Landlord Didn't Name Tenant's Mother in Case

Landlord sued to evict low-income housing tenant for breach of a substantial obligation of his tenancy based on chronic nonpayment of rent. Landlord had sued to evict tenant three times in recent years. In the last case, tenant was reinstated by the court after eviction upon payment of $13,000 in arrears. Tenant failed to appear in court this time, but his mother appeared. She claimed that she had succeeded to the tenancy in June 2012, that landlord failed to name her as a party to this proceeding, and that there were no prior nonpayment actions against her. The mother was the original tenant of record. Although she left the apartment in 2007, there was no documentation that she vacated or surrendered her tenancy. By that time, her son was listed on annual income certification records as the head of household while the mother was listed as an additional occupant. But there was no renewal lease in place identifying who the current tenant was. The court ruled for tenant's mother and dismissed the case. Landlord failed to prove the termination of tenant's Section 8 subsidy and didn't name and serve all adult members of the household with its court papers. In addition, the first two nonpayment proceedings that landlord relied on for its claim were resolved quickly and didn't warrant termination of the long-term tenancy.

LESPMHA, Inc. v. Biel: 38 Misc.3d 1229(A), 2013 NY Slip Op 50318(U) (Civ. Ct. NY; 3/5/13; Kraus, J)