Case Type

Holdover-Licensee

Court

Civil Court of the City of New York

County

Kings County (Brooklyn)

L&T / Index / Case / Docket / Clerk's Number

LT-313694-22/KI

Petitioner

ENY DEVELOPMENT LLC

Respondent

SHARIFF YOUMANS, "JOHN" "DOE", "JANE" "DOE", "JOHN" "DOE", "JANE" "DOE"

Judge

Howard, Juliet P.

Decision/Order Date

2024-05-07

Posture

Pre-answer Motion by Tenant

Disposition

Case Dismissed/discontinued

Winner

Tenant Substantially Won

Synopsis

This was a licensee holdover proceeding commenced by the landlord after the death of the rent-stabilized tenant of record, Louis Youmans. The respondent, Shariff Youmans, moved to dismiss for failure to name the estate of Louis Youmans as a necessary party. The court granted the motion and dismissed the petition without prejudice. It found that upon the tenant's death, the lease did not terminate but became property of the tenant's estate. As the lease term was still in effect when the proceeding was commenced, the landlord was required to terminate the tenancy and obtain a judgment against the tenant's estate before proceeding against any alleged licensees/occupants. By failing to name and obtain a judgment against the estate, the petition was fatally defective. The court rejected the landlord's argument that intestate distribution of the unexpired lease automatically terminated it, finding no legal support for circumventing the proper procedure under the rent stabilization laws.

Download

Takedown Policy

Share

COinS