BenchNOTES Newsletter

OATH News

New Administrative Law Judges appointed. In December 2022, Commissioner and Chief Administrative Law Judge Asim Rehman appointed Tiffany Hamilton and Seon Jeong Lee to five-year terms as administrative law judges. ALJ Tiffany Hamilton previously served as an Administrative Law Judge in the New York State Department of State’s Office of Administrative Hearings, and as a Hearing Officer in OATH’s Hearings Division. ALJ Seon Jeong Lee recently served as the Deputy Managing Attorney at OATH’s Hearings Division in Manhattan and previously worked as a public defender providing appellate representation in New York and New Jersey.

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

COVID-19 Update

Pursuant to an order of the Chief Administrative Law Judge, hearings, trials, and other OATH operations are available by telephone, videoconferencing, online, or mail. In-person appearances are also available. For more information, visit OATH's website at www.nyc.gov/oath.

Trials Division

Personnel

Suspension recommended for sanitation worker who violated time and leave policy.

ALJ Christine Stecura recommended suspension in lieu of termination for a sanitation worker who violated his employer’s time and leave policy.

Dep’t of Sanitation v. D.L., OATH Index No. 2434/22 (Dec. 16, 2022).

Licensing

ALJ recommends lifting taxi driver’s suspension.

ALJ Astrid B. Gloade recommended lifting the suspension of a TLC driver’s license where the driver had been arrested for criminal possession of a weapon.

Taxi & Limousine Comm’n v. Mejia, OATH Index No. 1384/23 (Dec. 16, 2022).

Real Property

Application for Loft Law coverage denied.

ALJ Joycelyn McGeachy-Kuls recommended denial of Loft Law coverage for a unit that had been previously covered and de-regulated by a valid sale of rights.

Matter of Stigsgaard, OATH Index No. 2137/20 (Dec. 1, 2022).

Contracts

CDRB denies construction company’s claim for additional compensation.

The Contract Dispute Resolution Board, chaired by ALJ Kevin F. Casey, denied a construction company’s claim for additional compensation for the cost of a site safety coordinator.

Dobco, Inc. v. Dep’t of Design & Construction, OATH Index No. 1527/22, mem. dec. (Dec. 15, 2022).

Appeals Division Decisions
(Appeals from the Hearings Division)

The Appeals Division reversed a hearing decision dismissing a charge against a taxi driver for threats, harassment, or abuse. The taxi driver testified a bicyclist gave him the middle finger and cursed at him, so he returned the gesture but did not use any profanity. Crediting his testimony, the hearing officer found that a reasonable person who first made a rude gesture would not feel threatened, harassed, or abused when the gesture was returned. Appeals Division reversed, finding that giving the middle finger is equivalent to using profanity, which constitutes abuse and is not excused by the bicyclist giving him the finger first. TLC v. Turan Alakbarov, Appeal No. 10185094C (December 9, 2022).

The Appeals Division affirmed a hearing decision sustaining a charge against a store owner for engaging in business as a tobacco retail dealer without a license and dismissing a charge for offering to sell loose tobacco in a package less than 1.5 ounces. The issuing officer had visited the store and found tobacco products, including loose tobacco, hidden behind the store’s register counter. The store owner testified that he was previously charged with unlicensed tobacco retail dealing in 2019, and after settling the case by agreeing not to sell tobacco products, he stored the remaining tobacco products under the counter. He denied selling any tobacco products since 2019. The Appeals Division found that the totality of circumstances indicate the store owner was engaged in selling without a license. Numerous tobacco products were arranged on four shelves under the counter within direct reach of an employee at the register, with their labels visible to the employee. The store owner offered no explanation why the tobacco products have not been removed or returned to the supplier in the two years since the settlement. The Appeals Division also agreed with the hearing officer that although the store owner was in possession of loose tobacco in a 1.23 oz package, the Administrative Code requires petitioner to show an actual sale or offer for sale to establish a violation, which it failed to do. DCWP v. Deepchhaya Inc., Appeal No. 21M01897 (December 4, 2022).

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