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Features

Ripeness and Zoning: Why Efforts to Bypass Local Land-Use Decisions Die on the Vine in the Second Circuit Image

Ripeness and Zoning: Why Efforts to Bypass Local Land-Use Decisions Die on the Vine in the Second Circuit

Leo Dorfman & Vincent Ferry

While the term ripeness may conjure up images of fruit or produce, in federal litigation it functions as a pragmatic barrier against premature judicial intervention. The plaintiffs in 61 E. Main St. Assoc., LLC v Vil. of Washingtonville felt the full force of this doctrine after their claims alleging unlawful, discriminatory delay in approving their project were dismissed as unripe for adjudication. The Southern District of New York reaffirmed the Second Circuit’s longstanding approach to zoning disputes: No Final Decision, No Federal Lawsuit.

Features

Court of Appeals Rules on 'Good Guy' Guarantees Image

Court of Appeals Rules on 'Good Guy' Guarantees

Thomas C. Lambert & Steven Shackman

The Court of Appeals reversed a line of lower court cases which had upended the expectations of innumerable contracting parties who bargained for limited “good guy” guaranties.

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The Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act After 'Laurelton' Image

The Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act After 'Laurelton'

Christopher Ryan Clarke

In 2019, the Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act/RPAPL §993 (the UPHPA) reshaped the rights of co-owners of inherited property in New York, replacing the traditional, sale-favoring partition system with a multi-layered process designed to limit the right to seek partition and to prioritize family ownership. The Second Department’s sweeping decision confirms that the partition landscape has drastically changed.

Constitutionality of Tax Sale Practices Questioned Image

Constitutionality of Tax Sale Practices Questioned

Stewart E. Sterk

When a village or other taxing authority conducts a tax lien sale, and the purchaser of the tax lien subsequently acquires a tax deed, what rights does the tax-delinquent former owner of the property enjoy?

Features

Adapting to the Fair Chance for Housing Act: A New Era for NYC Housing Providers Image

Adapting to the Fair Chance for Housing Act: A New Era for NYC Housing Providers

Cori A. Rosen

New York City enacted the Fair Chance for Housing Act on Jan. 1, 2025, a transformative law reshaping how criminal history influences housing decisions. Its goal is to address the disparate impact that review and consideration of criminal records may have on the ability of persons of color to obtain housing.

Features

Appellate Division First Department Declares Fee Mandate of Soho/Noho Rezoning Unconstitutional Image

Appellate Division First Department Declares Fee Mandate of Soho/Noho Rezoning Unconstitutional

Jack L. Lester & Lawrence K. Marks

This past December, the Appellate Division, First Department struck down a key provision of New York City’s recently amended Zoning Resolution.

Features

City of Yes: Housing Opportunity — A Little Bit Of Everything, Everywhere Image

City of Yes: Housing Opportunity — A Little Bit Of Everything, Everywhere

David Rosenberg

New York City’s recently adopted City of Yes for Housing Opportunity (CHO) represents the most significant overhaul of residential zoning regulations in decades. The interplay between existing procedures and new provisions will likely generate significant interpretive questions and litigation as developers seek to take advantage of these opportunities.

Features

'Melendez/Bochner': No Guarantee the Guaranty Law Survives Constitutional Scrutiny Image

'Melendez/Bochner': No Guarantee the Guaranty Law Survives Constitutional Scrutiny

Claude G. Szyfer & Daria D. Anichkova

After nearly four years of litigation, the Second Circuit held recently that a small commercial landlord lacked standing to seek declaratory relief against the City of New York challenging the Guaranty Law under the Contracts Clause of the U.S. Constitution.

Features

Individual Liability of Condominium Sponsor's Principals Image

Individual Liability of Condominium Sponsor's Principals

Stewart E. Sterk

When are the principals of a condominium sponsor individually liable for harms suffered by purchasers? In Board of Managers of 570 Broome Condominium, the First Department declined to dismiss a condominium board's fraud and breach of fiduciary claims against individual defendants.

Features

'Huguenot LLC v. Megalith Capital Group Fund I, L.P.': A Tutorial On Contract Liability for Real Estate Purchasers Image

'Huguenot LLC v. Megalith Capital Group Fund I, L.P.': A Tutorial On Contract Liability for Real Estate Purchasers

William J. Geller & Robert J. Braverman

In June 2024, the First Department decided Huguenot LLC v. Megalith Capital Group Fund I, L.P., which resolved a question of liability for a group of condominium apartment buyers and in so doing, touched on a wide range of issues about how contracts can obligate purchasers of real property.

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