Our nation faces a serious eviction epidemic. More than 2.3 million eviction actions are filed every year. That equates to about four per minute. The eviction crisis is a multi-faceted problem that will require a systemic, interdisciplinary approach. Studies have found “a complex combination of financial, social, relational and health factors contributes to the inability to pay rent.” The causes of the crisis include, among other things, poverty, increasing rents, decreasing wages, and vanishing affordable housing. Evictions not only result from poverty,6 they exacerbate poverty. Evictions are traumatic experiences, especially for children, that can devastate communities.

This urgent problem is not new. Many decades ago, scholars and tenant advocates sounded an alarm about the growing eviction problem. Fast-forward to 2020, and the eviction epidemic persists, as do the scathing criticisms of the legal process as an expedited “housed-to-homeless pipeline.” One study in Baltimore, for example, described the city’s “rent court” as a “broken system” that puts “long-standing tenant protections and basic housing standards second to landlords’ bottom line.”

Jurisdictions across the country are attacking the problem in different ways. Some have increased legal protections for tenants. Recognizing that legal rights are meaningless unless asserted in court, some cities now guarantee legal counsel for all tenants facing eviction. Others call for increased affordable housing or recognition of housing as a basic human right.

While these reforms are helpful, the ongoing eviction crisis should teach us that traditional legal approaches alone are not likely to make a meaningful difference. While some tenants have cognizable legal defenses, others do not. For a variety of reasons, they simply cannot afford to pay rent. In these cases, tenants may need something that a judge cannot give them: additional time, a payment plan, additional resources, or flexible options to keep them housed.

Some states have experimented with proactive eviction prevention programs that combine mediation and problem-solving processes with legal advice and other types of rental assistance. These programs connect tenants with available resources before they fall behind on their rent, and facilitate ongoing communication and conflict resolution between renters and property owners. In addition to pre-filing interventions, some courts offer mediation programs to help parties negotiate agreements to prevent eviction and address housing issues.

This article explores the potential benefits and challenges of using mediation and other conflict resolution approaches as part of comprehensive plan to disrupt the eviction crisis. Although not a panacea, early conflict interventions and mediation services may be valuable components of a multi-faceted eviction prevention strategy, especially when offered early—long before an eviction filing—and integrated with legal advice and other supportive services.