Client Success Story: Legally Defective Notice

Keith was a 55-year-old man living alone in an apartment in Rochester. 603 Legal Aid (603LA) helped Keith defeat 2 evictions over the last year.

Keith’s 3rd eviction hearing took place on August 29th. Unfortunately, Keith couldn’t connect with 603LA until August 30th. Keith said his landlord had won the eviction with a 31-day eviction notice that alleged Keith needed to go so the apartment could be converted into a condo and listed for sale.

During the post-eviction conversation with a very despondent Keith, 603LA discovered that the landlord’s 31-day eviction notice expired on a Sunday. 603LA explained to Keith that while his landlord’s reason for eviction required at least 30 days’ notice, the law should not count either Saturday or Sunday as the expiration date on his notice; the court should recognize the Friday before that weekend as the official expiration date. And this, 603LA advised, meant that his eviction was based on a legally defective 29-day notice.

603LA prepared for Keith a motion informing the judge of the landlord’s legal error and asking that the judge reconsider the prior day’s decision and dismiss the eviction.

Keith contacted 603LA a couple weeks later with an update. The judge granted the motion and dismissed the eviction.

“I’m shocked that I still beat this eviction, even though I lost the hearing ,” Keith told 603LA. “I’m still kinda confused but happy as all Hell!”

603LA advised Keith to keep searching for a new unit before his landlord finally figures out how to do things correctly.