363-367 Neptune Ave., LLC v. Neary

30 Misc. 3d 779
CourtNew York Supreme Court
DecidedDecember 15, 2010
StatusPublished

This text of 30 Misc. 3d 779 (363-367 Neptune Ave., LLC v. Neary) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering New York Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
363-367 Neptune Ave., LLC v. Neary, 30 Misc. 3d 779 (N.Y. Super. Ct. 2010).

Opinion

OPINION OF THE COURT

Mark I. Partnow, J.

In this action by plaintiff 363-367 Neptune Avenue, LLC against Thomas Neary, Salvatore Benevento, Carmel Salerno, and the estate of Julia J. Benevento1 (collectively, defendants) for a judgment requiring Thomas Neary, Salvatore Benevento, and Carmel Salerno to immediately vacate their apartments located at 367 Neptune Avenue, in Brooklyn, New York, requiring the estate of Julia J. Benevento to take any and all actions to remove its heirs immediately from these premises, and seeking damages against defendants, 363-367 Neptune Avenue, LLC moves, by order to show cause, for an order requiring Thomas Neary, Salvatore Benevento, and Carmel Salerno to vacate the subject premises and for defendants to take any and all steps to have the subject apartments vacated and to shutdown the premises. 363-367 Neptune Avenue, LLC additionally moves to dismiss the counterclaims and affirmative defenses of Thomas Neary, Salvatore Benevento, and Carmel Salerno.

Thomas Neary, Salvatore Benevento, and Carmel Salerno move, by order to show cause, for an order: (1) granting them a preliminary injunction2 restraining, pending the final determination of this action, 363-367 Neptune Avenue, LLC, its manager, agents, attorneys, and members, including but not limited to Arthur Burns and anyone else acting for or on behalf of 363-367 Neptune Avenue, LLC, from: (i) harassing, intimidating, threatening and otherwise interfering with the quiet and peaceful use and occupancy by them and their respective family members in and to their respective rent-stabilized apartments in the building located at 363-367 Neptune Avenue, (ii) damaging, altering, or otherwise changing the building except in the ordinary course of business, and (iii) engaging in any other conduct which is calculated to force them to vacate their apartments, and (2) directing 363-367 Neptune Avenue, LLC, as the landlord, to make repairs and maintain essential services on an ongoing basis and to take prompt steps to correct maintenance [782]*782problems as they arise. Thomas Neary, Salvatore Benevento, and Carmel Salerno cross-move for an order: (1) pursuant to CPLR 3212, granting them summary judgment on their first counterclaim directing 363-367 Neptune Avenue, LLC to issue and deliver to them rent-stabilized renewal leases for their respective apartments in the building at 367 Neptune Avenue in accordance with and as required by the Rent Stabilization Law of 1969 (Administrative Code of City of NY § 26-501 et seq.), (2) granting them summary judgment dismissing 363-367 Neptune Avenue, LLC’s complaint as against them based upon the ground that there are no questions of fact and that they are entitled to judgment as a matter of law, and (3) severing their second, third, and fourth counterclaims.

The subject property, which is located at 363-367 Neptune Avenue, in Brooklyn, New York, consists of two buildings with six units in each of them, for a total of 12 residential apartments. The property was originally owned by Salvatore Judice, who bought it around 1930. When Salvatore Judice died in 1973, he left this property to all of his five children, i.e., Grace Burns, Anna Neary, Lucy Judice, John E. Judice, and Julia J. Benevento. By deed dated March 30, 1977, the property was conveyed to Grace Burns, Anna Neary, Lucy Judice, John E. Judice, and Julia J. Benevento, as tenants in common. Grace Burns is still alive and is now 97 years of age, and Anna Neary, Lucy Judice, John E. Judice, and Julia J. Benevento are deceased. The present dispute involves the children of Anna Neary, John E. Judice, Julia J. Benevento, and the son of Grace Burns, Arthur Burns (who represents her interests), who are all cousins. This dispute is over this property and whether some of these cousins who have lived there for most of their lives, i.e., Thomas Neary, Salvatore Benevento, and Carmel Salerno, should now be forced to vacate their apartments at the property.

Salvatore Benevento is 80 years old, and has resided virtually his entire life, along with his family, in apartment 3-L in the building at 367 Neptune Avenue, and currently resides there. Carmel Salerno is 71 years old, and has resided in apartments 2R and 2L in the building at 367 Neptune Avenue for the past 45 years with her family, and currently resides there. Thomas Neary is 71 years old, and has resided in apartment 1-L in the building at 367 Neptune Avenue for approximately 70 years with his family, and currently resides there.

