If you have been searching for the Nightfall Group lawsuit, you have probably already come across articles that are vague, and are too confusing, or filled with generic information that could apply to any company. This blog is different. Everything here is based on real court documents, official government statements, and verified reporting — no guesswork, no filler.
Here is the full story of What Is the Nightfall Group Lawsuit? What they actually did, who sued them, what happened in court, and what it means for renters, landlords, and anyone who books luxury short-term rentals in Los Angeles.
Who Is the Nightfall Group?
The Nightfall Group is legally registered as the named Ultimate Host, LLC which is in a Beverly Hills-based company that marketed itself as a “high-end home hosting platform.” The idea they presented was easy to understand and really nice. They said people could stay in private homes, which they called villas in some of the best areas of Los Angeles. These areas included the Hollywood Hills, Beverly Hills and Bel-Air.
The homes they were talking about were in these neighborhoods. They were offering people a chance to stay in these private villas in Los Angeles specifically in places, like the Hollywood Hills, Beverly Hills and Bel-Air.
Their listings were polished, their branding was premium, and their prices matched. The company charged as much as $16,000 per night for certain properties. Add-on services reportedly included private chefs, bartenders, DJs, and professional poker dealers — everything someone needed to throw an unforgettable event.
The company was led by Mokhtar Jabli, its owner and principal operator. On paper, it looked like a legitimate luxury hospitality business. In practice, city authorities alleged something very different was happening.
What Was the Nightfall Group Actually Doing?
Here is where the case gets important to understand.
Under Los Angeles’ Short-Term Rental Ordinance (STR Ordinance), there are strict rules about who can rent out properties — rules that exist because of powers defined under expressed powers and enforced locally through Reserved Powers
- A person may only operate one short-term rental property at a time
- The property must be the operator’s primary residence — meaning they must live there for more than six months of the year
- All short-term rental operators must register with the LA Planning Department and include their registration number on every advertised listing
The Nightfall Group was doing none of this.
According to the city attorney’s complaint, Nightfall and Jabli were leasing hundreds of properties from individual homeowners under long-term rental agreements, then turning around and subletting those same properties as short-term luxury rentals. They were operating like an unlicensed hotel chain — using other people’s homes as their inventory.
This was a direct and repeated violation of the STR Ordinance on multiple levels: wrong number of properties, no primary residence requirement met, and no valid registration numbers on listings.
But it did not stop there.
The Party House Problem
Beyond the rental violations, the city alleged that Nightfall’s properties had become a serious public safety problem.
Within just a two-year period, the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) was called to Nightfall-associated properties more than 250 times — and that number only covered the Hollywood area. The complaints that drove those calls included:
- Excessive noise throughout the night
- Disruptive and dangerous behavior
- Obstruction of public rights of way
- Littering and vandalism
- Large unauthorized parties that spilled into surrounding neighborhoods
Los Angeles has a Party House Ordinance specifically designed to address this kind of problem. The city alleged that Nightfall was not just failing to prevent these situations — they were actively enabling them by renting properties to clients who came specifically to throw large events, with no meaningful oversight or enforcement of basic rules.
The Bel-Air Association even documented known Nightfall properties in their neighborhood, noting specific addresses in the Bel-Air Hills area that were repeatedly connected to disturbances.
In Miami Beach there was another case that involved The Nightfall Group LLC. They were part of a lawsuit about a party house. The owner and the person renting the house at 1776 Bay Drive got in trouble. This house is very expensive. They had to stop letting people rent the house for periods of time. They also had to pay a lot of money over $300,000 because they did not follow the city rules. There were least 45 times when they did something wrong.
The city told them to stop. The people at the house did not seem to care. At one point people at the house had a birthday party. They even made a cake with a copy of the citys warning on it. This shows how the people, at the house were not taking the citys warnings seriously at the time. The Nightfall Group LLC was involved in this case. The Nightfall Group LLC was part of the problem.
The Lawsuit: People of California vs. Ultimate Host LLC
On August 16, 2023, Los Angeles City Attorney Hydee Feldstein Soto filed a civil enforcement action against:
- Ultimate Host, LLC (doing business as The Nightfall Group)
- Mokhtar Jabli, individually as owner and operator
- Jungle Kerry, Inc., a California corporation
- 5554 Green Oak, LLC, a California limited liability company
- Kirill “Kirk” Ayzenberg, individually and as Trustee of the Gabriel Mark Trust
The case number is LASC Case #23STCV19069: The People of the State of California vs. Ultimate Host, LLC DBA The Nightfall Group, et al.
