On Friday, April 3, animal rights activist Natalie Reeves had just exited the arraignment of Dorota Trec—a rabbit hoarder that Reeves helped bring to justice—when a stack of papers was thrown into her arms by a man with the words “You’ve been served!” Reading through the paperwork, Reeves found that

Zoning issues are an often overlooked aspect of residential and commercial real estate transactions. While you may own a piece of property, you may not have the right to do whatever you wish with the land. Every municipality in New York enforces their own zoning regulations and failure to strictly

Whenever you contract for a specific product or service, it is important to spell out exactly what you expect to receive from the other party. A contract should not be ambiguous or vague on these points. To give a simple example, if you sign a contract to purchase a house,

Not all motor vehicle accidents are the result of driver negligence. Often times, the vehicles themselves are defective. Normally an automobile manufacturer can be held liable for such defects. But unfortunately, political lobbying can tilt the playing field in favor of the manufacturers, denying legitimate victims their day in court.

Hilton is one of the world’s best-known hotel companies. One of its more popular brands is Hampton Inn, which has about 1,800 locations in the United States. Hilton does not own many of its hotels, but rather signs franchise agreements with local owner-operators. Recently a federal appeals court decided a

New York real estate developers and advocates for affordable housing are locked in political combat right now over the fate of a popular tax abatement program. Known as the 421-A Program, this tax benefit applies to most newly constructed housing built within New York City. The program dates back to

On March 30, a state supreme court justice in Buffalo dismissed a complaint brought by New York Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman against HSBC, the United Kingdom-based international banking conglomerate, whom the attorney general accused of “failing to follow state law related to foreclosure actions, putting homeowners at greater risk of losing

What constitutes a contract? Under the New York Statute of Frauds, a contract must be “in writing,” but that does not necessarily mean a lengthy, formal document. An exchange of emails may suffice, provided they contain a complete agreement between the parties. A federal appeals court in New York recently

Insurance companies often disclaim coverage, sometimes for legitimate reasons, sometimes not. Insurance is a type of contract, and as such its terms are generally construed quite strictly by the courts. An insurer cannot escape an obligation to cover an insured party without complying with all of the requirements of the

If you are hit by a car and suffer serious injuries, it logically follows you may wish to sue the driver of the vehicle. But what other parties may be responsible? The Appellate Division, Third Department, recently considered such a case. A pedestrian struck by a car argued a second