Gross v. McGoldrick
Gross v. McGoldrick
Opinion of the Court
Order affirmed, with costs.
Concur: Lewis, Ch. J., Desmond, Dye, Fuld, Froessel, and Van Voorhis, JJ. Conway, J., dissents in the following opinion:
Dissenting Opinion
(dissenting). Petitioners, landlords of a twenty-family multiple dwelling, applied to the local rent administrator, borough of Brooklyn, for a certificate authorizing the eviction of one Fannie Garfinkel, hereinafter referred to as tenant, so that they might use her apartment for a resident superintendent. The tenant challenged petitioners’ good faith in making the application.
The local rent administrator denied the application and his decision was upheld by the State Rent Administrator who found:
“ Based upon all the evidence in the record * * * the Administrator finds that the landlord has established the existence of an immediate and compelling necessity for possession of the subject apartment in view of the fact that he is required by law to provide a resident janitor for the subject premises.
“ The Administrator further finds, however, that the landlord has failed to establish his good faith in this matter. It is clear from the record that two apartments in the subject premises were vacant during the summer of 1953 after the landlord had received the notice of violation and had been fined for failure to remedy same; that no offer of exchange, of apartments was made to this tenant by the landlord; that the landlord has failed to substantiate by any persuasive and convincing evidence, his claim that neither of the vacant apartments was suitable for use by a resident janitor.”
Special Term upheld that determination and I think it manifest that the landlords’ failure to utilize available vacancies occurring after the posting of the violation, particularly the failure to utilize the vacancy occurring after the filing of the application herein, taken together with the evidence of bad feeling between the landlords and the tenant, justified the administrator’s finding of bad faith.
The Appellate Division reversed, on the law. It did not question the administrator’s finding that the landlords were acting in bad faith, but, held that,.as a matter of law, the administrator was powerless to refuse the certificate of eviction in view of the finding of the administrator of immediate and compelling necessity, quoted supra.
In my judgment that was an erroneous conclusion of law.
The order of the Appellate Division should be reversed, and that of Special Term affirmed.
Order affirmed.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- In the Matter of George Gross, against Joseph D. McGoldrick, as State Rent Administrator
- Cited By
- 3 cases
- Status
- Published