New York City Agencies issue summonses for violations of quality of life laws and other City rules and regulations.
These summonses, also called Environmental Control Board (ECB) Violations, include charges for:
- Health code violations
- Dirty or blocked sidewalks
- Improper garbage and recycling disposal
- Loitering
- Noise
The Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings (OATH) is an administrative court that holds hearings involving these types of violations. OATH is separate and distinct from the enforcement Agencies that issue the summonses.
OATH does not hold hearings for:
- Parking tickets
- Camera violations
- Traffic violations
- Criminal violations
Responding to an OATH Summons
You must respond to an OATH summons by the hearing date. All the information you need is provided on the ticket.
If your summons says “mail-in penalty,” you can pay it without having to participate in a hearing. If it doesn’t, you must participate in a hearing.
If your summons says “must appear” or if it was issued by the Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (DCWP), you must attend a hearing in person. If it doesn’t, you may be able have a hearing online, by phone, by mail, or by web cam instead.
Scheduling a Hearing
You must schedule your hearing with OATH in advance.
All hearings are being conducted by phone, but a party may request an in-person hearing by emailing livehearings@oath.nyc.gov at least 5 business days before the scheduled hearing date.
All approved in-person appearances are held at:
66 John Street, 10th Floor
New York, NY 10038
Rescheduling Hearings
You can reschedule your hearing once. OATH must get the request to reschedule before the scheduled hearing date. You can use the Online Rescheduling Form to make the request.
If you receive a decision finding you in default for failure to appear at a hearing, you have 75 days to submit your first request for a new hearing and have your request be automatically granted and a new hearing date sent in the mail.
Hearing Assistance
If you are self-represented and want assistance from OATH's Help Center prior to your hearing, you can email manhelpcenter@oath.nyc.gov and someone will email or call you back.
Small businesses that are self-represented can contact the Small Business Unit of the Help Center at smallbizhelp@oath.nyc.gov.