Gradually, New York’s courts, like the rest of the state, are returning to a “new normal.” When the justices of the Appellate Divisions have not been hearing arguments by videoconference, they have been hard at work writing opinions for cases brought in simpler times, and for some prompted by COVID, too.  Below are some of the highlights from the second quarter of 2020.

First Department

NYC Human Rights Law (NYCHRL). The NYCHRL forbids landlords from discriminating against tenants because of “any lawful source of income.” Does that include security deposit vouchers issued by the New York City Human Resources Administration (HRA), which guarantee payment of security deposits? In Estates NY Real Estate Servs. v. City of New York, 2020 N.Y. Slip Op. 03093 (1st Dep’t May 28, 2020), the First Department held that it does.