Tenant Claims Rent-Stabilized Renewal Lease Not Properly Offered

Landlord sued to evict rent-stabilized tenant for failing to sign her rent-stabilized renewal lease. Landlord and tenant signed a settlement agreement in court in May 2012. Tenant agreed to move out by June 30, 2012. In return, landlord waived four months' rent. Later, under a second agreement, tenant got more time to move out and paid all the outstanding use and occupancy that previously had been waived. Tenant later asked the court to vacate the judgment and settlement agreement. She claimed that landlord hadn't offered her a renewal lease in accordance with the Rent Stabilization Code and that she had signed the agreement under great pressure. The court ruled against tenant, who appealed and won. Tenant didn't receive the benefit of her bargain since she ultimately paid the four months' use and occupancy that landlord initially had waived. And tenant had a potentially meritorious defense, since it appeared that landlord hadn't given tenant proper notice of a renewal lease offer. Tenant also had inadvertently waived her right to a post-judgment cure of her claimed failure to sign a renewal lease. The case was sent back to the lower court for further proceedings.

45-48 47th Street Corp. v. Murphy: 2014 NY Slip Op 24210, 2014 WL 3746855 (App. T. 2 Dept.; 7/9/14; Pesce, PJ, Weston [dissenting], Solomon, JJ)