In a case protecting the rights of tenants whose landlords illegally charged them market-rate rents while in receipt of “J-51” tax abatements, David convinced Housing Court Judge Jack Stoller to vacate a stipulation where a tenant agreed to pay the unlawful higher rent. In Clermont York Associates LLC v. Zgodny, David’s client initially appeared in court without an attorney and signed an agreement to pay the full market rent sought by the landlord. He subsequently retained David who used a recent appellate court decision to argue that the rent was improper and the tenant, who signed the agreement without benefit of an attorney, should not be evicted based upon an illegal rent. The victory means that David’s client will likely see his rent substantially reduced and will serve as a precedent for other tenants to reduce their rents as well. The decision merited a write up in The New York Law Journal.
