Delaware Retaliation Law: What Counts & the Presumption Window (2026)

What counts as retaliation, and the window where the law presumes it

At a glance

• Protection window: 90 days
• Governing authority: 25 Del. C. § 5516(b)

Who this covers — and who it does not

This page covers landlord retaliation in Delaware — what a landlord may not do after you exercise a protected right.

It does not cover commercial leases, or conduct outside the protected window described below.

What the law prohibits

25 Del. C. § 5516 — 禁止房东因租客投诉住房违规、政府 filed 违规通知、组织租客组织、或行使法律权利，而报复性驱逐/涨租/减服务。

受保护行为 4 类（5516(b)(1)-(4)）：①善意投诉健康安全违规；②政府 filed 违规通知；③组织/担任租客组织领导；④行使任何法律权利或救济。

25 Del. C. § 5516(b) ↗

The protection window

For 90 days after a protected act, certain landlord actions are presumed retaliatory.

5516(c)：租客投诉后 **90 天**内的报复行为 → 可反驳推定，举证责任转房东。

25 Del. C. § 5516(c) ↗

Protected activities

What a landlord may not do

Burden of proof

90 天内报复行为 → 可反驳推定，举证责任转房东；房东可援引 5516(d) 的 12 个法定抗辩理由。

25 Del. C. § 5516(c)-(d) ↗

Remedies

Exemptions and limits

5516(d)：12 个房东抗辩理由（房东自住、改造拆除、停租≥6月、租客过错、全额合规、善意售房、先前通知、无法补救、税费/成本上涨、资本改善、同类租金等）。

25 Del. C. § 5516(d) ↗

Sources and how to verify them

Every figure on this page comes from the official text or a state court opinion, not from a summary. The table below lists each provision used and the date it was last checked.

Statute	Last verified	Source
25 Del. C. § 5516(b)	2026-10-16	official text ↗
25 Del. C. § 5516(c)	2026-10-16	official text ↗
25 Del. C. § 5516(b)(1)-(2)	2026-10-16	official text ↗
25 Del. C. § 5516(b)(3)-(4)	2026-10-16	official text ↗
25 Del. C. § 5516(c)-(d)	2026-10-16	official text ↗
25 Del. C. § 5516(e)	2026-10-16	official text ↗
25 Del. C. § 5516(d)	2026-10-16	official text ↗

Where the official text and a secondary summary disagree, this page follows the official text and says so. Where a provision admits of more than one reading, that is flagged rather than smoothed over.

When you need a lawyer instead of a tool

A self-help guide is the right starting point for understanding your position. Get legal help if:

• You have received an eviction notice — the timeline is now court-driven
• The dispute involves discrimination, unsafe conditions or retaliation
• Your landlord has filed anything in court already
• You are unsure whether a local ordinance changes the state rule

Local legal aid organisations and tenant unions offer free help for qualifying cases. They are independent of this site — we list them because they are the right place to go, not because they link here.

More Delaware guides

Delaware Security Deposit Return · Delaware Security Deposit Rules · Delaware Eviction Process · Delaware Rent Increase Rules · Delaware Repairs & Habitability

→ All Delaware tenant rights topics

Common questions