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Landlord – Tenant
NJ Landlord Tenant Lawyers
The New Jersey lawyers at Shapiro Croland Reiser Apfel & Di Iorio, L.L.P. represent landlords and tenants in a variety of legal matters related to the enforcement of residential, commercial and industrial real estate leases, including prosecuting and defending eviction proceedings in the Superior Court of New Jersey, Landlord/Tenant Part.
Our attorneys assist landlords in prosecuting eviction cases based on various types of breach of lease claims, including non-payment of rent. Whether you are residential landlord or a commercial landlord with a deadbeat tenant, our attorneys can represent you or your company in eviction actions involving non-payment of rent. This area of law can be complex, and having an experienced NJ lawyer is critical to ensuring that the eviction process goes as smoothly and quickly as possible.
Our NJ attorneys have extensive experience assisting landlords in cases where tenants file bankruptcy in an effort to invoke the automatic stay to thwart or stall an eviction. We know the types of motions that must be filed in bankruptcy court to remove the automatic stay and get the case returned to the landlord/tenant court for eviction.
What are the most common reasons a landlord may file an eviction case in the Superior Court of New Jersey?
- Failure to pay rent
- Continued disorderly conduct
- Unauthorized subtenancy
- Willful destruction or damage to property
- Habitual lateness in paying rent
- Violation of rules and regulations, after written notice to comply, as outlined in a lease or other document
- Tenant’s conviction for a drug offense
Is the landlord required to issue a written default notice before filing an eviction complaint in the Superior Court of New Jersey?
Eviction actions other than non-payment of rent generally require the issuance of a pre-lawsuit written notice to terminate the tenancy. In other words, no written default notice is required to be given to the tenant when the eviction complaint is based on failure to pay rent. You may wish to contact an attorney for more information.
In cases that do require a written notice, if the tenant continues the misconduct after the landlord issues the notice then the landlord can file eviction proceedings.
What happens if the tenant shows up and claims the premises are in disrepair and not habitable?
In non-payment of rent cases, if the tenant claims the landlord has breached the lease is not entitled to receive rent because the premises have become uninhabitable or because the landlord is refusing to make necessary repairs, the tenant can deposit the disputed rent into court and will be entitled to a trial. However, if the tenant just shows up on the trial date and is not prepared to deposit the rent, the judge will either rule in favor of the landlord or give the tenant a minimal amount of time to deposit the rent.
Must the landlord appear in court on the trial date?
Yes. On the trial date of an eviction case, landlords are required to appear in court and prove that the statements asserted in the complaint are true. Witnesses required to prove any element of the case must be ready to appear on the trial date to testify. Only actual, in-court testimony of witnesses will be allowed.
NJ Landlord Tenant Lawyers
Our New Jersey landlord/tenant practice extends statewide, and includes prosecution and defense of eviction cases filed in the Superior Court of New Jersey, Landlord/Tenant Part in Bergen County, Essex County, Hudson County, Mercer County, Middlesex County, Morris County, Passaic County, Somerset County, Union County, and elsewhere in the Garden State.
Contact our NJ landlord tenant lawyers today. One of our attorneys will respond to your inquiry within 24 – 48 hours. For urgent matters, please call us at (201) 870-4938.
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