Requires tenants in housing court proceedings be given information pertaining to their rights including that only a judge may issue a warrant to evict them; they should assert any defense or counterclaim in their answer and that they have a right to have the premises inspected to confirm any claim of dangerous or unhealthy conditions and that they may have a right to withhold rent for failure to make repairs.
STATE OF NEW YORK
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1443
2009-2010 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY(Prefiled)
January 7, 2009
___________
Introduced by M. of A. WRIGHT -- read once and referred to the Committee
on Judiciary
AN ACT to amend the New York city civil court act, in relation to
requiring the housing court to provide certain information to tenants
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Section 110 of the New York city civil court act is amended
2 by adding a new subdivision (q) to read as follows:
3 (q) The petitioner shall include in bold print at the end of the peti-
4 tion the following notice of information to the respondent:
5 (1) Clerks of the housing court cannot determine the validity of
6 cases.
7 (2) Respondent has a right to trial.
8 (3) The tenant may at any time go to a pro se clerk for information
9 regarding housing court procedure and assistance in filing court papers.
10 (4) The tenant should assert any defense, including, but not limited
11 to, lack of necessary repairs and may assert any counterclaim or claim
12 for offset against rent in his or her answer.
13 (5) The tenant may, but does not have to, request the housing, preser-
14 vation and development office to inspect the premises to confirm any
15 claim of dangerous or unhealthy conditions which the tenant believes may
16 affect the amount of rent due.
17 (6) Legal fees, late fees and any other fees may only be imposed after
18 a trial by a housing judge if they are established in a written lease
19 and they are not considered part of any rent due unless the lease
20 expressly establishes them as such.
21 (7) Only a housing judge may issue a warrant to evict a tenant and
22 only a marshal or sheriff is authorized to use force to execute a
23 warrant. The landlord and tenant may agree to terminate the tenancy
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD00298-01-9
A. 1443 2
1 prior to the issuance or service of a warrant, but no one may compel a
2 tenant without his or her consent to abandon the tenancy.
3 § 2. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
4 it shall have become a law.
