Affirmative litigation

The City Attorney’s Office has several teams that file civil lawsuits to protect San Francisco and its residents.

We prosecute property owners that break the law and put people’s health and safety at risk. Our code enforcement team works to keep neighborhoods safe and clean.

We handle problems like:

• Housing and other buildings with health and safety issues
• Public nuisances
• Unpermitted construction
• Illegal short-term rentals
• Affordable housing scams
• Illegal businesses

Report a property owner making buildings or neighborhoods unsafe.

Our complex and affirmative litigation team handles consumer protection cases. California's Unfair Competition Law bans dishonest or unfair business practices.

We use this law to take legal action on behalf of California consumers. San Francisco is one of a few City Attorney offices in the state that has this authority. We prosecute cases about:

• Unfair business practices
• Price gouging
• Scams and fraud
• Dishonest marketing

We have won major cases that:

• Held the opioid and lead paint industries accountable
• Protected young people from harmful tobacco products

Report a business harming consumers.

Since January 2025, we filed 15 lawsuits against the Federal Administration to protect San Francisco’s funding, defend the rights and safety of residents, and stand up for the rule of law.

Learn more about our lawsuits against the Federal Administration.

We help protect the rights of workers in San Francisco and California. Our worker protection team focuses on stopping businesses from taking advantage of workers.

We investigate and prosecute problems like:

• Wage theft
• Failure to provide employee benefits
• Worker misclassification
• Other harmful workplace actions

We advise and support the City’s Office of Labor Standards Enforcement (OLSE). OLSE makes sure businesses follow laws that protect workers. These laws include rules about:

• Minimum wage
• Paid sick leave
• Paid parental leave
• Healthcare benefits

Learn more about worker rights in San Francisco.

We pair Yale Law School students with our lawyers to assist on affirmative litigation.

San Francisco Affirmative Litigation Project (SFALP)

Learn about our partnership with Yale Law School and the SFALP.

Local Action, National Impact: A Practical Guide to Affirmative Litigation for Local Governments

Read a guide for local governments to create an affirmative litigation practice.