Category Archives: Landlord-Tenant

Commercial Lease Required Redelivery of Space at End of Term in Same Condition as at Start

This was originally posted on the SGR Blog.

Court Adjudicates Consequences of Tenant’s Removal of Improvements Made by Landlord

Commercial leases often require the tenant to vacate and deliver the space back to the landlord at the end of the term in the condition of the premises at the beginning of the lease. But, as a recent case illustrates, the landlord and tenant may disagree on whether or not certain improvements may or may not be removed where the cost of installation was shared by the parties.

Wallkill Medical Development, LLC, as landlord, and Medi-Fair, Inc., as tenant, entered into a 10-year commercial lease with regard to the ground floor of a newly constructed medical office building located in Middletown.

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Tenant Vacates but Fails to Restore Premises at End of Lease

This was originally posted on the SGR Blog.

Was Tenant Liable for Increased Holdover Monthly Rent?

Many commercial leases require a tenant who makes alterations to the premises to restore the space to its pre-alteration condition at the end of the lease term. But what is the consequence where the tenant timely vacates but fails to restore?

605 Fifth Property Owner LLC sought damages from Luxottica Holding Corp. arising out of an alleged breach of a commercial lease. On December 1, 2009, Luxottica’s predecessor, Sunglass Hut Trading, LLC, executed a lease to take possession of a commercial space located at 605 Fifth Avenue, New York, New York. At the time the original lease was signed, the premises consisted of the basement, ground floor, mezzanine, and second floor portions of the building.

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Commercial Tenant Alleges Numerous Violations of Lease by Landlord

This was originally published on the SGR Blog.

Court Adjudicates Legal Sufficiency of Nine Causes of Action

Gotham Real Estate Developers LLC leased the entire second floor of 432 Park Avenue South from 432 Park South Realty Co LLC. The lease commenced July 1, 2015 and expires December 31, 2026.

In or around the spring of 2016, Gotham claimed the premises HVAC stopped working and Park Ave South failed and refused to undertake the necessary repairs or replacements, causing Gotham to replace the unit so as to mitigate its damages and to continue its normal business operations.

On March 18, 2018, Park Ave South received a summons from the New York City Department of Buildings for its “failure to submit acceptable 8th round report of critical examination documenting condition of exterior walls and appurtenances required[.]” On October 26, 2018, Park Ave South filed the required compliance document with the DOB, showing the building’s facade to be “unsafe.” Soon after, Park Ave South hired A. Rodriguez Construction LLC (ARC). In December 2018, ARC began work to fix the building’s century-old terra cotta façade, a project which, photographed documentation showed, entailed extensive scaffolding and netting around the entire building.

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Courier Injured in Fall in Premises Leased by FedEx:

This was originally published on the SGR Blog.

Was Out-of-Possession Landlord Liable for the Injury?

Julia M. Frenza sought monetary damages for personal injuries allegedly sustained on September 18, 2018, when she tripped and fell due to a crack in an interior floor of premises owned by Four State Commercial Developers LLC (FSCD).  At the time of her accident, Frenza was working as a courier for Federal Express Corporation (FedEx) at the premises, which was leased and operated by FedEx as a warehouse. The accident occurred inside a facility in an area used to house vehicles. Frenza claimed that FSCD was negligent in failing to properly maintain and repair the interior flooring.

FSCD contended that it could not be held liable for Frenza’s injuries, since it was an out-of-possession landlord with no on-going presence at the premises and with limited access to the premises under its lease with FedEx. In addition, FSCD argued that the lease made FedEx solely responsible for the repair and maintenance of the interior ground where the allegedly hazardous condition was located. Finally, FSCD claimed that the crack in the ground did not constitute structural damage for which an out-of-possession landlord would normally be responsible. FSCD moved to dismiss the complaint.

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Commercial Tenant Alleges Numerous Violations of Lease by Landlord

This was originally published on the SGR Blog.

Court Adjudicates Legal Sufficiency of Nine Causes of Action

Gotham Real Estate Developers LLC leased the entire second floor of 432 Park Avenue South from 432 Park South Realty Co LLC. The lease commenced July 1, 2015 and expires December 31, 2026.

