Tenant's Son and Son's Girlfriend Get Apartment

Landlord sued to evict rent-stabilized tenant's son and son's girlfriend after tenant died in 2014. The son and girlfriend claimed succession rights. The court ruled in their favor. Landlord appealed and lost. The couple claimed that they had a common-law marriage and the girlfriend considered tenant her father-in-law. Both showed they had lived with tenant in the apartment since 2008. The son had little documentation of his connection to the apartment but had been unemployed for some time. The girlfriend established a nontraditional family relationship with tenant. Her driver's license, bank statements, cancelled checks, and correspondence with Social Security Administration all listed the apartment as her address. She also testified credibly that she had an emotional and financial commitment with tenant. They intermingled their finances, and for six years shared daily activities and holiday celebrations. She also took tenant to medical appointments and demonstrated a close family-type relationship.

Fieldbridge Assoc. LLC v. Sanders: Index No. 2018-979KC, 2021 NY Slip Op 50128(U)(App. T. 2 Dept.; 2/19/21; Aliotta, PJ, Weston, Toussaint, JJ)