Elke & Merchant LLP

Tom Elke has been an excellant resource for me. He has been straightforward, knowledgeable, and very generous with his time. I highly recommend him to any person having issues with their landlord.

Alex Merchant goes above and beyond to help those of us being unjustly evicted. He has a wealth of knowledge on the complex and ever changing issues surrounding tenants rights. I feel fortunate to have him as a resource in what is a very unfortunate situation in this beautiful city. Shame on the greedy landlords taking advantage of people just trying to survive.

Alex Merchant was a huge help to my family. The building where we have been renting our home for years sold and the new owners have started becoming aggressive in scaring tenants with threat of eviction. Alex took time to review attorney letters threatening action then calmly advised us of our rights and how to act to assert them without threat of eviction. Additionally, he advised us on where we could launch our own suit in small claims court if we were so inclined. Overall, Alex gave generously of his time and always responded promptly. I would highly recommend Alex Merchant.

Tom Elke is a super sharp, well informed, straight forward, no BS, effective tenant’s lawyer. He fully understands the law and your rights as a tenant, and most importantly he is not afraid to stand up for them. His letters are straight to the point and pack a lot of punch. He will take the time to listen to your suggestions and weave your requests in with his own expert advice. He will work hard to win your case. And then he’ll win it.
My colleague referred Tom Elke’s services (after meeting him at SF Tenants Union and then retaining him for her own case) and we are beyond grateful for her referral. I never write Unilocal reviews but was so impressed with Tom that I feel compelled to pay it forward and hopefully help someone else who is in need of professional assistance. If you are looking for a good tenant lawyer to represent you in San Francisco, call Tom. He is worth the money. I hope to never need his services again, but if I find myself in another complex situation, I will without a doubt retain him again.

My wife and I were very fortunate to have been referred to Alex Merchant and Tom Elke. We, as a couple, had to endure many traumatic events while living in an in-​law unit. Our landlord (s) on multiple occasions threatened to increase our rent to a ridiculous high amount all the while they neglected us with making any kinds of repair. We had been wrongfully evicted by our slumlord, and we were physically and emotionally harassed by them. We were beyond stressed out, and we were forced to live separately for a little while because we can’t afford a place in San Francisco. To make a long story short, both Alex Merchant and Tom Elke were ultra smart, expert in their field, and most importantly they truly care for the tenants who had been wronged by the landlords. They are the best tenant lawyers you can find. Alex and Tom are both genuine, compassionate, and they would fight to the very end to achieve the best possible results. They are not only patient, but also straight to the point. We would not have gotten the settlement we got without them. So, thank you very much to the both Tom and Alex. You have changed our lives for the better.

These guys know their stuff. I needed some advice on an issue and they were super helpful. Tom was able to make sense of what I was dealing with, help me understand the issues and then guide me to a good decision. I thought they did a great job and I would absolutely use them in the future.

Tom was kind enough to give me a 20 minute consultation last week about my rights regarding (a) breaking a lease for personal reasons, and (b) security deposits. My unit is not rent-​regulated, and my landlord of 4 years was trying to get me to pay a 20% increase in rent in order to go from an annual to a month-​to-​month lease. I was trying to understand if I would be better off paying the month-​to-​month increase or breaking the lease mid-​way through the year. Tom directed me to the relevant sections of the California civil code where I could read up on the law and gave me very clear guidance on steps I could take to protect my security deposit. He saved me so much time and anxiety about the process and gave me the information I needed to make a more informed decision. Importantly, he also understood the emotional components to this issue from both my side and the landlord’s, which is super important in this type of negotiation! He was a very strong communicator, and I would definitely consider hiring him in the future to represent me either as a landlord or a tenant.

Like many others here, I sought Alex’s help for a tenancy issue (although their firm does much more than that!).
He was easygoing, thorough, and surprisingly empathetic with us as we attempted to protect our rights and work things out without going to court. That’s exactly what happened.
We’ll seek his counsel first moving forward, and although you hope to never need a lawyer, it’s nice to know you’ve found a good one when shit happens.

Alex Merchant is the best San Francisco tenant lawyer in the Bay Area.
I consulted Alex on a client’s landlord-​tenant issue, and he was a wealth of knowledge. He was extremely generous with the information he provided and gave me great tips on which city, state and common laws to reference, even though he had limited time given his heavy case load. He also provided case names as references, which I found extremely helpful to my client’s case. Alex knew right away which causes of action would work for my client.
Not only is Alex super knowledgeable about landlord-​tenant laws and a great trial lawyer, he is a caring and compassionate person, super articulate, warm, honest, and will make the time for you and your case.

Alex Merchant is a Super Lawyer and a Super Human Being.
Elke and Merchant are the best San Francisco tenant lawyers hands down. I have consulted with Alex countless times regarding issues like rent control, wrongful eviction, Ellis act, tenants rights and much more.
Each time, Alex has not only provided fantastic legal advice, he has made me feel confident, understood and at ease.
I have referred several friends and colleagues in need of a San Francisco tenant lawyer, and they have all been extremely impressed with the caliber of representation they received. Elke and Merchant are fearless and not afraid to stand up for what’s right.

