Nonpayment, Warranty of Habitability Cases Can Proceed Simultaneously

Tenants sued landlord in Supreme Court for a breach of their warranty of habitability. Landlord claimed tenants owed both back rent and current rent. The court dismissed landlord's claim for current rent. Then landlord brought a nonpayment case for the current rent in civil court, and tenants asked the court not to rule on the case until the Supreme Court decided their warranty of habitability claim. The court agreed, and landlord appealed. The appeals court ruled for landlord. Landlord's claim for current rent covered the period from May 1992 to Oct. 1992, and tenants' testimony showed that the warranty of habitability problems had stopped in May 1992. Plus, the Supreme Court had dismissed landlord's claim for current rent, so the nonpayment case in civil court was landlord's only remedy for recovering the current rent owed.

Solow East River Building Co. v. Garrison: NYLJ, p. 22, col. 1 (7/28/94) (App. T. 1 Dept.; Parness, JP, McCooe, Glen, JJ)