting rid of it. The landlord then told them that if they did not get rid of the dog, he would evict them. They then told him that because the dog is a service animal, they have the Americans with Disabilities Act on their side and the landlord would not be successful in removing them because of this. My question is: if the person with the disability is not and never was on the lease, will he be and his dog be allowed to stay? I don't understand how the Americans with Disabilities Act could apply if the person in question was never named on the lease as a resident of the dwelling. It remains to be seen whether this is an official service animal, therapy dog or whatever. The tenants have told the landlord to go ahead and serve them a notice to quit, because they seem to think they have the law on their side. The bottom line is that this guy (and his dog) are NOT on the lease, yet he seems to think that the fact that he has a service animal grants him the right to live with the dog anywhere, regardless of his status as leaseholder, visitor, whatever. What I want to know is if the service animal (which I assume is legitimate) will prevent the landlord from being able to evict the residents.

10 months ago - 3 answers