INTRODUCTION

If you are in court because your landlord started a non-payment case or a holdover case you should read all of the following information about new laws which affect housing court cases as of October 20, 1997. This pamphlet will tell you about the first of two important changes:

Deposits Required Before the End of Your Case

You may be required to deposit money before your case is over, IF you ask for two adjournments (time for a new court date) OR, IF your case has been in the court for 30 days. If either of these two things happen, the landlord or his attorney can ask the judge to order you to deposit money with the court, a financial institution, or an attorney.

Fewer Ways to Get an Extension of Time Needed
to Pay Back-Rent

In non-payment cases, you may not be able to stop (stay) the marshal from evicting you by filing an order to show cause after you have gone to court and a "judgment" is entered against you. If you agree to a stipulation with a "judgment" in it and five days pass, the judge will not have the power to delay the eviction unless all the money in the "judgment" is paid to the landlord or to the court. If you have any questions go to the information table or the pro se attorney.

BEFORE YOUR COURT DATE — PREPARE !

You should be prepared for your court date. If you do not need extra time after the case has started, you won't have to ask for an adjournment.

If you do not have financial resources, you should go to the Department of Social Services (DSS) before your court date. A DSS representative is in the court or you may be referred to your local DSS center from the information table.

After you receive the notice of petition and petition (otherwise called the dispossess or your court papers) you should save all the rent money that you possibly can. You may be required to pay this money to the court at some point during your case.

ITEMS TO GATHER BEFORE YOUR COURT DATE:

Rent receipts, pictures of any repairs needed in your apartment or building, your copy of a code violation inspection report if you received one after calling the Department of Housing Preservation and Development at (212)960-4800, information from the DSS (a printout), a copy of your rent history from the Division of Housing & Community Renewal (DHCR).

THE PROCESS

Before you are ordered to deposit money, you will be sent to a Rent Deposit Courtroom. The judge will probably hold a hearing to determine whether you have to make the deposit and what amount should be deposited. The judge may determine that you do not have to make a deposit if you can show one of the following:

1. The person who filed the case is not your landlord.
2. You have not been able to live in (moved out of) your apartment because of serious violations or hazardous conditions.
3. You are on public assistance and housing code violations have been recorded, by the Department of Housing Preservation and Development or other city agency.
4. You were not properly served. This generally happens if court papers are not handed to you personally, or not handed to someone who lives in your apt. and sent by certified and regular mail; or not taped to/slipped under your door and sent by certified and regular mail.
5. There are mistakes in the court papers. For example, a judge may decide that no deposit is required where one or more of the following are wrong: address, names, apartment number, monthly rent, rent regulation status, etc.
6. The court does not have jurisdiction. There are many ways that this can happen, however, the most common is where a tenant lives in a two-family house and the landlord has created an illegal third apartment.

If you think that one of these six points apply to you, go to the information table or pro se attorney. (Check with the Clerk's Office for where the pro se attorney is located.)

SPECIAL INFORMATION FOR TENANTS WHO RECEIVE
ASSISTANCE IN PAYING THEIR RENT

If you receive assistance, in one of the following ways, the amount of your deposit/payment may be less than the full rent.

1. Public Assistance (DSS) - If your rent is paid by two-party checks or if it is sent directly to the landlord, you will not be required to deposit this money. If you receive a cash grant, the judge can order you to deposit your shelter allowance.
2. SSI - If you receive SSI, the court can only order one-third (1/3) of your monthly check towards the rent.
3. SCRIE (Senior Citizen Rent Increase Exemption)/ Section 8/Any other Direct Government Subsidy - You can only be ordered to deposit your share of the rent, not the government's share.

SPECIAL INFORMATION FOR TENANTS IN "SMALL" BUILDINGS (12 or fewer apartments)

If you live in a building with 12 apartments or less, you will be subject to the same guidelines of 30 days or your second adjournment. However, there are different rules about where your deposit will be kept. If you say that you "dispute" all of the rent, you will be directed to deposit money with the court. If only some of the rent is "disputed," you will be directed to pay the "undisputed" amount directly to the landlord. Rent can be "disputed" for many reasons including: if you have asked the landlord to make repairs in your apartment or building and he/she has failed to do them, if you have paid for repairs or utilities, if you are not sure what the legal amount of rent is. If you have questions about what can be "disputed," speak to someone at the information table or the pro se attorney.

HOW A DEPOSIT IS MADE TO THE COURT

If the judge orders you to deposit money to the court, you will receive a written order stating the amount to be deposited. You will have five days to deposit this amount.

The amount should be in the form of a money order, bank check or certified check made out to the Clerk of the Civil Court. The clerks office will only take cash in an emergency (after the banks are closed) and you will be required to pay a $2.00-4.00 fee depending on the bank charge to the court.

Any money deposited will be returned to the tenant if the judge decides in the tenants favor after a trial or if the tenant and the landlord agree that some or all of the money should be returned to the tenant in the stipulation.

TIPS FOR WHEN YOU ARE IN COURT

When you are in court, many tenants are asked to sign stipulations (agreements) which include pay-out schedules for back rent. Often times, your landlord or his attorney will try to get you to sign an agreement with the word, "judgment" or "final judgment." It is very important that you seek legal advice as to whether to agree to a judgment. If you do not want to agree to a judgment, you can speak with the judge. A "judgment" is very serious. If you are not able to meet the terms of the pay-out schedule and if you don't go back to the court immediately (within 5 days of the judgment), a judge will not be able to temporarily stop the eviction by signing an order to show cause.

This Information Sheet has been written and prepared by the City-Wide Task Force on Housing Court, Inc. We are a not-for profit coalition of community housing organizations and legal service providers. This pamphlet contains legal information, it should be considered not legal advice.

IF YOU DON'T MAKE THE DEPOSIT

If you do not make the first deposit, the landlord can ask for an immediate judgment without a trial. If you make the first deposit and miss later deposits, you may be ordered to an immediate trial.