Landlord Can Claim Tenant Uses Apartment for Commercial Purposes, Team Assocs. v. Swinney
Issue Date: October 2004,
Posted On: 10/1/2004
Landlord Can Claim Tenant Uses Apartment for Commercial Purposes
Team Assocs. v. Swinney: L&T Index No. 63170/04 (9/1/04) (Civ. Ct. NY; Capella, J) 2-pg. doc.]
(Decision submitted by Manhattan attorney Adam Leitman Bailey, who represented the landlord.)
Landlord sued to evict residential tenant because tenant admitted that he lived in the apartment and recorded musicians there. Since at least 1992, he conducted two or three recording sessions per day with two to four musicians. Tenant claimed that landlord waived any right to claim a lease violation by permitting this use for years. He also claimed that the law required landlord to start a breach of lease claim within six years of the claimed breach, and the commercial use had started ten years ago. Tenant asked the court to dismiss the case. The court ruled against tenant. Tenant admitted the lease violation. Whether landlord waived the right to claim a breach of lease because it permitted the use for a long time landlord wasn’t barred by the six-year law. Every time tenant used the apartment for commercial purposes there was a lease violation and a new basis for starting the court case.