THE FEDERATION OPENS AN INTERNET CO-OP FORUM

The Federation has started a list server forum. This is a place were you can go on the Internet and exchange ideas experiences and to gather information for you cooperative. It's the Federation's "Co-op Forum" and it's free to join. To subscribe to the "Forum" simply go to the Federation's web site (WWW.FNYHC.ORG); you will see a box about joining. Just follow the instructions and you are part of the "Forum". When someone writes to the forum, you get an email to all those who subscribe. You can answer, give your opinion, or just read the email. The Federation will oversee the "Forum" to ensure that correct answers are being given and the emails are about cooperatives and condominiums. Please join now - and be part of this new exciting experience.

TRADE SHOW AND SEMINAR 2000 TAPES ARE AVAILABLE

Did you come to the Federation's Annual Trade Show and Seminar and missed a session? The Federation has prepared audiocassettes for the seminars listed below. If you want to order a session and your building attended the Federation's Show, you can order any of the seminars listed below for a cost of $60.00 per session. Please note, these audiocassettes are available only to attendees of the show.

THE FOLLOWING ARE AVAILABLE FROM THE FEDERATION:

ATTORNEYS' ROUND TABLE - Federation Executive Vice President, Al Pennisi.

PROFESSIONAL ROUND TABLE - Our panel of experts, consisting of attorneys, managing agents, accountants, refinancing experts and engineers moderated by Federation president, Greg Carlson.

YOUR CORPORATE DOCUMENTS - Federation Executive Vice President, Al Pennisi.

MANAGEMENT/BOARD RELATIONS - Management Representatives from the Association of Co-op and Condo Managers (ACCM) - Kenneth B. Lovett, Gerard J. Picaso and Michael Jay Wolfe.

BOARD RESPONSIBILITIES - Attorney Stan Dreyer

DISCRIMINATION: WHERE YOU LEAST EXPECT IT - Attorney Howard Schechter

SAFEGUARDING YOUR ASSETS - Accountant Rick Montanye

NATIONAL & LOCAL LEGISLATION - WHAT NATIONAL MEMBERSHIP MEANS TO YOU - National Association of Housing Cooperative's Executive Director, Doug Klein and the Council of New York Cooperatives and Condominium's Executive Director, Mary Ann Rothman.


PET LAW

One of most asked questions to the Federation is regarding the pet law. The Federation's Executive Vice President, Al Pennisi, Esq, has written the following piece to bring our membership up to date.

The pet law expressly covers a tenant who openly and notoriously has harbored a household pet for a period of at least three months following taking possession of a unit, where landlord, who has knowledge of the pet, has failed, within the three month period of harboring, to begin a summary proceeding or action to enforce the lease provision that prohibits the keeping of such a pet.

The pet law was upheld as constitutional in Megalopolis Property Association v. Claude Buvron, AD2d 232, 494 NYS2d 14 (1985). If the landlord does not commence a proceeding to evict within the three month period, the right to do so is deemed waived, Starrett City, Inc. v. Maureen Jace, 137 Misc. 2d 328, 524 NYS2d 130 (1987).

The relevant issue that needs to be addressed here is: What constitutes knowledge of the pet by the landlord?

The most recent case on point is Seward Park Housing Corp. v. Cohen. Defendant was a tenant in an apartment complex containing over 1700 units.

In early September 1996, tenant acquired a dog. Tenant would walk the dog in and out of the building on a regular basis. This was witnessed by building security guards, porters and maintenance staff, and also by neighbors. Landlord did not commence a holdover proceeding until February 1997.

The Civil Court found that the testimony of the tenants and their witness established that the landlord's on-site employees knew of the tenant's open harboring of a dog for over four months prior to the commencement of the holdover proceeding. This was considered to have put landlord on notice of the dog. Because landlord did not commence the proceeding within the three month time period, the trial court found landlord waived the A"no pets"covenant in the lease.

The court of the Appellate Term reversed, finding that the security personnel and maintenance personnel should not be viewed as agents of the landlord. The court stated that the fact that the building staff may have observed the tenant with the dog on premises did not establish that the landlord had knowledge or was on notice. The court also held that the pet law did not cover the tenants in this case, since they harbored the dog for only a short period of time.

What is interesting to note in the above case is the fact that the security and maintenance personnel were independently contracted, and the size of the apartment complex were seen as important factors by the court. I believe if the housing community had been a more closed community, the court may have ruled differently. This issue will no doubt be further litigated in the future.