MAJOR WORLD CHEVROLET v. SALAS (2023)

Determination of respondent Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings, dated January 24, 2019, finding, after a trial, that petitioners violated, among other things, Administrative Code § 20–700, and imposing an aggregate civil penalty of $3,164,875, unanimously confirmed, the petition denied, and the proceeding brought pursuant to CPLR article 78 (transferred to this Court by order, Supreme Court, New York County [Debra A. James, J.], entered February 26, 2021) dismissed, without costs.

Courts must defer to an agency's “rational interpretation of its own regulations in its area of expertise” (Matter of Peckham v. Calogero, 12 N.Y.3d 424, 431, 883 N.Y.S.2d 751, 911 N.E.2d 813 [2009]) and to the agency's reasonable interpretation of statutory language that is “susceptible to conflicting interpretations” (Matter of Chin v. New York City Bd. of Stds. & Appeals, 97 A.D.3d 485, 487, 948 N.Y.S.2d 300 [1st Dept. 2012], lv denied 19 N.Y.3d 815, 2012 WL 5308670 [2012]).  Accordingly, we defer to the Administrative Law Judge's (ALJ) rational interpretation of 6 RCNY 5–33 to require a consumer to be provided with Spanish translations of any documents related to a vehicle sale agreement negotiated in Spanish, as long as the consumer agreed to pay for the vehicle in installments, regardless of whether each document related to the installment payment agreement.

The ALJ's finding that petitioners provided consumers with documents effectively purporting to waive their rights under Vehicle and Traffic Law § 417, in violation of 6 RCNY 2–103(g)(1)(iii), is supported by substantial evidence.

The penalties are not shockingly disproportionate to the offense, in light of “the seriousness of petitioners’ extensive violations” (Matter of Givens v. City of New York, 177 A.D.3d 532, 113 N.Y.S.3d 687 [1st Dept. 2019], lv denied 35 N.Y.3d 903, 2020 WL 2204164 [2020]).  The ALJ properly imposed certain penalties on a per-violation or per-advertisement basis (see Matter of Van Cortlandt Park Dodge, Inc. v. Commissioner of Dept. of Consumer Affairs of City of N.Y., 178 A.D.2d 234, 235–236, 577 N.Y.S.2d 274 [1st Dept 1991]).

We have considered petitioners’ remaining arguments and find them unavailing.