Tare Victorious at Trial in Non-Primary Residence Case
November 14, 2019 |Joshua Tare prevailed in a summary non-primary holdover proceeding on behalf of a Manhattan landlord after a multi-day trial in New York County.
The issue at trial was whether or not the daughter-in-law of the deceased tenant of record of a rent-stabilized apartment could establish a right to succeed to her father-in-law’s tenancy. During the lengthy trial, Joshua demonstrated that the daughter-in-law, while spending significant time at the subject apartment taking care of her sick father-in-law, never relocated her primary residence to the subject apartment.
The Court stated that the “credible evidence” did not establish that the apartment was ever the daughter-in-law’s primary residence and that all of the relevant documentation demonstrated that the daughter-in-law and her husband resided elsewhere. Judge Jean Schneider’s decision relied in part on documents obtained through discovery, trial subpoenas on government agencies and an analysis of the daughter-in-law’s credit card and debit card usage.
Ultimately, the Court awarded the landlord a judgment of possession and warrant of eviction, thereby permitting the landlord to recover possession of the apartment.
