We are pleased to announce that Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg has appointed Suzanne Beddoe as OATH's new Chief Administrative Law Judge, to replace Roberto Velez, who left City government at the end of June to become Vice President for Corporate Compliance and Counsel at Promesa, an organization that provides a range of services to Bronx communities.

After over forty years of dedicated public service, Deputy Chief Administrative Law Judge Charles McFaul will be retiring from OATH at the end of this month. Judge McFaul, who holds a law degree from the State University of New York at Buffalo and a Bachelor of Arts degree from Hofstra University, began his legal career as an Assistant Corporation Counsel in the Law Department, before working for a short time with the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services and then for the Office of Court Administration. In 1979, he was appointed to OATH as one of its first judges.

Landlord provided meaningful access for disabled tenant.

The NYC Commission on Human Rights brought a complaint on behalf of a disabled tenant alleging that an apartment building owner and general manager discriminated against the tenant when it denied his request for a modification of the front entrance doors to permit the tenant access in his motorized wheelchair. ALJ Ingrid Addison found that building owner's installation of automatic door openers at the side entrance of the building, just fifty feet from the front entrance, would provide the complainant meaningful access to his residence on a 24 hour per day basis and recommended the complaint be dismissed.

Comm'n on Human Rights v. Co-op City of New York (in PDF), OATH Index No. 1831/10 (June 16, 2010).

Recommendations made for four City titles.

The prevailing wage law requires the City of New York to pay “laborers, workmen and mechanics” in its employ the prevailing rate of wages and benefits paid in the private sector for work in the same trade in the locality. The City and public sector unions are required to negotiate in good faith to enter into a contract setting the wages and benefits for prevailing wage employees but when negotiations fail, the union may file a compliant with the Comptroller on behalf of its members. The Comptroller is authorized to conduct an investigation to determine the prevailing wages and benefits for the group of employees. The Comptroller has designated OATH to conduct hearings in these matters. OATH issued two decisions in such cases during the reporting period.

Failure to provide proper notice of rights results in return of car.

ALJ Kara Miller directed the Police Department to return a car seized in connection with the owner's arrest, where the Department failed to show it properly served the owner with notice of the right to a retention hearing at the time of arrest or subsequently by mail. The Department's “Vehicle Seizure Form' is a five page multi-color document. The pink page, which includes the notice of a right to a retention hearing, should be given to the driver/owner at the time of arrest. Here, the owner claimed she was not given the pink form at the time of arrest, but instead was handed a “Vehicle Seizure Form” (white), which did not contain notice of her right to a retention hearing. ALJ Miller rejected the Department's claim that the owner suffered no prejudice, finding the hearing was not scheduled as early as it would have been had the Department provided timely notice.

Police Dep't v. Pizarro (in PDF), OATH Index No. 2625/10, mem dec (June 1, 2010).

Hospital employee charged with failure to cooperate with investigation.

A clerical employee at a City hospital was charged with misconduct arising from an incident where she witnessed a mother strike or push her young child. The employee was charged with failure to cooperate with an official investigation because she would not answer questions unless her union representative was present. ALJ Faye Lewis sustained one charge based upon the employee's refusal to answer questions from the hospital's child protective coordinator. The coordinator was conducting a time-sensitive investigation to determine whether reportable child abuse may have occurred and she wanted to find out what the employee had seen, before the mother left the hospital. The focus of the interview was investigatory, not disciplinary, so the employee could be disciplined for refusing to cooperate.

Health & Hospitals Corp. (Gouverneur Skilled Nursing Facility) v. Jones (in PDF), OATH Index No. 1100/10 (June 30, 2010).

Loft tenant not entitled to exclusive right to recreational use of roof.

A loft tenant who had used the roof for recreational purposes since the inception of his tenancy was told by the owner that he could no longer do so. The tenant made an application to the Loft Board alleging his use of the roof was a service which could not be taken away under the Board's rules. ALJ John Spooner found that the tenant did not show a right to exclusive use of the roof under his written lease or by verbal agreement with the former owner. Based upon past precedent, the ALJ recommended the application be denied.

Matter of Burton (in PDF), OATH Index No. 1934/10 (June 30, 2010).

Denial of marriage license upheld.

A marriage license applicant appealed the City Clerk's denial of her application based upon a 2002 marriage of a person with the same name and birth date. ALJ Miller noted the similarities in the handwriting on the 2002 documents and the current license application. The applicant had testified that an estranged friend had forged her signature on behalf of another woman on the 2002 application. When told the application must be signed in front of a clerk, the applicant explained that her former friend had taught the other woman how to write exactly like her. ALJ Miller found the applicant's testimony to be incredible and denied the appeal.

Office of the City Clerk v. Lewis (in PDF), OATH Index No. 1607/10 (June 23, 2010).