Minor Delay in Submitting Income Certification Form

Facts: Landlord applied for high-rent/high-income deregulation of tenant's apartment. The DHCR ruled for landlord based on tenant's late filing of his response to the DHCR's notice of landlord's application. Tenant appealed, claiming that he had mailed his response four days before the 60-day deadline, but that it was incorrectly postmarked 10 days late and delivered late. The court ruled against tenant, finding that the DHCR reasonably applied the 60-day statutory deadline. The appeals court ruled for tenant. The DHCR and landlord then appealed to the Court of Appeals. Court: The DHCR and landlord lose. Tenant might have a good reason for the late filing of his response. The case was sent back to the DHCR to consider whether there was good cause for tenant's late filing. The court said that the DHCR should also consider whether the 10-day delay was so minimal that it should be excused. In a second case, Shapiro v. DHCR, the court also ruled that the DHCR should reconsider whether tenant had good cause and whether the three-day delay in tenant's filing was excusable.

Elkin v. Roldan: NYLJ, p. 29, col. 1 (12/22/99) (Ct. App.; Kaye, CJ, Bellacosa, Smith, Levine, Ciparick, Wesley, Rosenblatt, JJ)