I was being evicted by my or was my best friend and was down to the last hour. I got Alex Merchants number from a friend and called him plus two other attorneys. Alex called me back while he was waiting for the train. I explained my case and he scheduled me in the next morning.
I arrived and met with Alex and associate Tom Elke. They went through my case and we filed that day for a jury trial. Tom was outstanding in court and of course he didn’t back down. Didn’t need a jury trail, still at the same address for now. Tom was very honest with me and always gave me both sides of what could happen.
Elke and Merchant are very professional and honest, I couldn’t ask for anything more. I felt very at ease with Tom and he has a great dry wit…

Unlike some tenant lawyers I called, Tom called back right away, patiently answered my questions, and didn’t interrupt me or make me feel rushed. And, he gave advice other lawyers wanted to charge me for. He told me things I didn’t want to hear, which I appreciate because I want to know how strong my owner move-​in eviction case.

I don’t typically write reviews but since I’ve had such a good experience, I felt compelled to let others know.
I met Tom Elke at the SF tenants union after having a long list of issues with my landlord. He was helpful there and gave me his card in case anything else came up. Unfortunately, there have been a lot more issues I have had to deal with but Tom has been extremely helpful through all of them.
Plain and simple, Tom is everything that I could ask for in an attorney and is great to work with. While I hope that my issues with my landlord diminish with time, I feel at ease because I know that whatever comes up, Tom will be on my side to handle whatever happens.

Alex Merchant. When you choose a tenants’ attorney, the most important thing is to make sure that he is a decent person.
Alex has his heart in the right place and is very passionate about helping people: he is ethical, honest, and competent. Alex cares! You always feel very important when you speak with Alex.
In addition to his great professional qualities Alex looks a little bit like Christopher Reeve and he is a superman

Alex Merchant helped me with my case, and he was fantastic!
I talked with 3 other attorneys before finding Alex, and it was obvious from our first conversation that he was head-​and-​shoulders above the rest. He had much more extensive knowledge about the details of local landlord/​tenant law than anyone else I talked with, and he was able to offer me the best strategy options.
On top of that, he’s a great guy with his heart in the right place, and was easy to work with. He gave me excellent advice and my case turned out better than I could have hoped for.
Highly recommended!

2 things you want when you hire an attorney.1 the best legal defense that money can buy. 2 you don’t loose your life savings over it. I got both. These guys are smart and won’t rip you off. My landlord tried to evict me using a well seasoned attorney. It could have gone to court with countless dollars spent in attorney fees, but instead Elke & Merchant managed to file for summary judgement and throw the whole thing out of court with the most reasonable fees. Another lawyer may have strung it out but instead they worked with integrity and did what was in my best interest both legally and financialy. I am still in my house 1 year after my landlord tried to evict me. If you want to win and also be treated fair by your attorney I definitely recommend these guys.

I met Tom Elke at the SF tenants union office getting counseling advice on a Costa Hawkins notice that was served to me. He was extremely helpful and knowledgeable about the in and outs and what my options were and how to best go about dealing with my particular situation was pretty complicated.
He made me feel very comfortable and confident about my case by providing me with all the details and typically known possible outcomes.
He was a pleasure to deal with and will certainly contact him again and highly recommend him.

Tom was great to work with. I had a situation that I needed a quick answer to and Tom was easy to get in touch with and easy to talk with. He was able to quickly understand and appreciate the nuance of what was going on, he was well informed about the law and the precedent, and was able to give me good advice. He will be the first guy I call if I ever have an issue again.

After i have read what others have wrote in the reviews here I must agree 100% with all of the positive and beneficial statements spoken of. My main attorney was Tom Elke, he was absolutely the right person for my situation.
Disclaimer, I will first state that I may write the wrong law lingo as I am not an attorney but I hope all will understand the gist of my review:
I was a tenant and the landlord served me with an Unlawful Detainer. The case dragged out more than 8 or so months, not from my side but the landlords side. Tom stuck with me through out all of it. He just understood, plain and simple, and was willing to fight for it. There was no BS or small fees here and there that i have heard others previously in my situation spoken of with other firms.
Since the landlord/​and their attorney I believe didn’t have their heads screwed on straight. They wasted time and dragged things out. During this process inevitably Tom was out of town for a small amount of time. So i had the privilege of working with Alex Merchant. Alex was with me during my deposition. And even though their side kept me in the room about 6 hours Alex stayed concentrated and focused on all of the oppositions questions aiding me throughout. I left exhausted, but completely pleased again by my choice of attorneys.
In the end, I left the whole case feeling great about the outcome. I did not stay in my apartment, but Tom got me a ‘great’ settlement $$$ that has helped me moved on from the annoyance/​stress of living under the old address. I now have a great new apartment and cannot thank Tom & Alex enough.
IF YOU ARE READING THIS, my final advice. CONTACT — HIRE — RETAIN the services of Elke and Merchant. They are both great to work with, speak the truth, and can lead you through the correct paths to take; along with helping you understand your options.

When I presented my situation to Tom Elke, he was straightforward about the risks, potential compensation, time and $$ spent, and also noted that the chances of the whole endeavor winding up to be a false economy was high.
Well, he did such a good job that when the time came for us to meet, I somewhat sheepishly had to inform him that I realized the situation wasn’t yet dire enough to warrant any sort of petition or other action.
Despite that, he was patient enough to answer a couple of questions before we parted, in spite of my difficult-​to-​decipher roundabout logic and nervous stammering I displayed as a result of my recent 180 on this issue.
This is the sign of a good lawyer, folks!
Should I need assistance on this in the future, he’s #1 on my list of counsel.
Thank You Tom!