KMWB Secures Appellate Win, Reinstates $400K+ Lease Claim
KMWB attorney Jeffrey Levine recently secured a unanimous victory before the Appellate Division, First Department, reversing a lower court decision that had dismissed our client’s action against a commercial tenant and lease guarantor on res judicata grounds. This important ruling allows our client, a commercial landlord, to move forward with its claim for recovery of more than $400,000 in rental arrears from a former commercial tenant and lease guarantor.
The dispute arose from a claim asserted in the Supreme Court for unpaid rent that had not been fully adjudicated in an earlier summary nonpayment proceeding due to, among other things, the jurisdictional limitations of the Civil Court. The Appellate Division confirmed that res judicata does not apply to bar a claim when the court in a prior proceeding lacked the authority to award the relief sought in connection with that claim, underscoring a critical rule of law involving jurisdictional limitations and res judicata.
Read the full decision here.
For questions about this matter or similar issues, please contact Jeffrey Levine at [email protected] or reach out to your trusted KMWB advisor.