Council Member Oliver Koppell recently co-sponsored a bill that would provide free legal representation in New York City housing court to elderly low-income tenants. Koppell, a lawyer by trade, said in a statement that, according to legal advocates, the proposed law would be the first of its kind.
Unlike defendants in criminal court, tenants who end up in housing court are not automatically eligible for government-paid lawyers and are often at a disadvantage when pitted against wealthy landlords.
“Because landlords and lenders are able to hire lawyers with detailed knowledge of complex housing laws, while low-income seniors are forced to represent themselves because they can’t afford an attorney, many elderly residents are being harassed out of their homes,” Koppell said. “This is particularly true today where landlords, seeking to capitalize on a hot real estate market, have become more aggressive in pursuing cases against tenants.”
Advocates say 25,000 people are evicted each year after losing cases in city housing court. Some 8,800 to 10,750 low-income seniors would be eligible for representation under Koppell’s “Right to Counsel” Act.
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Welcome to the Norwood News, a bi-weekly community newspaper that primarily serves the northwest Bronx communities of Norwood, Bedford Park, Fordham and University Heights. Through our Breaking Bronx blog, we focus on news and information for those neighborhoods, but aim to cover as much Bronx-related news as possible. Founded in 1988 by Mosholu Preservation Corporation, a not-for-profit affiliate of Montefiore Medical Center, the Norwood News began as a monthly and grew to a bi-weekly in 1994. In September 2003 the paper expanded to cover University Heights and now covers all the neighborhoods of Community District 7. The Norwood News exists to foster communication among citizens and organizations and to be a tool for neighborhood development efforts. The Norwood News runs the Bronx Youth Journalism Heard, a journalism training program for Bronx high school students. As you navigate this website, please let us know if you discover any glitches or if you have any suggestions. We’d love to hear from you. You can send e-mails to norwoodnews@norwoodnews.org or call us anytime (718) 324-4998.