McMahon v. O'Brien
McMahon v. O'Brien
Opinion of the Court
The opinion of the court was delivered by
By the return' to this writ of certiorari, it appears that a landlord and tenant proceeding was instituted by Patrick O’Brien before the judge of a District Trial Court,
It was the evident purpose of the prosecutor to raise here the construction of the District Court act (and, for that matter, of the Landlord and Tenant act) in cases where there is any person in possession of the demised premises other than the original lessee, and to discuss whether such person may lawfully be .removed by a warrant issued in a proceeding to which he was not made a party. Yo such question, however, is raised by the proceeding returned before us, which is simply a judgment for possession by a claimant upon undisputed facts entitling him to it..
The only grievance the prosecutor has, if we ássume his right to be heard here, is that an adjournment was not accorded him, a matter of mere discretion where no special reasons exist, and one that cannot be taken advantage of by a volunteer who made no offer of proof to the court below of any state of facts that would, if established, permit him to intervene. The deposition's taken upon notice and annexed to the certiorari form no part of the return, and at most merely tend to vindicate the prosecutor’s standing to sue out the writ. From these affidavits it is to be gathered that the prosecutor sought to intervene, not merely because he was in possession, but because he had, as assignee of the term, made payments of rent under circumstances that constituted him the tenant, contemplated by the Landlord and Tenant act.
The question must, therefore, be relegated to some occasion when it may legitimately be decided, merely guarding against any impression that it has been here met or passed upon.
No error appearing by the return before us, the writ is dismissed, with costs.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.