Month-To-Month Tenants in New York City Not Required By Statute to Provide Notice of Intent to Vacate

In a decision that was published in the New York Law Journal on May 16, 2008, the Appellate Term upheld a Civil Court judgment against a landlord who sought to withhold a tenant's security deposit based on the tenant's failure to provide notice of an intent to vacate.

The decision was in the case of Sprinivasan v. Silvi. The Court held that a month-to-month tenant in the City of New York who remained in the premises after the termination of the lease was not required to give notice of the tenant's intent to vacate. The Court ruled that since there was no contract or statute requiring advance notice, there was legal basis upon which the landlord could withhold the tenant's security deposit.