Landlord Illegally Locked Out Apartment Occupant After Tenant Died

Apartment occupant sued landlord for illegal lockout. Occupant moved into the apartment that tenant lived in during February 2020 and obtained a key fob to the building from landlord. Tenant died of COVID-19 in March 2020, and landlord asked occupant to leave the apartment, deactivated occupant's key fob, and restricted occupant's access to the building in April.

The court ruled for occupant. Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law Section 768, added to the law under HTSPA, appeared to codify the prohibition against self-help eviction, stating that it was unlawful to evict or attempt to evict an occupant of a dwelling unit who lawfully occupied it for 30 consecutive days or longer. Although occupant was merely a licensee of tenant's, he was in physical possession of the apartment. And because landlord had sent occupant a predicate notice to quit, it recognized that it must commence an eviction proceeding to remove him as a unit occupant. 

Smith v. Park Central 1 LLC: Index No. 801170/20, NYLJ No. 1592318120 (Civ. Ct. Bronx; 6/2/20; Garland, J)