Tenant's Sister-in-Law Gets Apartment as Nontraditional Family Member

Landlord sued to evict the sister-in-law of rent-stabilized tenant after tenant died. The sister-in-law claimed succession rights. The trial court ruled in her favor, finding that she was a nontraditional family member who lived with tenant for at least two years before tenant died.

Landlord appealed and lost. Admittedly, the family member didn't have intermingled finances or formalized legal obligations, intentions, and responsibilities with tenant. But she showed that she and tenant had been friends for decades and had lived together for 11 years; they had relied on each other for paying household expenses; they had spent several holidays, family events, and religious events together; and they clearly had considered themselves to be family despite the passing of tenant's brother. Also, after tenant suffered a stroke, the sister-in-law took care of tenant's basic functions, including bathing him, buying groceries, preparing meals, changing bed linens, doing laundry, coordinating tenant's doctor's appointments, medications and health aide schedules, and running errands for tenant. 

1035 Wash. Realty LLC v. Weston: Index No. 2018-1443KC, 2020 NY Slip Op 50629(U)(App. T. 2 Dept.; 5/29/20; Weston, JP, Elliot, Siegal, JJ)