The New York State moratorium on the Commercial Eviction Summary Proceedings was set to expire on October 20th, 2020. However, on that day, Governor Andrew Cuomo executed a new executive order (Executive Order 202.70) extending the moratorium through the new year.
To some, following the day-to-day changes and the Executive Orders issued during the COVID-19 pandemic, the 11th-hour extension came as no surprise. The Commercial Moratorium does not simply bar an eviction in commercial non-payment in New York City but bars the commencement of a proceeding that may lead to that eviction.
Commercial tenants also received additional relief from the City of New York. Local Law 55 of 2020 of the Administrative Code of the City of New York was amended on September 28th, 2020, so that the temporary prohibition of the enforcement of personal liability provisions in a commercial lease or rental agreement for certain COVID-19 impacted tenants was extended through March 31, 2021. Effectively this Administrative Code prohibition may bar the commencement of guarantee actions against commercial tenants for rent accruing during the COVID-19 pandemic through at least April of 2021. However, the craftsmanship of the Amendment and the original Administrative Code left a lot of questions as to how courts would interpret this, or to begin with, whether it was even enforceable.
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