Tenants Can Pursue Harassment Claim Against Landlord
LVT Number: #31994
Fifteen tenants in a building claimed rent overcharge and sued landlord for damages based on violations of General Business Law Section 349 concerning deceptive business practices. Landlord asked the court to dismiss various claims raised by tenants. The court ruled for landlord in part. Both sides appealed.
The appeals court found that the lower court had correctly refused to dismiss the complaint, although landlord claimed some of the tenants had filed similar claims in other cases. But the lower court erred in granting landlord's request to dismiss tenant's claim of harassment in violation of Local Law 7 of 2008. The tenants sufficiently pleaded a cause of action based on harassment, and the State Supreme Court had sufficient subject matter jurisdiction to make a determination on that claim.
Akter v. Zara Realty Holding Corp.: Index No. 704563/18, Case No. 2018-05725, 2022 NY Slip Op 01434 (App. Div. 2 Dept.; 3/9/22; Brathwaite Nelson, JP, Iannacci, Rivera, Ford, JJ)