Can tenants in a building whose owner is being sued by the Health Department for gross violations of CA. health code ,be evicted

For such a complicated matter an attorney is always advised. You were at a disadvantage trying to defend the matter yourself, and indeed probably were not able to best take advantage of the pending HD violations matter.

You need a lawyer. Perhaps check the LA Legal Aid.

http://www.lafla.org/contact.php

Check with a California lawyer in your locale to discuss more of the details.

Good luck to you.

God bless.

NOTE: This answer is made available by the out-of-state lawyer for educational purposes only. By using or participating in this site you understand that there is no attorney client privilege between you and the attorney responding. This site should not be used as a substitute for competent legal advice from a licensed professional attorney that practices in the subject practice discipline and with whom you have an attorney client relationship along with all the privileges that relationship provides. The law changes frequently and varies from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. The information and materials provided are general in nature, and may not apply to a specific factual or legal circumstance described in the question.

Dear tenant,

Of course, anyone can be sued for eviction for any reason. Likely, you had a very good defense in your case, but having a good defense is not enough--you need to know how to present evidence at trial to prove your defense. I know it's too late for you, but if you have any friends in this position, Los Angeles Legal Aid Foundation and Bet Tzedek represent tenants for free (they only take certain cases) and the Eviction Defense Network and BASTA represent tenants on a "low-bono" or sliding scale basis.

You and your neighbors may have a case against your landlord, notwithstanding the fact that you were evicted. You should contact a competent tenants' rights attorney.