An Overview of the Court and How the Real Estate Market Affects Housing Court Cases

Description:

Adapted from the popular 2009 Jack Newton Lerner Landlord Tenant Institute, gain an overview of the Housing Court in New York and hear how the court represents a microcosm of the City itself. Every social issue that arises in the five boroughs of New York City is dealt with in Housing Court, including rent protection, domestic violence, drug issues, and even bed bugs. The program also focuses on the economic crisis and how a downturn in the real estate market is affecting the cases and issues heard in housing court.
 

Lecturers:

• Hon. Timmie Elsner, Hon. Fern A. Fisher, Hon. Laurie Lau, Hon. Jaya K. Madhavan, Hon. Jean T. Schneider

Hon. Timmie Elsner, Hon. Fern A. Fisher, Hon. Laurie Lau, Hon. Jaya K. Madhavan, Hon. Jean T. Schneider

Hon. Timmie Elsner


New York City Civil Court, New York County, Housing Part

Judicial Offices:
Judge, Housing Court, New York City Civil Court, New York County,
Appointed by Chief Administrative Judge Jonathan Lippman, 2002 to 2007

Judge, Housing Court, New York City Civil Court, New York County, Appointed by Chief Administrative Judge Jonathan Lippman, 1997 to 2002

Other Professional Experience:
New York State Division of Housing & Community Renewal, 1996

Penn & Proefriedt, 1992 to 1996

Rosenberg & Estis P.C., 1987 to 1992

Lester Schwab Katz & Dwyer, 1985 to 1987

Smith & Laquercia P.C., 1983 to 1985
 
Admission to the Bar:
NYS, Appellate Division, Second Department, 1984

Education:
JD, Villanova School of Law

Iowa State University
 
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Hon. Fern A. Fisher

Justice Fisher serves as Deputy Chief Administrative Judge for New York City Courts and is also charged with state-wide responsibility for access to justice issues. Justice Fisher's career started in the Civil Court as a Legal Services attorney practicing in Manhattan Housing Court. Justice Fisher served as Deputy Director of Harlem Legal Services, Inc. and as an Assistant Attorney General of the New York State Department of Law. For four years, she provided pro bono legal services to Harlem-based community organizations as a project director of the National Conference of Black Lawyers. In 1989, she was appointed Judge of the Housing Part of the Civil Court, and later, in 1990, was elected to the Civil Court where she served as Deputy Supervising Judge. Justice Fisher was elected in 1993 to the Supreme Court of the State of New York where she was assigned to the City and Matrimonial Parts. In December 1996, she was appointed Administrative Judge of the Civil Court of the City of New York where she served until March 2009 when she was appointed to her current position.

Justice Fisher contributes the views from the bench in Residential Landlord-Tenant Law in New York, a practice guide by Lawyers Cooperative Publishing. She served as the host of a series of television shows on housing issues for Crosswalk's, a public service cable show. Justice Fisher is a founding member of the Metropolitan Black Bar Association and is a member of Judicial Friends (an affiliate of the Judicial Council of the National Bar Association), the Association of the Bar of the City of New York and the New York County Lawyers Association. Justice Fisher also served as the Chair of the Housing Court (Judges) Disciplinary Committee and Chair of the Anti-Bias Committee of the New York County Supreme Court. In 2006 she was the recipient of the Harvard Law School Gary Bellow Public Interest Award. She received her B.A. summa cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa in 1975 from Howard University and a J.D. in 1978 from Harvard Law School.

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Hon. Laurie Lau
 
Admitted to Bar: June 22, 1983
Law School: New York Law School
College: University of Michigan

Experience:
Appointed Housing Court Judge 1/25/93
Associate Attorney, Marcus Borg Rosenberg
Diamond, Arthur Birnbaum & Associate

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Hon. Jaya K. Madhavan

Judicial Offices:
Supervising Judge, Bronx County Housing Court, Appointed by Chief Administrative Judge, 2007 to Present

Judge, Housing Court, Civil Court of the City of New York, Bronx County, Appointed by Chief Administrative Judge, Jonathan Lippman, 2004 to 2009

Other Professional Experience:
The Legal Aid Society, Community Law Offices, Staff Attorney, 1998 to 2004
Himmelstein, McConnell, Gribben & Donahue, Associate, 1997 to 1998
The Legal Aid Society, Community Law Offices, Staff Attorney, 1995 to 1997
 
Admission to the Bar: NYS, Appellate Division, Second Department, 1996

Education: JD, Pace University School of Law
Fordham University

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Hon. Jean T. Schneider

Admitted to Bar: 1978
Law School: Yale Law School
College: Swarthmore College
Experience:
• Staff Attorney, Bedford-Stuyvesant Community Legal Services Corp 1977-1981
• Staff Attorney and Supervising Attorney, The Legal Aid Society 1981-1984, 1987-1997
• President, Association of Legal Aid Attorneys, District 65 UAW 1984-1987

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An Overview of the Court and How the Real Estate Market Affects Housing Court Cases