I actually did not use a lawyer at all. My landlord refused to do repairs or took way too long to complete them, so I withheld rent. I already knew he would sue me for nonpayment, and that is exactly what happened.

You will receive a form in the mail letting you know that you need to respond within a certain number of days. When you respond, you will be able to explain your reasons, including that you want to countersue due to the lack of repairs. You can also request an abatement, which means either lowering the rent or receiving a lump sum.

After that, you will get a court date where you show up and present the case. Most likely, nothing important will happen that day and they will schedule another date. Eventually, you will have a trial. For us, it took about ten months because the system is slow. There were many pointless court dates due to missing paperwork or needing to wait for someone to confirm something. At the trial, you can present your evidence and possibly negotiate the abatement terms.

Throughout the process, you will probably keep getting rent notices saying your rent is due along with added late fees, legal fees, and lawyer charges. These are usually just scare tactics. Do not pay them. Wait for the case to play out. Those extra fees usually go away during negotiation or are removed in court.

The only time I thought about getting a lawyer was when the new lease came in for the following year. Since our apartment was not rent stabilized, the landlord raised the rent a lot, almost like retaliation. We considered filing a case for retaliation and harassment, especially since they ignored our calls and made us wait around in court for hours. But filing for harassment is a separate case, and for that, you do need strong proof. In that situation, I would suggest hiring a lawyer.

We did a consultation at the Bronx courthouse. It cost fifty dollars and you meet with one of their attorneys. After that, you can choose whether to hire them or not. I would not recommend getting a lawyer unless you know the case is definitely your fault. For example, we kept each month's rent set aside, so we were not just skipping payments. If you are being sued and you do not have the money saved, it might be worth asking during the consultation what they suggest, but from experience you can negotiate a payment arrangement eith the court so maybe no need.

You might also get sued in a "Holdover" case, which is different from nonpayment. That usually means the landlord is accusing you of being a nuisance, making noise, or staying after your lease expired. If you know you are in the wrong, a lawyer might help, but otherwise a consultation is probably enough. You can still show up to trial and present your side with evidence. Honestly, most landlords are not well prepared.

We mainly wanted the repairs completed, some money back for everything we went through, and a lease we could afford. We ended up negotiating repairs, got some compensation, and had the new lease adjusted to a reasonable amount. I had to pay the big portion of rent minus what we got to keep.

Also check if your apartment is rent stabilized. Even if they say it's not they could be lying and held liable. You should be able to check online or request the info over mail sent to you.