The first thing that a landlord must understand is that when starting the evictions process NYC tenants must be taken to court, and it is, in effect, a court proceeding in which the judge will determine if you can evict a tenant from your property. According to Mr. Syed, considered the best eviction lawyer NYC » has in practice, you must first send out a notice to your tenant, outlining the time and location of the court proceedings, and the reason(s) why you are evicting them.