After his mother's death, Bertrand Girigorie claimed he had "succession rights" to her apartment. But the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) didn't agree, because the guy couldn't establish he had lived with his mom for the requisite period prior to her demise.
When he filed suit with the New York County Supreme Court to have HPD's determination annulled, that court granted relief in Girigorie's favor and gave him another opportunity to prove that he lived in the unit during the relevant timeframe.
On appeal, the Appellate Division, First Department, thought HPD's denial of succession rights had a rational basis since Girigorie couldn't demonstrate that his mother's apartment was his primary residence for the two year period immediately preceding her death. In the appellate court's view, giving Girigorie extra time to produce evidence was more of an exercise, particularly since he wasn't able to show that he had filed a NYC income tax return (or that he hadn't been obligated to do so).
The AD1 sure cut that cord.
To view a copy of the Appellate Division's decision, please use this link: Matter of Girigorie v. New York City Dept. of Hous. Preserv. & Dev.