small claims in NY

I rent a home share. Tenant hasn't paid his rent most of the four months he has lived there. Paid 3 weeks. Once I requested he pay his rent, he started complaining about my horriable place. I have every email to prove what has happened and not one complaint before I requested he pay his rent.

My daughter was going out of her mind with his friends in the place and his extreme noise. Texts but nothing else. Please bring down the noise.

He now hires a friends employer, a atty. He calls me and says I should just let him out of the lease and not have to pay the $2900 he owes me. As I stated to him would he allow a client just not to pay your bill of $2900.

Took to court last week, no notice to me but his atty notified the court that he couldn't be there. I waited 4 hours to learn this.

This atty is now going to play that this is not a legal home share and therefore he doesn't have to pay his rent. What can I do to protect myself. These dirt bags go from home not paying there rent and there is no way to notify others of this person. He was told if a additional person, rent would be extra $100 for utilities, a/c $50 per month, has paid nothing, and had his a/c going for 4 months

what can I do to protect myself...

Suggestions from a retired LL:

It is your duty to prove he owes you rent.

NY law seems to make just about every roommate or share deal into a lease with the tenant having rights and a pile of them --BUT its your duty to prove he was YOUR tenant with a duty to pay rent in the amount you seek.

In geneal an oral deal counts and the fact that he paid in beginning sure helps establish that there was an agreement to pay, deal to pay.

Now in some juisdictions a deal which violates the law renders the deal unenforceable but not every wart on a deal renders it unenforceable --sorry you need a legal pro to sort thru the specifics of your NY problems on that one.

But my read of NY problems is that tenant always gets benefit if the LL makes a mistake.

Hint --a friends attorney is not going to work free/cheap for long and rentals may not be that attorney's cup of legal tea --so force it a few more rounds

If this person still in the place???

I believe NY small claims proceedure permits discovery --so why not give the defendant  a pile of relevant logical work to do?

Maybe I'm dense but I can't figure out who's who.

Are you the owner who rents out the place or do you rent it from someone else?

Do you live there or your daughter?

Is your daughter a tenant who signed a lease.

The person who isn't paying rent, is he not paying it to you or is he not paying it to somebody else?

Are he and your daughter roommates?

Are there other roommates?

Who took who to court?

"he was told"? Don't you have a written rental contract?