LACHTMAN COHEN P.C. ACHIEVES A UNANIMOUS WIN IN THE APPELLATE DIVISION, FIRST DEPARTMENT
On March 24, 2022, the Appellate Division, First Department unanimously affirmed a significant victory that the firm’s trial team of Brian Cohen and Greg Blue achieved in favor of our clients, a group of Unit Owners in the Empire Condominium at 259 Elizabeth Street in Soho/Nolita.
Our clients alleged that Empire’s Sponsor and her family improperly dominated the Board and controlled its decision-making decades after the Offering Plan became effective and engaged in improper self-dealing. Our clients claimed that the defendants’ actions breached the Offering Plan, the By-Laws, and their fiduciary duties to Unit Owners.
The decision (attached) upholds NYS Supreme Court (Commercial Division) Justice Joel M. Cohen’s Decision After Non-Jury Trial in which the Court ordered, among other remedies, a dissolution of Empire’s Board of Managers with a full “reset” election and restrictions on the defendants’ ability to hold Board seats, which stripped the defendants of control of the Board that they unlawfully maintained for decades.
Firm partner Brian Cohen, who briefed and argued the appeal: “We’re honored to have represented our clients in this hard fought litigation and thrilled that the Appellate Division unanimously affirmed Justice Cohen’s important trial decision, which has significant implications concerning the governance and management of New York condominiums and cooperatives.”
The case, Tsui v. Chou, et al., was filed in the Supreme Court of the State of New York, New York County, Commercial Division, Index No. 652840/2013, AD Case Nos. 2021-01592/02662.
Read the Appellate Division, First Department’s DECISION AND ORDER.
About Lachtman Cohen P.C.
Lachtman Cohen P.C., with offices in New York City, Westchester County, the Hudson Valley, and Greenwich, Connecticut, is a sophisticated, full-service law firm that represents a diverse clientele of corporations, entrepreneurs, and individuals in business and real estate transactions and complex litigation.
CONTACT:
Brian S. Cohen
Tel: (646) 838-0275
Email: bcohen@lcpclaw.com