In or around the spring of 2016, Gotham claimed the premises HVAC stopped working and Park Ave South failed and refused to undertake the necessary repairs or replacements, causing Gotham to replace the unit so as to mitigate its damages and to continue its normal business operations.

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Managing Agent for Residential Landlord Failed to Return Security Deposit

This was originally published on the SGR Blog.

enant Awarded Deposit with Interest & Punitive Damages

Arlene Marie Karole commenced a small claims action against 340 West End Ave, LLC seeking $2,655.86 in damages for West End Ave’s failure to return a security deposit for an apartment which Karole had leased. On February 1, 2022, Karole amended her claim to increase the amount of damages to $3,851.89.

The Court conducted a nonjury trial. Karole appeared virtually via Microsoft Teams. West End Ave appeared in person by Steven Kirschner, the president of Kay Equities, the management company of the apartment building.

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Worker Hurt Doing Jobs Requested by Tenant:

This was originally posted on the SGR Blog.

Was Absentee Owner Liable For The Injury?

A residential tenant signs a lease with an owner who holds the title for investment purposes. The tenant engages a handyman to prune a tree on the property. The worker is injured and sues the out-of-possession landlord. Did the handyman assert a legally cognizable claim?

The accident took place on March 24, 2018 in the backyard of 340 Halsey Street in Brooklyn, New York. The two-family house was owned by Advance Financial Realty Corp. for investment purposes. The duplex on the first and second floors, with exclusive use of the backyard, were rented to a residential tenant and his wife, James and Kimberly Nester. Kimberly Nester asked Wilson Loja to come to her home to prune a tree in the backyard. James Nester testified that Loja agreed to do the work without payment, and that he did not obtain permission for the work from Advance, nor did he inform Advance about having the work done.

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Sibling Challenges 1990 Lease by Parents to Son and Daughter-In-Law

This was originally posted on the SGR Bloog.

Was Photocopy of Lease Dispositive Evidence of Lost Original?

Many real property disputes arise out of written contracts, such as a lease. The “original” lease is the “best evidence” of the agreement. With the passage of time, the original document often cannot be found. As a recent case illustrates, the Court must then determine if what is propounded as a photocopy is an evidentiary substitute for the original.

Peter and Elizabeth Casanas, husband and wife, sued Carlei Group, LLC, alleging that in 1990, they executed a lease with the owner of the building located at 73 West 82nd Street, in New York County, for apartment 3C/3W, in which they resided. And sought a declaration of their rights as lessees.

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Residential Tenant Vacates Apartment Before End of Lease Term:

This was originally posted on the SGR Blog.

Did Landlord Have/Fulfill Duty to Mitigate Damages by Reletting?

In 2019, the New York State Legislature amended the Real Property Law to mandate that landlords “shall, in good faith and according to the landlord’s resources and abilities, take reasonable and customary actions to rent the premises” vacated by a tenant during the term of a residential lease. Thus, landlords under residential leases now have the same obligations as commercial landlords to attempt to mitigate their damages when a tenant vacates the premises in violation of the lease. Needless to say, as a recent case illustrates, the Court may be called upon to determine if the actions taken by a landlord to re-let a vacated apartment were reasonable and customary.

The 14 East 4th Street Unit 509 LLC moved for partial summary judgment on its first and fourth causes of action, for breach of contract for unpaid rent and attorney’s fees, respectively, as well as to dismiss affirmative defenses and counterclaim of Michael Toporek—who opposed the motion and cross-moved for summary judgment on all East 4th’s causes of action and on his counterclaim.

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Halloween Party Guest Injured in Fall from Loading Dock:

This was originally posted on the SGR Blog.

Was Owner of Apartment Building Liable for Damages?

Occasionally, as recited in a decision, the facts of a dispute boggle the mind. A recent case is illustrative.

On October 27, 2012, Steve Savitz attended a Halloween party hosted by Ari Taub at his apartment building, a former warehouse that had been converted into a residential rental building, owned by Lido Knitting, Inc. The building was equipped with a loading dock, which was used by the tenants for dropping off and picking up bulky items at the building. The loading dock area was lit by a 120-watt, switch-controlled spotlight mounted high on the back wall of the loading dock, which was illuminated at all times unless the building’s superintendent turned it off for maintenance purposes.

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