Q: I dwell in a six-story rental setting up in Washington Heights, with 5 residences for every floor. My neighbor across the corridor put in a Ring digital camera that captures the entire floor. It faces my apartment straight, delivering a apparent perspective inside of when I open the doorway. Aside from the reality that it is not comfortable being aware of that all my comings and goings are currently being recorded, I marvel if this is lawful. What can I do about it?

A: Your neighbor does not have the proper to spot just about anything in the hallway, such as a doorway digital camera, without having the landlord’s consent. It is unlikely that your landlord has provided the neighbor authorization to do this mainly because landlords generally do not want tenants harming the walls or recording what is heading on in the hallways.

“I’ve by no means heard of a landlord consenting to a camera,” said David E. Frazer, a law firm who signifies tenants. “It creates issues and it most likely damages walls and ceilings.”

Convey to your landlord about the cameras, expressing your concern for the making and the partitions. With any luck, that will resolve the challenge. If, having said that, the landlord decides not to get concerned, your remaining options are limited, for the reason that the presence of a camera in a typical hallway is not illegal.

As a tenant, you do not have the presumption of privateness in common locations of buildings, like hallways, elevators and lobbies. That absence of privateness extends to the spot within your apartment that is obvious when you open the door. So whilst your neighbor may possibly not be permitted to set up a digicam and place it instantly at your doorway, your landlord can. “The courts have held that the landlord has a right to put a digicam in the hallway and even disguise it,” Mr. Frazer stated.

If the landlord does not purchase your neighbor to take out the camera, your only recourse would be to speak with your neighbor specifically. Discuss to the neighbor, if you can, and check with if they would, at the incredibly minimum, reposition the digicam absent from your doorway.

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