A Man’s Home is his Castle (and Notice of Pendency, an overview)

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One of the most important ownership rights in this country is the ownership of one’s house. The old phrase “A Man’s Home is his Castle,” was born from the basic concept that ownership of real estate is the hallmark of freedom.

Contrast the above concept with the other, important concept: we all live in this world together. In living together, we necessarily engage in conduct that requires us to act and react to events external from our personal dominions.

These two concepts intersect at various times, but one place where they come into direct contact is when the law touches upon a person’s home. This may come about when one sells or buys a house; gets injured on someone’s property; obtains or gives a mortgage on the house; leases part or all of a building; or invests in commercial or residential property.

Various issues may develop into litigation concerning real estate matters, including:

  • Contracts: Litigation around contracts to buy or sell real estate can arise.
  • “Pushy neighbors”: Disputes over property lines, construction or zoning.
  • Auctions: Transactions and litigation surrounding the purchase of residential or commercial property, condominium units, or cooperative apartments at foreclosure auctions.
  • Fraud: Mortgage fraud, Deed theft, or breaches of confidential relationships.
  • Specific performance: Forcing the seller to close title even though he doesn’t want to.
  • Partition and Sale: When co-owners of the real estate no longer agree about ownership or management of the property, they can seek a sort-of “divorce” by bringing a partition-and-sale action to have the court order the property sold and the net proceeds divided.

Notice of Pendency, an overview

When litigation surrounding real estate is involved, there is generally a need or desire to file a “Notice of Pendency” (or commonly known as a “Lis Pendens”). This is a notice to any potential purchasers or mortgagees that there is litigation involving the property which may affect its “title, use or enjoyment.” This provides protection that the owner of the real property will not sell, transfer, mortgage, or dispose of it, thus leaving the suing party high and dry, before the litigation is over.

Anyone who decides to buy or give a loan with the property as collateral will think twice, knowing that someone out there is making a claim against the property. This can be a very powerful tool, given that owners of property usually have an inalienable right to sell their property as they choose.

by Richard A. Klass, Esq.

R. A. Klass
Your Court Street Lawyer

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Debt Collection Tips: Restraining an Account

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Once the creditor has obtained a Judgment from a court, one of the options for obtaining payment of the Judgment is to restrain funds of the debtor contained in an account.

The process is to serve a “restraining notice” upon the subject bank, as permitted by statute.  In turn, the bank then holds the funds contained in accounts belonging to the judgment debtor pending further action on the part of the creditor.  This restraint remains in effect upon the funds for a period of one year.

The next step of the creditor is to remove the restrained funds from the bank.  This is done either through an Execution issued to a Sheriff or Marshal (since that person is deemed as “enforcement officer” able to obtain the funds), or through a “turn-over proceeding,” where the creditor begins a separate action against the debtor and the bank as a garnishee requesting that the court direct the garnishee/bank to turn over the restrained funds.

Once the restrained funds are delivered to the creditor through either of the above methods, the accounts of the debtor will continue to be restrained by the bank (where, in the event that new funds were deposited, they would be restrained as well) until the creditor issues a “release” letter to the bank or a Satisfaction of Judgment is filed by the creditor.

Where an account of the debtor is held jointly with another person, it is necessary to file a turn-over proceeding, as the court must determine the respective rights of the account-holders to the funds.  One defense to the proceeding is that the debtor is a joint account-holder only for convenience purposes.

copyr. 2014 Richard A. Klass, Esq.
The firm’s website: www.CourtStreetLaw.com
Richard A. Klass, Esq., maintains a law firm engaged in civil litigation in Brooklyn Heights, New York.
He may be reached at (718) COURT-ST or e-ml to RichKlass@courtstreetlaw.comcreate new email with any questions.
Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.

R. A. Klass
Your Court Street Lawyer

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Statute of Limitations for Legal Malpractice Action

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CPLR 214(6) provides that “ an action to recover damages for malpractice, other than medical, dental or podiatric malpractice, regardless of whether the underlying theory is based in contract or tort ” must be commenced within 3 years.
 
The cause of action for malpractice accrues at the time of the act, error or omission. See, Julian v. Carrol, 270 AD2d 457 [2d Dept. 2000]; Goicoechea v. Law Offices of Stephen Kihl, 234 AD2d 507 [2d Dept. 1996]; Shumsky v. Eisenstein, 96 NY2d 164 [2001].
 
