By Adam Leitman Bailey, Leonard H. Ritz and Dov Treiman Jan. 15, 2013 — In this second of two installments, leading real-estate attorneys answer more condo and co-op board members have been asking about what’s expected of them and of shareholders / unit-owners in the terrible aftermath of superstorm Sandy. Q: Does the Board have Full Article…
Finding Individual Tort Liability for Cooperative and Condominium Board Members, the Appellate Division Takes a Large Scalpel to Business Judgment Rule, Thompson Reuters News & Insight
By Adam Leitman Bailey, John M. Desiderio Recently, the Appellate Division First Department, in Fletcher v. Dakota, Inc.,1 held that the business judgment rule does not protect individual condo and co-op board members from personal tort liability where a board acting in its corporate capacity has acted in bad faith, but where it is not Full Article…
Applying the Business Judgement Rule: Individual Tort Liability for Co-op & Condo Boards, The Cooperator
By Adam Leitman Bailey February 1st, 2013 Recently, the Appellate Division First Department, in Fletcher v. Dakota, Inc., involving a shareholder in The Dakota, a historic luxury co-op on the Upper West Side, held that the business judgment rule does not protect individual condo and co-op board members from personal tort liability where a board Full Article…
Owner’s Rights to Inspect Management Records, New York Law Journal and N.Y. Real Property Journal
By Adam Leitman Bailey April 10th, 2013 Since the Legislature gave birth to the first cooperative and condominium laws, very few issues have had as much attention and confusion as boards’ concerns about the extent of unit owners’ access to inspect the management books and records. Regarding cooperative buildings, many of the most prominent questions Full Article…
Manhattan Newly Constructed Condominium Takes Over Sponsor Controlled Board and Receives $450k + Apartment + Significant Construction Work without Judicial Intervention
The unit owners of a 24 unit luxury new construction condominium in Manhattan hired Adam Leitman Bailey, P.C. after the unit owners’ complaints and concerns about construction defects were ignored by the sponsor-controlled Board, and demands by the unit owners to the sponsor that the sponsor turn over control of the Board to the residents Full Article…
Advising Boards on Handling Secondhand Smoke Issues
By: Adam Leitman Bailey & John M. Desiderio January 30th, 2013 Some of the most intense combat occurring in modern times may not be that which has taken place on the battlefield, but rather in the ongoing conflicts that occur between shareholders, owners, and renters of apartments in multiple dwelling buildings, between themselves and/or with Full Article…
Q & A: Maintenance Rises After Units Are Combined
By Jay Romano Q We recently bought a small studio apartment next to our one-bedroom and created a two-bedroom. We are paying maintenance on the two units as if they had never been combined. There is a similar apartment in the building that has fewer shares — and pays less maintenance — for the same-size apartment Full Article…
Directors and Officers Insurance Does Not Cover Intentional Discrimination
By Adam Leitman Bailey & Colin E. Kaufman In a recent decision that sent shivers of concern across New York co-op and condo boards, the state’s highest court held that the Business Judgment Rule does not protect individual condominium and cooperative board members against some personal liability. In response, real estate and insurance attorneys are reviewing directors and officers (D&O) policies and Full Article…