§ 11 — Enforcement

§ 11. Enforcement. 1. Whenever in the judgment of the commission any\nperson has engaged or is about to engage in any acts or practices which\nconstitute or will constitute a violation of any provision of section\nten of this act, the commission may make application to the supreme\ncourt for an order enjoining such acts or practices, or for an order\nenforcing compliance with such provision, or for an order directing the\nlandlord to correct the violation, and upon a showing by the commission\nthat such person has engaged or is about to engage in any such acts or\npractices a permanent or temporary injunction, restraining order, or\nother order shall be granted without bond. Jurisdiction shall not be\ndeemed lacking in the supreme court because the defense is based upon an\norder of an inferior court.\n 2. Any person who wilfully violates any provision of section ten of\nthis act, and any person who makes any statement or entry false in any\nmaterial respect in any document or report required to be kept or filed\nunder this act or any regulation, order, or requirement thereunder, and\nany person who wilfully omits or neglects to make any material statement\nor entry required to be made in any such document or report, shall, upon\nconviction thereof, be subject to a fine of not more than five thousand\ndollars, or to imprisonment for not more than two years in the case of a\nviolation of subdivision three of section ten and for not more than one\nyear in all other cases, or to both such fine and imprisonment. Whenever\nthe commission has reason to believe that any person is liable to\npunishment under this subdivision, the commission may certify the facts\nto the district attorney of any county having jurisdiction of the\nalleged violation, who shall cause appropriate proceedings to be\nbrought.\n 3. Any court shall advance on the docket and expedite the disposition\nof any criminal or other proceedings brought before it under this\nsection.\n 4. No person shall be held liable for damages or penalties in any\ncourt, on any grounds for or in respect of anything done or omitted to\nbe done in good faith pursuant to any provision of this act or any\nregulation, order, or requirement thereunder, notwithstanding that\nsubsequently such provision, regulation, order, or requirement may be\nmodified, rescinded, or determined to be invalid. In any action or\nproceeding wherein a party relies for ground of relief or defense or\nraises issue or brings into question the construction or validity of\nthis act or any regulation, order, or requirement thereunder, the court\nhaving jurisdiction of such action or proceeding may at any stage\ncertify such fact to the commission. The commission may intervene in any\nsuch action or proceeding.\n 5. If any landlord who receives rent from a tenant violates a\nregulation or order prescribing the maximum rent with respect to the\nhousing accommodations for which such rent is received from such tenant,\nthe tenant paying such rent may, within two years from the date of the\noccurrence of the violation, except as hereinafter provided, bring an\naction against the landlord on account of the overcharge as hereinafter\ndefined. In such action, the landlord shall be liable for reasonable\nattorney's fees and costs as determined by the court, plus whichever of\nthe following sums is the greater: (a) Such amount not more than three\ntimes the amount of the overcharge, or the overcharges, upon which the\naction is based as the court in its discretion may determine, or (b) an\namount not less than twenty-five dollars nor more than fifty dollars, as\nthe court in its discretion may determine; provided, however, that such\namount shall be the amount of the overcharge or overcharges or\ntwenty-five dollars, whichever is greater, if the defendant proves that\nthe violation of the regulation or order in question was neither willful\nnor the result of failure to take practicable precautions against the\noccurrence of the violation. As used in this section, the word\n"overcharge" shall mean the amount by which the consideration paid by a\ntenant to a landlord exceeds the applicable maximum rent. If any\nlandlord who receives rent from a tenant violates a regulation or order\nprescribing maximum rent with respect to the housing accommodations for\nwhich such rent is received from such tenant, and such tenant either\nfails to institute an action under this subdivision within thirty days\nfrom the date of the occurrence of the violation or is not entitled for\nany reason to bring the action, the commission may institute an action\non behalf of the state within such two-year period. If such action is\ninstituted by the commission, the tenant affected shall thereafter be\nbarred from bringing an action for the same violation or violations. Any\naction under this subdivision by either the tenant or the commission, as\nthe case may be, may be brought in any court of competent jurisdiction.\nRecovery, by judgment or otherwise, in an action for damages under this\nsubdivision shall be a bar to the recovery under this subdivision of any\nrecovery, by judgment or otherwise, in any other action against the same\nlandlord on account of the same overcharge or overcharges prior to the\ninstitution of the action in which such recovery of damages was\nobtained. Where recovery by judgment or otherwise is obtained in an\naction instituted by the commission under this subdivision, there shall\nbe paid over to the tenant from the moneys recovered, one-third of such\nrecovery, exclusive of costs and disbursement or the amount of the\novercharge or overcharges, whichever is the greater.\n 6. If any landlord who receives rent from a tenant violates any order\ncontaining a directive that rent collected by the landlord in excess of\nthe maximum rent be refunded to the tenant within thirty days, the\ncommission may, within one year after the expiration of such thirty day\nperiod or after such order shall become final by regulation of the\ncommission, bring an action against the landlord on account of the\nfailure of the landlord to make the prescribed refund. In such action,\nthe landlord shall be liable for reasonable attorney's fees and costs as\ndetermined by the court, plus whichever of the following sums is the\ngreater: (a) Such amount not more than three times the amount directed\nto be refunded, or the amount directed to be refunded, upon which the\naction is based as the court in its discretion may determine, or (b) an\namount not less than twenty-five dollars nor more than fifty dollars, as\nthe court in its discretion may determine; provided, however, that such\namount shall be the amount directed to be refunded or twenty-five\ndollars, whichever is greater, if the defendant proves that the\nviolation of the order in question was neither willful nor the result of\nfailure to take practical precautions against the occurrence of the\nviolation. If the commission fails to institute such action within\nthirty days from the date of the occurrence of the violation, the tenant\npaying such rent may thereafter institute an action for the same\nviolation within such one year period, and the liability of the landlord\nin such action by the tenant shall be the same as if such action were\nbrought by the commission. If such action is instituted by the\ncommission, the tenant affected shall thereafter be barred from bringing\nan action for the same violation. Any action under this subdivision by\neither the commission or the tenant, as the case may be, may be brought\nin any court of competent jurisdiction. Recovery by judgment or\notherwise in an action under this subdivision based on the failure of\nthe landlord to make the prescribed refund, shall be a bar to recovery\nunder this subdivision of any recovery, by judgment or otherwise, from\nthe same landlord in any other action instituted on account of the same\nviolation, prior to the institution of the action in which such recovery\nis obtained. Where recovery by judgment or otherwise, is obtained in an\naction instituted by the commission under this subdivision, there shall\nbe paid over to the tenant from the moneys recovered one-third of such\nrecovery, exclusive of costs and disbursements, or the amount of the\nprescribed refund, whichever is greater.\n 7. Any tenant who has vacated his housing accommodations because the\nlandlord or any person acting on his behalf, with intent to cause the\ntenant to vacate, engaged in any course of conduct (including, but not\nlimited to, interruption or discontinuance of essential services) which\ninterfered with or disturbed or was intended to interfere with or\ndisturb the comfort, repose, peace or quiet of the tenant in his use or\noccupancy of the housing accommodations may, within ninety days after\nvacating, apply to the commission for a determination that the housing\naccommodations were vacated as a result of such conduct, and may, within\none year after such determination, institute a civil action against the\nlandlord by reason of such conduct. In such action the landlord shall be\nliable to the tenant for three times the damages sustained on account of\nsuch conduct plus reasonable attorney's fees and costs as determined by\nthe court. In addition to any other damages the cost of removal of\nproperty shall be a lawful measure of damages.\n