Wright v. Board of Mgrs. of 57 E. 73rd St. Condominium

2024 NY Slip Op 31400(U)

• Court: New York Supreme Court, New York County
• Decided: April 18, 2024
• Status: Unpublished

Opinion

Wright v Board of Mgrs. of 57 E. 73rd St. Condominium 2024 NY Slip Op 31400(U) April 18, 2024 Supreme Court, New York County Docket Number: Index No. 651658/2024 Judge: Debra A. James Cases posted with a "30000" identifier, i.e., 2013 NY Slip Op 30001(U), are republished from various New York State and local government sources, including the New York State Unified Court System's eCourts Service. This opinion is uncorrected and not selected for official publication. INDEX NO. 651658/2024 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 23 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 04/18/2024

SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK NEW YORK COUNTY PRESENT: HON. DEBRA A. JAMES PART 59 Justice ----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------X INDEX NO. 651658/2024 JAMES WRIGHT, MOTION DATE 04/18/2024 Plaintiff, MOTION SEQ. NO. 001 - V -

BOARD OF MANAGERS OF 57 EAST 73RD STREET DECISION + ORDER ON CONDOMINIUM and A.Y. STRAUSS, LLC, MOTION Defendants. ------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------X

The following e-filed documents, listed by NYSCEF document number (Motion 001) 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 14, 15, 17, 18, 19, 21, 22 were read on this motion to/for PREL INJUNCTION

ORDER

Upon the foregoing documents, it is

ORDERED that the motion of plaintiff for a preliminary

injunction is DENIED; and it is further

ORDERED that defendants shall answer the complaint or

otherwise move, within twenty (20) days of service of this order

with notice of entry; and it is further

ORDERED that counsel are directed to post on NYSCEF a

preliminary discovery conference order or competing preliminary

discovery conference order(s) at least two days before June 18,

2024, on which date counsel shall appear via Microsoft Teams,

unless such appearance be waived by the court.

651658/2024 WRIGHT, JAMES vs. BOARD OF MANAGERS OF 57 EAST 73RD STREET Page 1 of4 CONDOMINIUM ET AL Motion No. 001

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DECISION

On his application for a preliminary injunction,

"plaintiff[] is required to demonstrate a likelihood of ultimate

success on the merits, irreparable harm and that [the] equities

of the situation were in [his] favor" (After Six Inc. v 201

East 66 th Street Associates, 87 AD2d 153 [1 st Dept 1982])

With respect to the first prong, plaintiff has not stated a

meritorious cause of action, let alone a likelihood of success

on the merits, as to his claim for declaratory relief that

asserts breach of the Settlement Agreement dated August 31,

2023. See Ithilien Realty Corp v 180 Ludlow Development LLC,

140 AD3d 621 (1 st Dept 2016) and Upfront Megatainment, Inc. v

Thi am, 215 AD3d 57 6 ( pt Dept 2023) .

Plaintiff seeks permanent injunctive relief on his claims

for (1) interference with the Contract of Sale dated September

1, 2023, and (2) by way of specific performance by defendant

Board of Managers of 57 East 73 rd Street Condominium, alleging

bad faith in defendant Board's obligations of its obligations

under the Settlement Agreement.

By its very nature, success on a claim of interference with

Contract would not entitle plaintiff to equitable relief, and so

such claim lacks merit to that extent. Should plaintiff prevail

on such claim against defendant Board, his measure of damages

651658/2024 WRIGHT, JAMES vs. BOARD OF MANAGERS OF 57 EAST 73RD STREET Page 2 of 4 CONDOMINIUM ET AL Motion No. 001

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would be monetary and not equitable. See MUGF Union Bank, NA v

Axos Bank, 196 AD3d 442 (l3t Dept 2021).

To the extent he seeks a preliminary injunction with

respect to his claim for specific performance of the obligations

of defendant Board, plaintiff has shown some likelihood of

success on the merits. See Destiny USA Holdings, LLC v

Citigroup Global Markets Realty Corp., 69 AD3d 2112 (4 th Dept

2009) .

However, plaintiff has failed to demonstrate irreparable

harm should the court not enjoin defendant Board from extending

his time to close, as monetary damages are ascertainable for any

losses, including a refund of any downpayment, that plaintiff

will suffer with respect to his inability to consummate the

Contract of Sale dated September 1, 2023, that arise from any

illegal acts of defendant Board. The same is true to the extent

that the filing of the confession of judgment triggers

plaintiff's inability to consummate the Contract of Sale, as a

result of defendant Board's breach of the Settlement Agreement.

Nor has plaintiff established irreparable injury arising

from the filing of the confession of judgment, as the "possible"

adverse action of FINRA with respect to plaintiff's securities

brokers license is "speculative" (Matter of P.& E. T.

Foundation, 204 AD3d 1460, 1461 [4 th Dept 2022] ("the prospect of

irreparable harm must not be . 'speculative'")

651658/2024 WRIGHT, JAMES vs. BOARD OF MANAGERS OF 57 EAST 73RD STREET Page 3 of 4 CONDOMINIUM ET AL Motion No. 001

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Finally, the court finds the equities are equally balanced.

See New York City Off-Track Betting Corp v New York Racing Assn

Inc, 250 AD2d 437 (1 st Dept 1998).

P- ~ ,4 - } ~ 20240418161613DJ AMES656938671DD84179A8DA19A 1609AF lAE

4/18/2024 DATE DEBRA A. JAMES, J.S.C.

~ CHECK ONE: CASE DISPOSED NON-FINAL DISPOSITION

APPLICATION:

CHECK IF APPROPRIATE: GRANTED

SETTLE ORDER 0 DENIED

INCLUDES TRANSFER/REASSIGN 8GRANTED IN PART

SUBMIT ORDER

FIDUCIARY APPOINTMENT □ □ OTHER

REFERENCE

651658/2024 WRIGHT, JAMES vs. BOARD OF MANAGERS OF 57 EAST 73RD STREET Page4 of 4 CONDOMINIUM ET AL Motion No. 001

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