Rent-Controlled Tenant's Granddaughter Gets Apartment

Landlord sued to evict apartment occupant after rent-controlled tenant died, claiming that occupant had been tenant's licensee. Occupant claimed succession rights to the apartment. The trial court ruled for tenant and dismissed the case. Occupant proved that she was tenant's granddaughter and that she had lived in the apartment with tenant for two years before tenant died. Occupant also showed that she lived in the apartment as her primary residence between December 2010 and December 2012, when tenant died. Documentary evidence such as tax returns, driver's licenses, and voter's registration placed occupant at another address during the relevant period. But testimony by occupant, her mother, father, uncle, cousins, neighbor, building handyman, and building restaurant manager all demonstrated that the occupant maintained a substantial physical connection to tenant's apartment during the relevant period and explained why documents listed another address. And tenant's failure to report occupant's presence in her household composition report to DOF for SCRIE purposes didn't impair the merits of occupant's succession claim.

170 Spring Street LLC v. Doe: 61 Misc.3d 1222(A), 2018 NY Slip Op 51705(U)(Civ. Ct. NY; 11/5/18; Stoller, J)