Yearly Archives: 2014

What Are The Rules About Non-Compete Agreements In New York? Should I Ask An Employee To Sign One?

If you have an employee in a competitive position, you may have considered asking the employee to sign a non-compete. A non-compete agreement is a contract in which the employee agrees not to work in a particular industry, or start a business in a particular industry, for an established period of time. They are usually […]

What Is RESPA?

RESPA stands for the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act. It is a federal law passed in 1974 to deal with abusive practices in the real estate settlement services industry. Prior to the passage of RESPA, many parties, including lenders, mortgage brokers, attorneys and appraisers, were making payments to outside parties through fees for customer referrals, […]

Why Might My Conditional License Be Revoked In The Rochester Area?

You will lose your conditional license if convicted of any moving violation or of driving at any time or in any place that the conditional license restricts. In these cases, you may continue to attend the Drinking Driver Program (DDP) but are prohibited from driving. Upon completion of the program (without further incident), your full […]

What Is A Buy-Sell Agreement?

A buy-sell agreement is a binding contract between co-owners that controls when owners can sell their interest, who can buy an owner’s interest, and what price will be paid for that interest. There are many situations these agreements can be used in, including when an owner retires, becomes disabled, dies, retires or divorced. In some […]

Can My Landlord Cancel My Lease Because I Told Him I’m Having Financial Problems?

That will depend on how definite and unequivocal your expression of financial difficulties was. In a recent New York case, before the term of the 15 year commercial lease was to begin, the New York tenant advised the landlordthat it was experiencing financial difficulties. By an email message, the tenant offered the landlord certain “options” […]

Is It Housing Discrimination For A New York Landlord To Limit Tenants To Two Per Bedroom?

A New York landlord can only restrict two tenants per bedroomin some situations.In a recent case, a husband and wife filed a complaint with HUD that the management company refused to renew their lease after concluding that the family of five was too large for the 1,464 square foot, two-bedroom apartment that they had occupied […]

When Can I Keep A New York Tenant’s Security Deposit?

If you are a landlord, you may have asked your tenant to provide a security deposit, to cover any losses you may incur for unpaid rent or damages. In New York, there are specific state laws about security deposits. There may be local laws as well. In addition, there are different rules for deposits on […]

What Is An Annulment and How Can I Get One In New York? I Don’t Want To Get A Divorce.

Some people like the idea of getting an annulment instead of a divorce, when a marriage comes to an end. Many people believe that annulments are faster and cheaper than a divorce. A person may have a religious objection to divorce and wish to seek an annulment instead. In New York, there are two different […]

A Rental Property That I Own Had A Small Bug Problem & The Tenants Are Refusing To Pay. Is This Legal In New York?

Under New York law, in every lease for residential property there is an implied warranty of habitability. This is true whether or not it is actually written into the lease. The implied warranty of habitability means that every landlord warrants three things about the property: that the property is fit for human habitation, that the […]

How Is Marital Property Divided In A New York Divorce Case?

One of the first questions that many divorce clients asks is “who gets the property?” The most highly contested parts of a divorce is who will get the property accumulated during the marriage. Like most other areas of the law, how marital property is divided depends on which state you live in. New York is […]