Judge sides with Airbnb in suit from US apartment landlord Airbnb may have just dodged a bullet. A Los Angeles federal judge has ruled against major American landlord Apartment Investment & Management Co in its lawsuit accusing Airbnb of helping tenants violate their lease agreements through unapproved short-term rentals. The judge determined that Airbnb was protected by the Communications Decency Act, which protects internet services against liability for the content posted by their users.(Engadget)
That's a very, very weak decision. Dodged a bullet is right. As a landlord myself I absolutely would not want random strangers staying in my unit without my knowledge or approval.
The question wasn't if that was OK or not. It was if the person liable for breaking the contract terms is the tenant. You know, the person who signed the contract. Or AirBnB which has no contract with you as the landlord at all. Your remedy when someone breaks a contract is with the entity you have the contract with, not some third party! I wouldn't say that's shaky legal theory at all. In fact I'd shudder to think of what would happen to commerce in the U.S. if party A and B could have a contract and when party B breaks the contract party A can sue party C for something related to a contract they were never a part of!