One of the biggest questions about the vast new bundle of tenant rights created by the Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act of 2019 is its applicability to pending cases. David just achieved a victory for his client by convincing the court to dismiss a pending “owner’s use” case based on the new law. In Sassouni v Adams the landlord sought to evict the rent-stabilized tenant based on the claim that he wanted the valuable West Village apartment for his son. This was always a dubious claim, especially given that the landlord had previously recovered a rent-stabilized apartment for his daughter, who never moved in.
The HSTPA changed the law to limit a landlord to recovery of a single apartment for his own use or that of his immediate family members. In a motion for summary judgment, David successfully argued that the new law applied to this already pending case. Housing Judge Frances Ortiz agreed and dismissed the case. David’s client can now rest assured that the apartment will be his home for many years to come.
