Case Law Summaries

Contimortgage Corporation v. Sabo

• Opinion Date: December 10, 2001
• Real Property Law
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FORECLOSURE; TENANTS—The protections of the Anti-Eviction Act in a foreclosure do not apply to a tenant who is sharing a house with its owner.

In a mortgage foreclosure action, a purported tenant appealed from the lower court’s order for possession in favor of the mortgagee. The lower court had found that the objector was not a tenant entitled to protections of the Anti-Eviction Act, because the purported lease was a sham designed to defeat the rights of the mortgagee. Further, the lower court concluded that even if the lease was not a sham, “the provision of the Anti-Eviction Act relied upon, N.J.S.A. 2A:18-61.1, would not provide protection ... because that provision ‘does not apply to a tenant who is sharing a house with a landlord.’ The Appellate Division reviewed the record and agreed with the lower court’s analysis of the facts and the pertinent principles of law.

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