the landlord for damages.

Sharon Williams, who says she was illegally evicted from her rented home by election hopeful Rodney Smith, is to start legal proceedings for damages she claims were incurred when she returned home to find her belongings on the doorstep.

Ms Williams is assessing the loss to her property and says she expects the claim to run into thousands of dollars.

Last week, she found all her possessions had been left outside of the Spring Hill, Warwick home she had rented from Mr. Smith for $2,100 a month.

Ms Williams, her husband and five-month-old baby had to leave the property and if it hadn't been for friends putting them up, they would have had to stay at a guest house.

The XL Insurance employee claims she was evicted illegally, as Mr. Smith operated without a court order.

"We are going to take legal action against him for the damages we have suffered,'' she said yesterday.

"If he gets away with it, then other landlords will follow his lead and do similar things.'' The property developer will also be dealt with by the PLP management, who expect to announce his fate on Monday, after investigations by party officials into his actions.

Ms Williams, who had been a tenant of Mr. Smith for five-and-a-half years, said the problems started when a cottage she is having built went behind schedule.

The family had expected to move out at the end of August but asked for a month's extension when it became obvious the Paget home would not be ready in time.

Mr. Smith said it was unacceptable but Ms Williams claims he did not give proper notice for them to leave at the end of August, nor did he go through the courts to obtain an eviction order.

"We would have been out even before a case was heard, we didn't object to leaving and we would have paid for the extra month,'' she said.

Mr. Smith did not respond to calls to his home last night.