The city attorney’s office sought two main forms of relief. First, an injunction to stop Nightfall and the named property owners from continuing to violate city ordinances and creating public nuisances. Second, civil penalties of up to $2,500 for each violation of each ordinance — and given the scale of Nightfall’s operation across hundreds of properties over multiple years, those penalties could add up to an enormous sum.
Feldstein Soto — the first female City Attorney in Los Angeles history — framed the case as part of a broader enforcement push against illegal short-term rental operations that were taking housing off the market and creating dangerous conditions for LA residents.
The 2025 Settlements: What Actually Happened
Two years after the lawsuit was filed, the City Attorney’s office announced settlements with three of the defendants in September 2025.
Here is exactly what each settlement included:
Kirill “Kirk” Ayzenberg (individually and as Trustee of the Gabriel Mark Trust) Civil penalty: $215,000
5554 Green Oak, LLC Civil penalty: $45,000
Jungle Kerry, Inc. Civil penalty: $20,000
Total penalties from these three settlements: $280,000
In addition to the financial penalties, all three settling defendants were:
- Prohibited from engaging in short-term rental activity at any residential property in the City of Los Angeles in a manner that does not comply with the city’s Home-Sharing Ordinance
- Required to inform guests at any property they own or operate that loud or unruly parties are prohibited
The settlements were announced alongside a separate pre-litigation settlement with MC Pico Properties, LLC and Monem Corporation, the owner and manager of the Franklin Apartments at 6871 Franklin Avenue — a rent-stabilized building where at least 10 of the 30 units had allegedly been converted into an underground hotel operation since late 2020. That settlement included $150,000 in civil penalties and a requirement to return the units to the long-term rental market.
As part of the broader enforcement effort, at least 10 rent-stabilized apartments were returned to Los Angeles’ long-term housing stock — a meaningful win for housing advocates in a city with one of the worst affordability crises in the country.
Importantly, the official announcement noted that litigation with the remaining defendants — including Mokhtar Jabli and Ultimate Host, LLC themselves — is still pending as of the settlement announcement.
Why This Case Matters Beyond the Headlines
The Nightfall Group lawsuit is not just about one company. It sits at the intersection of three of Los Angeles’ most serious ongoing problems: the housing crisis, illegal short-term rentals, and neighbourhood safety.
The housing angle: When companies like Nightfall lease dozens or hundreds of apartments and homes under long-term contracts and then operate them as short-term rentals, those units disappear from the long-term housing market. In a city where affordable housing is desperately scarce, this directly harms residents who are looking for places to live. The LA Rent Stabilization Ordinance exists specifically to protect affordable housing stock — bypassing it to run an illegal hotel operation undercuts years of tenant protections.
The public safety angle: 250-plus police calls in two years from a single company’s properties is not a minor issue. Every one of those calls represents a real incident affecting real residents — people trying to sleep, families whose neighborhoods were disrupted, and in some cases, situations that escalated to genuine danger. The party house problem in Los Angeles has been a long-running issue, and this case was one of the city’s most aggressive enforcement actions against it.
The broader rental industry angle: The Nightfall Group was not operating in a vacuum. Similar cases have emerged across LA and other cities. A separate 2024 lawsuit by the same city attorney’s office targeted a group that allegedly earned over $4 million by leasing 30 properties under fraudulent names and renting them out illegally on Airbnb — sometimes lying about the property’s location until after booking. The city attorney’s office is clearly treating this as a pattern, not a series of isolated incidents.
What This Means If You Booked Through Nightfall Group
If you were a guest who booked a property through Nightfall Group and had a negative experience — whether that was a property that did not match its listing, unexpected fees, safety issues, or a booking that fell through — you may have options.
First, document everything you have. Any screenshots of listings, contracts, email confirmations, photos of the property, and records of any communications are important to preserve.
Second, if you paid by credit card, check your chargeback rights. Most card issuers allow you to dispute a charge for services not rendered or significantly misrepresented.
Third, you can file a complaint with the California Attorney General’s Office or the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) if you believe you were misled by advertising or deceptive business practices.
