Petitioner appeals from an order of the Civil Court of the City of New York, New York County (Kelly O'Neill Levy, J.), dated August 29, 2013, which dismissed the petition in an illegal lockout proceeding (see RPAPL 713[10]).

Per Curiam.

Order (Kelly O'Neill Levy, J.), dated August 29, 2013 reversed, without costs, petition reinstated and matter remanded to Civil Court for further proceedings.

The hearing court erred in dismissing the underlying illegal lockout proceeding based upon the morning colloquy — during which no sworn testimony was elicited or evidence received — and the parties' (apparent) untranscribed afternoon court appearance. Given the unsatisfactory state of the record, it is unclear whether, as claimed, respondent-tenant surrendered possession of the apartment premises, an event which, if properly established, would render moot the possessory issues raised by petitioner. Nor does the informal procedure utilized below allow meaningful appellate review of the substantive issues here in play, including those relating to petitioner's occupancy of the apartment premises at the time of the alleged illegal lockout and the legality of respondent-tenant's actions (see Matter of Gelrod v Levine, 24 AD2d 756 [1965] Radin v Carrow, 38 Misc 3d 132[A], 2013 NY Slip Op 50014[U] [App Term, 1st Dept 2013]). In reinstating the petition, we express no view as to the justiciability of the matter or the ultimate outcome on the merits.

THIS CONSTITUTES THE DECISION AND ORDER OF THE COURT.
Decision Date: March 21, 2014