Murray v. Dunn, 2024 Ohio 1639

James Murray owned a residential property in Maineville, Ohio, which he leased to Donald and Juliet Dunn from July 2013 to July 2015, with a month-to-month renewal clause afterward.
The lease specified rent, late fees, a security deposit, and an attorney fees provision for prevailing parties in litigation.
In 2015, the Dunns stopped paying rent due to financial difficulties but vacated the property in October 2015. Murray did not pursue eviction but sought unpaid rent and damages after they left.
Murray filed suit for breach of contract and damages in September 2022 after the Dunns did not pay past due rent or damages for property repair.
The trial court awarded Murray summary judgment for $29,041.41, including unpaid rent, late fees, property damage, and attorney fees. The Dunns appealed pro se.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Award of Damages for Property	Dunns damaged the property;	Denied causing damage; unsworn denials	Affirmed for Murray; Dunns failed to provide admissible evidence
Past Due Rent Calculation	Full amount owed under lease	Should be reduced by deposit & past payment, plus prior letter mentioned lower amount	Reversed and remanded; genuine issue whether Dunns entitled to credit
Attorney Fees	Fees supported by affidavits	Fees unreasonably high, lacked evidence of reasonableness	Reversed and remanded; insufficient evidence on reasonableness per legal standards

Harless v. Willis Day Warehousing Co., 54 Ohio St.2d 64 (summary judgment standard)
Zivich v. Mentor Soccer Club, Inc., 82 Ohio St.3d 367 (summary judgment criteria)
Dresher v. Burt, 75 Ohio St.3d 280 (movant’s and nonmovant’s burdens for summary judgment)
State ex rel. Corrigan v. Seminatore, 66 Ohio St.2d 459 (requirements for documents considered on summary judgment)
Hutchinson v. J.C. Penney Cas. Ins. Co., 17 Ohio St.3d 195 (factors for determining reasonableness of attorney fees)