Justice for a Long Island City Tenant Sued by Landlord

*Ms. Diaz, a Colombian immigrant, lives in one of the few rent stabilized apartments left in Long Island City, New York. Long Island City is a neighborhood in Queens that has seen massive gentrification and rezoning in recent years, which has transformed the once industrial neighborhood to primarily high-rises designed for higher income tenants. Working class families have been aggressively targeted due to increased property values.

Ms. Diaz came to Catholic Migration Services in the Fall of 2016 after she was sued in a holdover proceeding in which her landlord alleged that she had not maintained her rent stabilized apartment as her primary residence. Our team successfully argued dismissal of the case due to errors in service of the court papers. Ms. Diaz’s landlord, unrelenting, sued her again making the same allegations. Again, we fought for Ms. Diaz and the landlord was forced to discontinue. In the final rendition of this case, Catholic Migration Services brought a motion to dismiss on several legal procedural grounds. After oral argument, the court dismissed the case, this time making it much more difficult for the landlord to succeed in the future. As a result, Ms. Diaz and her family may peacefully remain in their apartment for the foreseeable future.

*Although the account of this case is real, the name has been changed to protect the privacy of our client.