Wong v. Gouverneur Gardens Housing Corp

In Wong v. Gouverneur Gardens Housing Corp., 308 AD2d 301, 764 N.Y.S.2d 53 [1st Dept 2003], the plaintiff, a Mitchell-Lama tenant, was served with predicate notice of eviction on the grounds that she was in violation of the terms of her occupancy agreement and New York City regulations because her application and tenancy were not approved by the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development ("HPD"), the City agency charged with overseeing Mitchell-Lama cooperatives and rentals. (Id. at 302). Supreme Court granted the plaintiff-tenant a preliminary injunction and the First Department reversed. (Id.). In holding that the administrative scheme contemplates an initial review by HPD, the First Department reasoned that the doctrine of primary jurisdiction is intended to coordinate the relationship between courts and administrative agencies to the end that divergence of opinion between them not render ineffective the statutes with which both are concerned, and to the extent that the matter before the court is within the agency's specialized field, to make available to the court in reaching its judgment the agency's views concerning not only the factual and technical issues involved but also the meaning of the statute administered by the agency" (Id.).