Posted by sarduci on December 26, 2000 at 14:46:38:
In Reply to: Unfair rent collection posted by Ruby on December 26, 2000 at 13:05:17:
I am not an attorney and have not had any lanlord tenant disputes or delt with attorneys in about 3 years. In addition to not being an attorney, I am completely unfamiliar with any recent NYC rent laws or case dispositions.
1. decide if $900.00 is worth your time. decision may be based on some moral principle, but I'd pay it whether I thought they were entitled to it or not. $900.00 ain't worth it.
2. If you do pay the $900.00, you agree to pay it directly to landlord (no collection agent) and only after you and landlord sign a document closing the matter and any other future actions he may dream up against you (if you can leave yourself out of this release of future actions against landlord DO THAT although I'm sure he'll want you and future actions against him included. You want a bill of paticulars. You want a legaly served copy of the original petition. You want it acknowledged that you were never served with petetion prior to that date. And you want a stipulation (the signed document I mentioned above) stating that the case has been dropped and resolved by both parties. If it's any consolation, that should run him about $900.00 in legal fees, especially if his low life landlord attorney has to be present at the signing and negotiation of that stip. Bring a witness. Don't answer any unrelated questions. Don't chit chat. These people are not your friends. And don't let them intimidate you. Make sure there will be no judgement reflected on your credit reports, and make sure that it is the landlords responsibility to make sure it is not reflected. EVERYTHING IN WRITING.
3. If you decide to fight, you go to landlord tenant court and find the clerk or office worker there who will help you. They are there. You do not have to do everything perfectly. The judge just wants to know the facts, and will be inclined to help you state your case. If the landlord's attorney messes with you in front of the judge, the judge will slap him down quick.
Step one is to get judgement overturned immediately. That puts ball back in landlord's court. Your response to his new petition is that petition be dismissed because of his legal failures in first petition.
your points are
1. never legally served with summons or petition.
2. did not receive bill of particulars.
3. original lease (no lease) did not provide you pay for unused apartment after surrendor of keys.
4 notice to employer is illegal, since you were never served with original petition, and therefore constitutes harrassment and is enetered into with the purpose of causing you embarrassment within community.
5 (no lease)therefore no surrendor of right to jury. As the landord is represented, you feel he has an unfair advantage. You are filing a request for jury trial (get bloomberg form at legal stationary type store). That should force a settlement right there. Landlord should be happy if you offer $200.00, because if it goes to trial before a jury, you will win. The only thing juries hate more than landlords is attorneys. Your landlord will end up paying $2000.00 in legal fees, and wind up losing anyway. :)
P.S.
prior lease may be binding even after expiration, but you play from ignorance. Let the court tell you your claims are unreasonable or incorrect, not the landlord or his attorney. You keep discussion with plaintif before the court as much as possible. Don't waste time talking to them or listening to their threats. As the attorneys like to say "See you in court." It goes slowly. Don't let them scare you or pressure you. Believe it or not, you are in the more enviable position. Just keep playing up the fact that you are pro se (representing yourself).
: My landlord is suing me for unpaid rent. I moved out on 11/5/99, and paid everything up till that day. They want me to paid the rent for the entire month even though I didn't live there. My lease also expired in September, and I never renewed. The debt collector they hired is sending my employer an income execution and I have never received any summons as they sent to my old address.
: Are they entitled to collect rent for period which I didn't live in? Do they have the right to post a judgement on me without giving me a chance to dispute. Because there is no lease for the last 2 months I lived there, do they even have a case here? The balance is $900, and if I hire a lawyer for this, the fee is more expensive. What should I do?
: Please help.
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