Court Incorrectly Entered Judgment for Remaining Rent Arrears After Vacating ERAP Stay

Landlord sued to evict a Suffolk County tenant for nonpayment of rent. Tenant's filing of an ERAP rental assistance application resulted in a stay of the proceeding, but the court vacated the ERAP stay in 2022 (see LVT #32011).  Tenant then filed an appeal and won in part. In addition to vacating the ERAP stay, the court directed tenant to pay landlord $9,000 in use and occupancy by a certain date or else a final judgment would be entered in landlord's favor. There was no basis in the Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law (RPAPL) for this ruling, and ERAP didn't authorize this departure from the governing statute. The lower court's issuance of a final judgment for landlord was reversed. But the appeals court ruled that the lower court wasn't required to dismiss the nonpayment petition upon landlord's acceptance of the ERAP funds although landlord was bound by the eviction restrictions set forth in the ERAP statute. The case was sent back to the lower court for further proceedings.

Barton v. Bixler: Index No. 2022-312, 2023 NY Slip Op 50901(U)(App. T. 2 Dept.; 8/24/23; Emerson, JP, Garguilo, Walsh, JJ)