Exception to Owner Occupancy Claim Applies Only to Tenant and Spouse

Landlord sued to evict rent-stabilized tenant to recover apartment for personal use by landlord's daughter. Tenant claimed that her common law "husband" lived with her and was a senior citizen over 62 years of age. Therefore, tenant argued that landlord must offer tenant an alternative equivalent or superior housing accommodation before landlord could recover tenant's apartment for owner occupancy purposes. Tenant said that her common law husband should be treated the way the Rent Stabilization Code treated nontraditional family members. The court ruled against tenant. The Rent Stabilization Code was amended after the Court of Appeals ruled that the definition of a tenant's family members should include persons having an emotional and financial commitment and interdependence with the tenant. But this definition applied only for purposes of determining apartment succession rights. For purposes of owner occupancy, the Rent Stabilization Code specifically stated that if a tenant or tenant's spouse was elderly or disabled, then landlord must offer them alternative housing. Only the legislature, and not the court, could change what was meant by tenant's "spouse." It was undisputed that the senior citizen in question wasn't tenant's spouse. Since tenant chose to live with her common law husband for more than 40 years without getting married, they must now accept the consequences. The State of New York doesn't recognize common law marriages.

Zunce v. Rodriguez: L&T Index No. 66436/08, 2008 WL 4667082 (10/22/08) (Civ. Ct. Kings; Heymann, J)