This post comes with a “spoiler alert” warning.  Like many, this author has become obsessed with the Max show Succession, not merely as a television viewer, but for the legal issues raised by the storylines.  We  will discuss the multiple legal issues covered in the Emmy award-winning series. The jaw dropping images of real estate are practically a character on the show.  The townhouse on Fifth Avenue across from the Metropolitan Museum of Art was the primary residence of Waystar/Royco’s founder and patriarch Logan Roy.  The home was shared with his third wife, who obt ..read more

Weiss & Weiss honors all of those who have made the ulimate sacrifice on this Memorial Day 2023 ..read more

Several prior blog posts discussed the Supreme Court case Tyler v. Hennepin County, Minnesota, which addressed to whether the government could keep surplus funds in tax lien foreclosures.  Geraldine Tyler is a 94 year old woman living in Minnesota who owed $2,300.00 in unpaid property taxes for her condominium.  Due to her age and safety concerns, she moved to a nursing home and the condominium was sold by the county to pay her unpaid property tax bill. The property was sold by the County at auction for $40,000.00.  Ms. Tyler’s unpaid tax bill was only $15,000.00 once interest a ..read more

A prior blog post discussed a case now before the United States Supreme Court relating to surplus funds in tax lien foreclosures.  The case involved a 94 year old woman in Minnesota who owed $2,300.00 in unpaid property taxes.  The property was sold by the county for $40,000.00.  The county then kept the excess funds from the sale, and, under the existing law, did not return the surplus funds to the former homeowner. Several states, including New York, have similar laws.  In New York State, if your property is sold to pay an overdue tax lien, any funds received from the sal ..read more

Weiss & Weiss wishes all who celebrate a Happy Passover and Happy Easter ..read more

Some of our clients have valuable personal property, such as artwork, antiques, baseball cards, figurines and the like.  They may wish to leave such collections in their Wills to a particular person.  In other cases, none of the potential survivors is interested in possessing and storing such a collection.  This post will address the best means by which to manage collectibles, known as personal property, in estate planning. Collectibles by their nature are of interest mostly only to the collector, who may scour small stores and dealers during his lifetime to obtain such items.&n ..read more

Recently, New York Courts, especially in those in Westchester County, where our offices are located, are encouraging the use of mediation to resolve disputes which have been filed as lawsuits in the Court.  What is mediation, and how does it differ from arbitration?  Mediation is the use of an independent third party, known as a mediator, in an attempt to resolve a dispute that initially commenced in Court. Many Courts now have a mediation program, and are referring cases to mediation, and, in some cases, ordering that the parties use a mediator to attempt to resolve a Court dispute ..read more

We have observed that the current inventory of houses available to purchase in the area serviced by our attorneys is low.  In addition, many houses are rented.  When the tenant and landlord have a good relationship, it is not unusual for the parties to agree that the tenant will buy the house from the owner.  This post will address the legal issues involved in such a transaction whereby the tenant becomes the buyer and the landlord becomes the seller. The first action that both parties should take is to engage the services of an experienced real estate attorney.  Such a tr ..read more

As the moratorium on eviction cases in New York State due to the COVID-19 pandemic fades into memory, our firm has resumed regular operations regarding landlord-tenant law.  In general, this means eviction cases when a tenant may have stayed past the expiration of his lease (known as holdover actions), and those when a tenant is in violation of his lease, usually due to failure to pay rent (non-payment actions). The question this blog post will address is what happens at the end of an eviction action that allows a tenant to be removed from the premises.  In order to evict any tenant ..read more

Recently in the news are proposals by the Biden administration regarding policies to allegedly protect rental tenants.  According to the stories, multiple federal agencies are strongly considering taking actions that are designed to strengthen tenant protections and encourage rental affordability.  Of course, experience has shown that well-intentioned government actions often do not have the intended results, and often worsen situations that they are designed to ameliorate. Due to the extreme reaction to the COVID-19 pandemic, there is currently a shortage of residential housing, esp ..read more