WASN’T REQUIRED TO SHOW ALL THE GOVERNING ELEMENTS
After SF was found to be entitled to succeed to a rent-stabilized apartment as a “nontraditional family member,” and its licensee holdover proceeding was dismissed by the Kings County Civil Court, Jeremy Properties filed an appeal.
On its review of the dispute, the Appellate Term, Second Department, noted that SF wasn't required to satisfy all of the elements which are typically considered by courts to determine an occupant’s succession claim – like the longevity of the relationship, whether there was a sharing of household expenses, whether the occupants named each other in wills, and whether they engaged in any other behavior that would indicate the existence of a long-term, emotionally committed relationship. [For the complete list, see below.]
Since “no single factor is determinative,” the AT2 reiterated that the Civil Court was permitted to grant relief to SF based on her satisfaction of a majority -- six out of eight -- of those factors.
Because the outcome was “amply supported by the record,” the AT2 left the outcome undisturbed.
Nothing succeeds like success ….
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DECISION
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According to Fact Sheet #30 issued by Homes and Community Renewal, the eight pertinent considerations in a succession case are:
a) longevity of the relationship;
b) sharing of or relying upon each other for payment of household or family expenses, and/or other common necessities of life;
c) intermingling of finances as evidenced by, among other things, joint ownership of bank accounts, personal and real property, credit cards, and loan obligations, sharing a household budget for purposes of receiving government benefits, etc.;
d) engaging in family-type activities by jointly attending family functions, holidays and celebrations, social and recreational activities, etc.;
e) formalizing of legal obligations, intentions, and responsibilities to each other by such means as executing wills, naming each other as executor and/or beneficiary, granting each other a power of attorney and/or conferring upon each other authority to make health care decisions each for the other, entering into a personal relationship contract, making a domestic partnership declaration, or serving as representative payee for purposes of public benefits, etc.;
f) holding themselves out as family members to other family members, friends, members of the community or religious institutions, or society in general, through their words or actions;
g) regularly performing family functions, such as caring for each other’s extended family member and/or relying upon each other daily for family services;
h) engaging in any other pattern of behavior, agreement, or other action which evidences the intention of creating a long-term,emotionally committed relationship.
FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION, CLICK HERE: FACT SHEET #30