The building at 367 Neptune Avenue is a rent-stabilized building. The apartment registration information from the New York [783]*783State Division of Housing and Community Renewal (the DHCR) submitted by Thomas Neary, Salvatore Benevento, and Carmel Salerno lists Thomas Neary’s and Salvatore Benevento’s apartments3 as being rent stabilized for the 1988 registration year (and that they were rent-controlled prior to that time).4 Copies of leases dated November 15, 2005 reflect that Thomas Neary, Salvatore Benevento, and Carmel Salerno, as tenants, had rent-stabilized leases for their apartments, dated November 15, 2005, with John E. Judice, as owner, which commenced on February 1, 2006 and ended on January 31, 2008.

Anna Neary died in 1987, and she left her estate to her husband, Thomas J. Neary, Sr., who died on August 2, 2004. Thomas J. Neary, Sr.’s estate passed to Thomas Neary, Salvatore Neary, and Mary Ann Percaccio, who thereby received a 20% ownership interest in the premises.

According to Thomas Neary, Salvatore Benevento and Carmel Salerno, Arthur Burns, who lives in Maryland and whose mother, Grace Burns, had a 20% ownership interest in the premises, suddenly began making visits to them in 2006, in an effort to convince them to transfer their respective interests in the premises to a limited liability company (LLC). Thomas Neary, Salvatore Benevento, and Carmel Salerno claim that Arthur Burns assured them that they would not lose their rights to continue to be rent-stabilized tenants and remain in possession of their apartments and that “everything would stay the same,” and that the advantage to such a transfer would be that they could not be held subject to any personal liability with respect to the property.

Without being represented by separate legal counsel, Thomas Neary, Salvatore Benevento, and Carmel Salerno agreed to form 363-367 Neptune Avenue, LLC. The original operating agreement was executed on November 10, 2006 (subsequent to the execution of the aforementioned November 15, 2005 rent-stabilized leases) by its original members: Grace Burns (by Arthur Burns, as her attorney-in-fact), Julia J. Benevento (by Salvatore Benevento, as her attorney-in-fact), and Thomas Neary, Salvatore Neary, and Mary Ann Percaccio, with each group having a 331/3% voting interest in the company. By deed dated December 15, 2006, Julia J. Benevento transferred her [784]*78420% ownership interest in the premises to 363-367 Neptune Avenue, LLC. John E. Judice died on March 28, 2007, and his estate passed to Carmel Salerno, Patricia Judice, Joanne Judice Rafaella, and Salvatore Judice. It was anticipated that when the estate of Lucy Judice (which had a 20% interest in the property) and the estate of John E. Judice (which had a 20% interest in the property) came into the company, the agreement would be amended pro rata.

By deed dated November 1, 2007, Salvatore Judice, as the executor of the estate of John E.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Parra v. Astrue
128 S. Ct. 1068 (Supreme Court, 2008)
Rosario v. Diagonal Realty, LLC
872 N.E.2d 860 (New York Court of Appeals, 2007)
East Quogue Jet, LLC v. East Quogue Members, LLC
50 A.D.3d 1089 (Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, 2008)
Gottlieb v. Northriver Trading Co.
58 A.D.3d 550 (Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, 2009)
Sitar v. Sitar
61 A.D.3d 739 (Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, 2009)
Cottone v. Selective Surfaces, Inc.
68 A.D.3d 1038 (Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, 2009)
Tudor v. Riposanu
93 A.D.2d 718 (Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, 1983)
Kaycee West 113th Street Corp. v. Diakoff
160 A.D.2d 573 (Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, 1990)
245 Realty Associates v. Sussis
243 A.D.2d 29 (Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, 1998)
Osborne v. Moutafis
7 Misc. 3d 32 (Appellate Terms of the Supreme Court of New York, 2005)
218 East 85th Street, LLC v. Division of Housing & Community Renewal
23 Misc. 3d 557 (New York Supreme Court, 2009)
Greenwich Gardens Associates v. Pitt
126 Misc. 2d 947 (Nassau County District Court, 1984)
Plaza Operating Partners Ltd. v. Maison Mendessolle, Ltd.
144 Misc. 2d 696 (Civil Court of the City of New York, 1989)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
30 Misc. 3d 779, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/363-367-neptune-ave-llc-v-neary-nysupct-2010.