Fourth, consult with a consumer protection attorney. In California, strong consumer protection laws exist specifically for situations like this, and many attorneys offer free consultations.
What This Means If You Are a Landlord or Property Owner
The Nightfall Group lawsuit is a warning for property owners across Los Angeles.
If you lease your property to a tenant or company that then operates it as a short-term rental without authorization, you can potentially be named in a lawsuit — even if you had no knowledge of or direct involvement in the illegal activity. Three of the five defendants in this case were property owners or property-owning entities, not Nightfall itself.
LA’s STR Ordinance and Party House Ordinance apply to property owners, not just operators. Actively facilitating illegal short-term rental activity — even indirectly — can result in significant civil penalties.
If you are a landlord, make sure your lease agreements explicitly prohibit short-term subletting. If you discover a tenant is violating this, consult a real estate attorney about your options immediately.
What This Means for LA’s Short-Term Rental Rules Going Forward
The city attorney’s aggressive enforcement posture signals that LA is taking its short-term rental ordinance seriously in a way it has not always done in the past.
The rules remain in place and are actively enforced:
- One property at a time: You can only short-term rent one property, and it must be your primary residence.
- Registration required: All STR hosts must register with the LA Planning Department and display their registration number on all listings.
- RSO properties are off limits: Rent-stabilized units cannot be used for short-term rentals under any circumstances.
- Party houses have consequences: The Party House Ordinance gives the city tools to shut down and penalize properties that become repeat nuisance locations.
Hosts, tenants, and property managers who are unsure about the rules can find official information at the LA Home-Sharing Program page (planning.lacity.gov) and the LA Party House Ordinance (codelibrary.amlegal.com).
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the Nightfall Group still operating?
As of the September 2025 settlement announcement, litigation against Mokhtar Jabli and Ultimate Host, LLC (the main Nightfall Group entity) is still pending. The company’s current operational status has not been officially confirmed as resolved.
How much did Nightfall Group pay in the lawsuit?
Three defendants in the Nightfall-related case paid a combined $280,000 in civil penalties as part of the September 2025 settlements. Kirill Ayzenberg paid $215,000, 5554 Green Oak LLC paid $45,000, and Jungle Kerry Inc. paid $20,000. Litigation against the primary defendants continues.
What laws did the Nightfall Group violate?
The lawsuit alleged violations of the Los Angeles Short-Term Rental Ordinance, the Party House Ordinance, and by extension, the Rent Stabilization Ordinance — since some of the affected properties were rent-stabilized units that cannot legally be used for short-term rentals.
Was Nightfall Group only in Los Angeles?
No a different company called Nightfall Group LLC was involved in a problem with a party house in Miami Beach. This happened in 2022 and 2023. The people who owned the house at 1776 Bay Drive and the people who were renting it got in trouble. They had to pay, than $300,000 because they did something wrong. They were also told to stop renting the house to people for periods of time.
Can I sue Nightfall Group as an individual?
If you were a guest who experienced misrepresentation, unexpected charges, or harm, you may have grounds for a civil claim. Consult a consumer protection attorney in California for advice specific to your situation.
Similar legal battles in other industries, such as the OtterSec lawsuit highlight how enforcement actions are becoming more common across sectors.
Final Thoughts
The Nightfall Group lawsuit is really important for rules about short-term rentals in Los Angeles. It shows how some people use loopholes in the law to turn homes into a hotel chain without permission.This hurts neighborhoods with noise, safety issues and a lack of housing for residents.
The Nightfall Group case is an example of this problem. Short-term rentals, like this, can change a neighborhood’s character.The Nightfall Group lawsuit matters for Los Angeles.
The city recently announced that The Nightfall Group has to pay $280,000 to settle part of the lawsuit. This happened in September 2025. Even though this is a deal the lawsuit is not over yet. The city is still going after the main people involved. This is part of a larger plan to make sure people follow the rules.
This case is important for people who rent homes, landlords, guests and anyone who cares about housing and short-term policies in Los Angeles. It shows that the city is serious about enforcing the rules and that there are consequences for breaking them.
The Nightfall Group lawsuit is a case and The Nightfall Group lawsuit is something that people should pay attention to.
Case reference: #23STCV19069. The People of the State of California, vs. Ultimate Host, LLC DBA The Nightfall Group, et al. The information comes from announcements made by the LA City Attorneys Office in August 2023 and September 2025.
