Landlord-Tenant Law

Kellner Herlihy Getty & Friedman LLP’s landlord-tenant law practice focuses on navigating clients through the complexities of laws governing the actions of commercial and residential landlords and tenants alike.  The highest court in New York State has described landlord-tenant law as “a patchwork,” “a maze,” and “an impenetrable thicket confusing not only to lay[people] but to lawyers.” The firm’s partners, associate attorneys, paralegals and staff have a thorough understanding of this maze—and experience guiding clients through it—and are readily available to fulfill clients’ needs.

The firm has litigated landlord-tenant cases in Civil Court, Supreme Court, New York’s appellate courts, and represented clients before a variety of regulatory agencies, including the:

• New York State Division of  Housing and Community Renewal
• New York State Division of Human Rights
• New York City Commission on Human Rights
• Attorney General’s Charities Bureau
• New York City Landmarks Commission
• New York City Loft Board
• New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development
• Local Community Boards

Their efforts to gather evidence, build strong cases on behalf of clients and articulate claims with great detail and specificity lead to more timely and positive outcomes.

For landlords

Kellner Herlihy Getty & Friedman’s landlord clients include commercial landlords, cooperative corporations, condominium associations and not-for-provide entities that provide supportive housing in New York City and other areas of the state.  Each landlord-tenant lawyer from the firm works hard to maximize the benefits available to landlords under New York City and New York State laws governing permissible actions.  They can help determine whether landlords are entitled to:

• Recover units for their own or their family’s use
• Remove units from rent regulation, either through high rent or high-income decontrol
• Raise rents by making improvements to their building(s)
• Halt undesirable or prohibited tenant behaviors
• Recover units from tenants failing to comply with lease agreements
• Compel rent payment

For tenants

Kellner Herlihy Getty & Friedman’s tenant clients include individual residential and commercial tenants, and tenant associations. Tenants, whose ability to live in New York City is due to their regulated rents, or whose savings are invested in their cooperative, or whose livelihood depends on retaining their store or office premises, can trust the firm’s diligent attorneys to know what to do to protect their homes or businesses.

The firm’s services for tenants include:

• Defending nonpayment and holdover proceedings
• Negotiating buy-out of regulated tenancies
• Restoring tenants to possession after fires or other catastrophes
• Obtaining succession rights to regulated properties
• Fighting claims of non-primary residence or illegal subletting
• Curing leases breaches and preserving tenancies
• Opposing luxury decontrol applications
• Proving and recovering rent overcharges