Rent-Controlled Tenant's Wife Has Pass-on Rights

Landlord sued to evict rent-controlled tenant's wife after tenant died. The wife claimed succession rights. The court ruled for tenant's wife. Landlord appealed, claiming that the wife wasn't living in the apartment during the period for establishing succession rights. Landlord also claimed that tenant hadn't primarily resided in the apartment. The appeals court ruled against landlord. The wife showed that the apartment was her primary residence from the time she married tenant until he died. Her health-related absence from the apartment for a portion of the time she was married to tenant didn't raise any sufficient question about her primary residence. And landlord never terminated the rent-controlled tenant's tenancy on a claim of nonprimary residence.

Sutton Place Management Co. v. Rainey: NYLJ, 4/8/08, p. 36, col. 2 (App. T. 1 Dept.; McKeon, PJ, Schoenfeld, Heitler, JJ)