Judge Vacates Deal Accepted by Unrepresented Tenant
Sarah Betancourt, New York Law Journal
July 26, 2016
A tenant who agreed, when he didn't have a lawyer, to leave his apartment in a month now has a chance to make the arguments that may allow him to keep his home.
Brooklyn Housing Court Judge Marc Finkelstein vacated a stipulation of settlement between REDF Equities and at least five tenants in REDF Equities LLC v. John Doe & Jane Doe, L&T 083226/15.
Responding to an action brought by one tenant, the judge observed that the courts generally favor stipulations of settlement. Here, however, he said the stipulation is "unduly harsh and one-sided, it was signed inadvertently, without advice of counsel" and thus could not be enforced.
"Having just been evicted from his home of seven years without any advance warning and appearing pro se without being aware of any defenses he may have had, the respondent had little choice but to agree to a stipulation which at least allowed him a short time to be restored to possession, locate another apartment, and prepare to move," the judge said.
REDF Equities petitioned in October 2015 to evict the tenants, saying they did not have a current lease. After several protested they were locked out and evicted without notice, the parties signed the stipulation restoring them to their apartments until Dec. 31, 2015.
One of the tenants filed a court order to show cause and subsequently retained South Brooklyn Legal Services.
Chantal Johnson, the lawyer who is handling the tenant's case, said she sees cases like this all of the time. "It makes me wonder how many tenants are giving up rights they may have," she said.
Edward Hall of Balsamo & Rosenblatt represents REDF Equities. He did not respond to requests for comment.