Landlord Must Pay Interest on Rent Overcharge Award

Tenant complained of a rent overcharge. The DHCR ruled for tenant and ordered a refund. Tenant entered the DHCR order as a money judgment with the clerk of the court in 1994. Landlord asked the court to vacate the judgment. The court ruled for landlord in part, and reduced the judgment by the amount of a rent credit taken by tenant. Landlord appealed again and lost. Landlord then claimed that it shouldn't be charged interest on the judgment. The court and appeals court ruled against landlord. Landlord was aware of the judgment for a long time. Landlord never paid the judgment. Instead, it made repeated attempts to appeal. Interest isn't a penalty. It is simply the cost of having the use of another person's money for a period of time. A money judgment earns interest from the date it is entered and continues to accrue at the rate set by law until the judgment is paid.

Colgate v. Broadwall Management Corp.: NYLJ, 5/8/08, p. 37, col. 1 (App. Div. 1 Dept.; Lippman, PJ, Saxe, Buckley, Acosta, JJ)