BenchNOTES - August 2023

Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings

Independent and Impartial Administrative Law Court


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BenchNOTES Newsletter

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BenchNOTES Newsletter


BenchNOTES Newsletter

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OATH News

In Memory of Deputy Mayor Carol Robles-Román. With great sorrow, OATH marks the passing of Carol Robles-Román, the former Deputy Mayor for Legal Affairs and Counsel to Mayor Bloomberg. Her vision and passion for equal justice improved accessibility, transparency, and accountability in the City’s administrative justice system. Ensuring the public’s access to justice was a top priority for Ms. Robles-Román, and under her leadership, the City made significant improvements to streamline its procedures, increased the use of technology, and expanded language access at administrative tribunals and OATH. She led the efforts to consolidate tribunals into OATH and create and implement an electronic system that allowed New Yorkers to contest their summonses and file appeals online. She also created uniform ethical standards citywide by implementing a new code of conduct for all administrative law judges and hearing officers and spearheaded the creation of the Administrative Judicial Institute (AJI). Read this brief history to learn how her contributions during the 12 years she served as Deputy Mayor and Counsel to Mayor Bloomberg changed the way millions of New Yorker’s interact with the City’s municipal justice system.

New Administrative Law Judge appointed. In July 2023, Commissioner and Chief Administrative Law Judge Asim Rehman appointed Charlotte Davidson to a five-year term as Administrative Law Judge in the Trial Division of OATH. Prior to her appointment, ALJ Davidson worked as Special Counsel for Policy and Administration in the New York State Office of Court Administration, where she worked on statewide policy regarding mental illness and the courts. She previously served as an Acting Justice of the New York State Supreme Court, where she presided in Manhattan’s felony drug court; a judge of the New York City Criminal Court, where she served as the presiding judge in the Midtown Community Court; Counsel to Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman; and an associate at the law firm of Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP. She is a graduate of Harvard College and Columbia Law School.

Job opportunities at OATH: OATH regularly posts employment opportunities on the NYC Jobs portal and on its website. View current openings.

OATH seeking new Contract Dispute Resolution Board panelists: The OATH Trials Division is seeking applications from qualified persons to serve on Contract Dispute Resolution Board panels. More details available here.

Trials Division

Personnel

Termination of employment recommended for public health nurse.

ALJ Kevin F. Casey recommended termination of employment for a public health nurse who was discourteous and falsified timekeeping records.

Dep’t of Health & Mental Hygiene v. Wu, OATH Index No. 588/23 (June 26, 2023).

Read more about Dep’t of Health & Mental Hygiene v. Wu.

Licensing

ALJ recommended lifting the suspension of a taxi driver’s TLC license.

ALJ Christine Stecura recommended lifting the license suspension of a taxi driver arrested for assault after an off-duty altercation.

Taxi & Limousine Comm’n v. Fermin De La Cruz, OATH Index No. 3576/23 (July 5, 2023), adopted, Comm’r Dec. (July 6, 2023)

Read more about Taxi & Limousine Comm’n v. Fermin De La Cruz and other Licensing cases.

Human Rights

Owners of residential building fined for failing to provide a reasonable accommodation.

ALJ Michael D. Turilli recommended assessing $50,000 in emotional distress damages and $100,000 in civil penalties against the owners of a residential building for failing to provide a reasonable accommodation.

Comm’n on Human Rights v. DiFiore Realty, LLC, OATH Index Nos. 2386/22 & 1732/23 (July 26, 2023).

Read more about Comm’n on Human Rights v. DiFiore Realty, LLC.

Appeals from the Hearings Division

An appeal decision affirmed a hearings decision dismissing a charge against a restaurant owner for creating unreasonable noise for commercial or advertising purposes, finding that the music played by the restaurant was intended to create ambience for the outdoor dining space. The decision held that an advertising purpose has not been shown where music contributes to the atmosphere of a dining establishment or store and is directed at patrons, even though it may be incidentally heard by passersby. Dietmar Detering (CC) v. Jackson Hole, Appeal No. 2300403 (July 27, 2023).

An appeal decision affirmed a hearings decision dismissing three charges against a process server for failing to make an electronic record of his global positioning system location, time, and date of service immediately after effecting service, finding that the process server satisfied the regulatory requirement of “immediately” creating an electronic record when he did so within nine or five minutes of effecting service. DCWP v. Ali Suliman, Appeal No. 220194HR (July 26, 2023).

An appeal decision reversed a hearings decision sustaining a violation of the Building Code against a contractor for failing to safeguard the public and property from construction operations after a window washer’s fatal accident. The hearing officer had found that the contractor had a duty to ensure that the work was done in a safe manner. The appeal decision reversed, finding that there was sufficient evidence that the window washer had been trained and supervised, and noting that the Department of Labor had investigated the incident and concluded that the accident was attributable to worker error. DOB v. New Line Structures & Dev, Appeal No. 2300460 (July 27, 2023).