Landlord Must Prove RR-1 Form Delivered by Certified Mail

Facts:Tenant complained of a rent overcharge. The DRA ruled for tenant. Landlord appealed, claiming that tenant's complaint was barred by the four-year limit on overcharge complaints. Landlord said it hand-delivered the RR-1 form to tenant. The DHCR ruled for landlord, finding that tenant's claim was made too late. Tenant then challenged the DHCR's ruling in court. He claimed that the DHCR's ruling was unreasonable because the law required landlord to prove it sent the RR-1 form by certified mail. Landlord argued that tenant admitted receipt of the RR-1, so it didn't matter whether it was sent by certified mail. Court:Tenant wins. The law requires landlord to send the RR-1 form to tenant by certified mail. Tenant's admission that he received the RR-1 didn't justify disregarding this rule. And tenant didn't have to prove that the form wasn't sent by certified mail. Landlord had to prove that it was sent by certified mail. The court sent the case back to the DHCR for further processing.

O'Mahony v. DHCR: NYLJ, 2/13/02, p. 19, col. 3 (Sup. Ct. NY; Diamond, J)