The Court of Appeals has held that a cause of action for legal malpractice accrues against the attorney when the statute of limitations expires on the underlying action for which the attorney was retained. See, Shumsky v. Eisenstein, supra. In Burgess v. Long Island Railroad Authority, 79 NY2d 777 [1991], the Court of Appeals held:
 
The Continuous Representation Toll of a Legal Malpractice Action
The accrual of the three-year statute of limitations is tolled during the period of the lawyer’s continuous representation in the same matter out of which the malpractice arose under the theory that the client should not be expected to question the lawyer’s advice while he is still representing the client. See, Lamellen v. Kupplungbau GmbH v. Lerner, 166 AD2d 505 [2d Dept. 1990]; Shumsky v. Eisenstein, supra. Under the continuous representation doctrine, there must be clear indicia of an ongoing, continuous, developing, and dependent relationship between the client and the lawyer. See, Kanter v. Pieri, 11 AD3d 912 [4 Dept. 2004]; Lamellen v. Kupplungbau GmbH v. Lerner, supra; Clark v. Jacobsen, 202 AD2d 466 [2 Dept. 1994].

R. A. Klass
Your Court Street Lawyer

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What the Seller of a Cooperative Apartment Should Know

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The owner of an apartment (also referred to as a “unit”) in a cooperative apartment building (“co-op”) must be aware of several matters relating to the sale of the unit.

  1. Transferability
    Most unit owners are permitted to sell their unit to anyone they choose. However, the owner should be aware of any special rules relating to the sale of the unit to others such as restrictions on shares or rights of first refusal.
  2. Pay-off of mortgage
    If the unit owner has borrowed money, using the co-op unit as collateral, then a “pay-off” statement should be ordered from the lender. Also, unlike a mortgage upon real estate, the lender or its representative must be present at the closing (because the lender has typically taken the actual shares of stock and proprietary lease into its possession at the time of the loan).

  3. Liens/judgments
    If there are any liens against the unit owner, ranging from tax liens to judgments to home equity lines, those liens must be paid at or before the closing. The buyer’s attorney will send a judgment/lien search to the seller to identify any such liens to be cleared.
  4. Flip taxes
    Some co-ops impose a “flip tax” or transfer charge upon the seller of a unit. These flip taxes can be based upon a percentage of the sale price, flat amount, percentage based upon the difference between the original purchase price and the sale price, or some other computation. The unit owner should find out what those flip taxes will be before selling the unit in order to ensure that the sale price will cover the flip tax, along with any other charges or liens to be paid at the closing.
  5. Original documents
    Unless the unit owner has a lender, who is holding the shares of stock and proprietary lease in escrow, then the owner must locate and produce the originals. If they have been lost, duplicate originals can be drawn.

R. A. Klass
Your Court Street Lawyer

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Debt Collection Tips: Docketing the Judgment

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Once the creditor has obtained a Judgment from a court, the collection process has now begun.  In the context of collecting the money due on the Judgment, it may be necessary to “docket” the Judgment in the County Clerk’s Office.

In each county of the State, there is a court of general jurisdiction called the “Supreme Court.”  In some counties, towns, cities, and villages, there are lower courts (such as Civil Court, District Court, etc.).  Judgments entered in those courts are not automatic liens upon any realty that the debtor may own in the county.  Rather, a “Transcript of Judgment” must be obtained from the court and filed with the County Clerk to create the lien.  Once docketed, the Transcript of Judgment will serve as notice to others that there is a lien upon any realty owned by the debtor; other parties are now aware that the lien must be paid according to its priority.

Judgments entered in a Supreme Court case are automatically docketed with the County Clerk.

Unlike New Jersey or some other states, which have state-wide recognition, the Judgment must be docketed by the filing of a Transcript of Judgment in each county in which the debtor has realty in order to create the lien.

The docketing of a Judgment is also essential when attempting to issue an Income Execution to a County Sheriff in another county (where, perhaps, the employer of a debtor is located).  Another purpose of docketing a Judgment may be where the Judgment was entered in federal District Court and the creditor wants to use a Sheriff instead of a United States Marshall.

by Richard A. Klass, Esq.

R. A. Klass
Your Court Street Lawyer

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