Landlord–Tenant Law

Full representation for owners and tenants of residential property across all five boroughs. We handle lease disputes, rent-regulation questions, succession claims, illegal-sublet and nuisance cases, and every stage of Housing Court litigation — from the first notice through trial and appeal. Our office represents property management companies overseeing large residential complexes as well as individual owners with a single unit, and tenants whose homes and rights are on the line.

• Holdover & non-payment proceedings
• Rent-stabilization & succession disputes
• Illegal sublet, nuisance & no-pet cases
• Housing Court trials and appeals

Commercial tenancies carry higher stakes and fewer statutory protections — which makes precise lawyering critical. We represent commercial landlords and business tenants in lease disputes, defaults, terminations, and surrender negotiations, and have successfully negotiated dozens of commercial lease terminations. We also defend businesses in Commercial Landlord Harassment cases brought under New York City’s newest legislation.

• Commercial lease defaults & terminations
• Surrender agreements & lease workouts
• Commercial Landlord Harassment defense
• Guaranty enforcement and defense

We assist landlords in legally enforcing lease agreements and handling eviction proceedings efficiently, ensuring compliance with New York’s landlord–tenant laws while safeguarding your rights as a property owner. From the predicate notice through the warrant of eviction, every procedural step is handled precisely — because one defective notice can send a case back to the beginning and cost months of rent.

• Predicate notices drafted & properly served
• Marshal coordination through legal possession
• Stipulations that actually get enforced
• Compliance with HSTPA requirements

When a tenant remains after a lease expires or is terminated — or violates a substantial obligation of the tenancy — a holdover proceeding is the legal path to recovering possession. We prepare and serve the required predicate notices, file promptly, anticipate the defenses tenants’ counsel will raise, and press the case to judgment or a favorable stipulation.

• Expired-lease and month-to-month holdovers
• Substantial-violation & nuisance holdovers
• Owner-use and licensee proceedings
• Defense against defective holdover petitions

Unpaid rent threatens your ability to maintain the building and pay its mortgage and taxes. We help landlords recover arrears through legal channels — serving statutorily compliant rent demands, filing non-payment proceedings, litigating ERAP and hardship issues, and negotiating enforceable payment plans where a workout serves your interests better than a marshal’s eviction.

• 14-day rent demands & petition filing
• ERAP and hardship-stay litigation
• Arrears judgments & payment plans
• Defense of improper rent claims

HP actions put repairs, violations, and alleged harassment before the Housing Court and HPD. We prosecute HP actions for tenants living with dangerous conditions, and we defend owners against violation claims — negotiating access dates, correcting violations on realistic schedules, and contesting civil penalties.

• Repair orders against negligent owners
• Defense of violation & harassment claims
• HPD inspection & access scheduling
• Civil-penalty mitigation

A well-drafted lease is the key to avoiding disputes. We prepare residential and commercial lease agreements that are legally sound, comprehensive, and tailored to your property — with enforceable rent, use, repair, and default provisions, proper riders and disclosures, and terms that stand up in Housing Court when tested.

• Residential leases & required riders
• Commercial leases tailored to the space
• Guaranty and security provisions
• Renewal & escalation clauses

Before you sign, renew, or guarantee a lease, we review every term to identify risks, hidden obligations, and unenforceable clauses — personal guaranties, escalation clauses, repair allocations, assignment restrictions. Landlords get leases that protect the asset; tenants know exactly what they are agreeing to before it binds them.

• Personal guaranty risk analysis
• Repair & maintenance allocation
• Assignment and sublet restrictions
• Escalation & additional-rent audits

Every successful non-payment case is built on a statutorily compliant rent demand, properly served. We prepare 14-day written demands that state the arrears accurately and satisfy every statutory requirement, and arrange proper service with affidavits that hold up — so your proceeding doesn’t fail on its foundation.

• Statutorily compliant 14-day demands
• Accurate arrears breakdowns
• Proper service with airtight affidavits

Tenancies subsidized by Section 8 carry additional layers of notice, certification, and procedural requirements involving NYCHA, HPD, and other administrators. We guide owners and tenants through subsidy suspensions, termination-of-subsidy issues, and the special rules that govern eviction proceedings against subsidized tenants.

• NYCHA & HPD subsidy issues
• Termination-of-subsidy proceedings
• Notice & certification compliance

Sometimes the fastest, most economical path to recovering a unit is a negotiated buy-out. We structure and negotiate buy-out agreements that resolve tenancies on clear, enforceable terms — with proper releases, surrender dates, and compliance with the City’s buy-out communication rules — avoiding years of litigation.

• Buy-out valuation & strategy
• Enforceable surrender agreements
• NYC buy-out communication compliance

Cases are won or lost on the predicate notice. We draft precise, legally sufficient notices to cure, notices of termination, and Golub notices — accurately describing the default, honoring the tenancy’s notice periods, and served in the manner the law requires — so the proceeding that follows stands on solid ground.

• Notices to cure & terminate
• Golub notices for stabilized units
• Service planning that survives challenge

When a commercial landlord serves a notice to cure, the clock is running on your business. A Yellowstone injunction tolls the cure period while the underlying dispute is litigated, preserving your lease and your livelihood. We move quickly — assembling the papers and obtaining emergency relief before the deadline extinguishes your rights.

• Emergency TRO & injunction filings
• Cure-period tolling
• Lease-dispute litigation strategy