Tenants’ Fight Over Lynch Family Properties Ends In Undisclosed Settlement

The eviction lawsuits brought against tenants of four derelict East Durham properties that Leonzo Lynch and his sister, former U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch, inherited from their father last year have been resolved, according to court records.

Robbie Breitweiser, the Legal Aid attorney who represented the tenants, tells the INDY the parties in the cases INDY wrote about in May “entered into private settlement agreements” over the summer.

The agreements “contain standard confidentiality and non-disparagement provisions,” Breitweiser says, “so neither I nor the tenants represented by Legal Aid can discuss the terms of the settlements or offer much comment beyond that.”

Leonzo Lynch sued to evict the tenants last summer for staying past the terms of leases they’d signed with his father, Rev. Lorenzo Lynch Sr. The elder Lynch died in January 2023 at age 90 and left 18 properties, including 12 in Durham, to his children.

In response to the lawsuits, the tenants, who allege that their homes had been left in disrepair for years, filed counterclaims seeking damages. In November a Durham County magistrate ruled that the tenants did deserve compensation, awarding $2,500 to one tenant and $10,000 to four others.

But they didn’t receive that money. Deborah Nash, the tenant awarded the lower amount, appealed her judgment to district court; Leonzo Lynch, as an executor of his father’s estate, also appealed the higher judgments.

At the time the INDY reported on the cases in May, tenants were squatting in the four properties while awaiting trial in district court. The most settlement money they’d been offered by Lynch’s attorneys at that point was $2,500 each, which the tenants said they declined.

Their trials were scheduled to begin in mid-July, but court records show that the tenants voluntarily dismissed their counterclaims between July 9 and 17. Lynch voluntarily dismissed all but one of the cases in early August. An automatic judgment was entered in the case of Cathy Panzarella due to her delay in vacating the property by the agreed-on date, records show. Lynch did not respond to the INDY’s request for comment.

“I’m glad the cases were resolved and that we were able to assist these tenants in reaching settlements that they found satisfactory,” Breitweiser says. “Navigating the summary ejectment process without legal advice or representation can put folks at a real disadvantage.”

As of September 17, the four properties were still standing. The windows of each house were boarded up and did not appear to be inhabited.

Without knowing their new addresses, the tenants have been difficult to reach. The INDY was able to connect with one of the five, Pamela Page, who said she and her two daughters have relocated within the Triangle. The family had previously been living in a house the Lynches owned on Bryant Street with sunken floors, faulty pipes, and no heating facilities.

“[Breitweiser] did an amazing job, especially with how eviction cases are going in North Carolina recently,” Page says. “Everything has progressed very well.”

The other four tenants were unable to be reached by phone.

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