News Alert

The Trafficking Victims Protection Act was passed by congress in 2000 establishing criminal liability for forced labor and sex trafficking. Subsequently Congress passed the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act (TVPRA), which created an independent civil right of action for victims of trafficking crimes against their traffickers. The TVPRA was then expanded in 2008 to create a civil right of action against those who facilitate trafficking ventures in addition to the traffickers themselves. This provision was largely unused for the next 15 years resulting in less than 300 claims, mostly related to forced labor. [i]

Since then, we have seen a waive of sex trafficking litigation almost exclusively targeting the hotel franchise industry. These hotel claims have survived dismissal under the theory that the hotels in question are alleged to have knowingly benefitted from a sex trafficking venture. A.D. v. Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, Inc., 2020 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 250759 (E.D. Va. July 22, 2020). These hotel trafficking claims have taken aim at franchisors and franchisees alike.

However, in a recent relatively novel California TVPRA case, A.V. v. Avalonbay Communities Inc. D/B/A Avalon at Mission Bay, the plaintiff A.V. brings a claim against the apartment complexes that rented to her trafficker, not hotels or motels. A.V.’s complaint alleges that the apartment complexes were “instrumental, if not necessary, participants in a sex-trafficking venture.” A motion to dismiss A.V.’s complaint was recently filed by defendant South Beach Marina Apartments and is returnable in April.

For a plaintiff’s claim to survive under the TVPRA the plaintiff must establish that the defendant (1) knowingly benefitted (2) “from participation in a trafficking venture” (3) that it “knew or should have known it engaged in.” 18 U.S.C. § 1595(a).

Significantly, in the hotel context there are typically allegations of frequency and repeated interface with the hotel employees including through check-ins at the front desk and room cleanings, which are unique to hotel business models. In the A.V. matter, the claims of participation in the venture include allegations that apartment security and doormen were paid to keep the trafficking venture hidden and that maintenance staff witnessed commercial sex acts or exchange of payments with perpetrators.

As this litigation continues to expand and the case law evolves, premises owners should take action to minimize exposure, including through training and reporting procedures.

[i] Alexa Goldstein, Come, Stay, and Enjoy Your Day: Sex Trafficking and Franchisor Liability Under Section 1595 of the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act, Florida Law Review, Vol. 4 Iss. 2