Landlord's Notices Claiming Tenant Nuisance Were Defective

Landlord sued to evict tenant in January 2021, claiming that tenant created a nuisance and that tenant's conduct corresponded to an exception to any stay of eviction under the COVID-19 Emergency Eviction and Foreclosure Prevention Act of 2020 (CEEFPA). Tenant asked the court to dismiss the case, claiming that landlord's notice to cure and termination notice were fatally defective. Tenant argued that the termination notice didn't state specific facts relating to whether the conduct alleged in the notice to cure had been cured. And tenant also argued that landlord's notices were defective because they didn't refer to lease provisions that called for termination for the claimed conduct, or weren't specific enough. 

The court ruled for tenant and dismissed the case without prejudice. The notice to cure stated that tenant created a nuisance by keeping pit bull dogs and was conducting a dog-breeding business. The cure notice referred to paragraph 1 of tenant's lease, which stated that the premises must be used to live in only and for no other reason. The cure notice also stated that, "if you fail to cure said violation fourteen (14) or more days from service of this Notice upon you, Landlord will elect to terminate your tenancy in accordance with the applicable provisions of law." The termination notice didn't sufficiently describe how tenant failed to cure or how landlord determined that the conduct hadn't been cured. And the cure notice gave an open-ended cure opportunity. It was impossible to surmise when landlord regarded the cure opportunity to have ended and how that was determined. 

In addition, New York's highest court had ruled previously that a specific lease provision supporting termination for alleged conduct must be cited in a notice to cure. But landlord cited no facts supporting a claim of improper business use of the residential unit. The notices stated only that there were five or six dogs in the unit and puppies in the basement. There was no actual claim of improper business use of the residence and no showing that such use disturbed other tenants.

Fen Xiu Chen v. Salvador: Index No. L&T 55104/20, 2021 NY Slip Op 50499(U)(Civ. Ct. Queens; 5/17/21; Guthrie, J)