Practice Area
Counsel to general contractors, developers, and owners on the agreements that govern a project and the disputes that arise when it goes wrong.
Overview
Construction is where the firm's transactional and litigation practices meet. Brian M. Levine drafts and negotiates AIA agreements for projects upwards of $25 million, along with the contracts between general contractors and their subcontractors. When a project goes sideways, he litigates the result: unpaid requisitions, mechanic's liens, defect allegations, and the claims that cascade from a single missed payment.
The firm drafts the construction contract, and then it is the firm that enforces it.
The firm's lien practice runs in both directions. We have discharged frivolous mechanic's liens filed against hotel projects in Queens and Manhattan, defended lien foreclosure actions brought by subcontractors, and prosecuted lien foreclosure and breach of contract claims on behalf of general contractors, including an action on a Queens project of more than $20 million that resolved with a $1.2 million settlement for the general contractor.
We also defend the people who build. Developers and general contractors turn to the firm when a purchaser alleges construction defects in a new condominium, when a neighbor claims the work damaged their property, when a developer sues over the contract, and when the City of New York itself asserts a claim. In one arbitration, the owner's defect counterclaims were discontinued on the eve of the hearing and the client was paid $259,850.
What we handle
Representative matters
Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.
All representative matters$200K judgment
For: Concrete contractor
Retained by a concrete contractor after a $200,000 judgment had already been entered against it while it was represented by prior counsel. Negotiated a settlement that cut the client's exposure to half of the judgment.
$1.2M
For: General contractor
Represented a general contractor in a mechanic's lien foreclosure and breach of contract action against a developer on a Queens construction project of more than $20 million, and secured a $1.2 million settlement made up of $773,000 in cash and real property.
$325K
For: General contractor
Secured a $325,000 payment for a general contractor from a condominium in Flushing, Queens, for unpaid work on a construction project.
$221K claim
For: General contractor
Defended a general contractor against a subcontractor's claim for $221,000 in alleged underpayments on a hotel construction project in Queens. Discharged the mechanic's liens the subcontractor had filed against the project, then negotiated a settlement that resolved the entire claim for $30,000.
Lien cancelled
For: Hotel owner
Secured the cancellation of a mechanic's lien filed by a subcontractor against a hotel in Long Island City, together with an award of attorney's fees.
Summary judgment
For: General contractor
Defended a general contractor against a subcontractor's mechanic's liens and breach of contract claims seeking more than $600,000 for allegedly unpaid work on two Manhattan hotel construction projects. Secured the cancellation of the liens filed against both hotel properties, won summary judgment for the client, and then resolved the case with a settlement in which the subcontractor paid the client.
$259,850
For: General contractor
Represented a general contractor in an American Arbitration Association proceeding for breach of contract against a property owner, and against the owner's construction defect counterclaims. On the eve of the hearing, the owner discontinued its counterclaims and paid the client $259,850.
No exposure
For: General contractor
Defended a general contractor against claims of construction defects in a six-story, 28-unit condominium building, and successfully kept the client clear of exposure on the claims.
Representation
For: Developer
Represented a developer in a special proceeding to cancel and discharge a mechanic's lien filed by its contractor.
$700K+ exposure settled
For: General contractor
Vacated a default entered against a general contractor in a developer's action for breach of a construction contract, then settled the client's potential exposure of more than $700,000 in construction defect claims by leveraging disputed payment balances of only $100,000.
Action dismissed
For: Developer and seller
Represented a residential developer and seller in an action for breach of the contract of sale, in which the purchaser of a home alleged post-closing construction defects and fraud, and obtained dismissal of the action.
Representation
For: Wood flooring contractor
Represented a wood flooring company in an action brought by a hotel alleging construction defects in the installed flooring.
$70K
For: General contractor
Represented a general contractor in an action against the owner of landmark properties in downtown Brooklyn and secured a $70,000 payment for unpaid work the contractor had performed.
Representation
For: General contractor
Represented a general contractor against claims filed by the City of New York for property damage allegedly sustained as a result of the client's construction project.
Representation
For: Homebuyers
Represented the purchasers of a custom-built home in a breach of contract action against the real estate developer.
Representation
For: Developer and general contractor
Represented a developer and general contractor in Jamaica, Queens in an action by the adjacent property owner asserting trespass, private nuisance, and property damage claims arising out of activities on the construction project.
Representation
For: Contractor
Represented a contractor in litigation over alleged construction defects, one of a number of defect matters the firm has handled for builders and developers.
Representation
For: Developers and adjoining owners
Filed and defended special proceedings under RPAPL § 881 in connection with license agreements for access to neighboring property during construction.
Representation
For: La Quinta hotel
Represented a La Quinta hotel in an RPAPL § 881 proceeding brought by an adjacent property owner seeking access to the hotel's property, and opposed the neighbor's plan to erect unnecessary overhead protections that would have interfered with the quality of its guests' stay.
Affirmed
For: General contractor
Represented a general contractor and its principal as respondents on a subcontractor's appeal from an order dismissing its complaint, which asserted breach of contract, account stated, breach of fiduciary duty, fraud, and unjust enrichment arising out of a Manhattan hotel project. The Appellate Division, First Department, unanimously affirmed the dismissal of the entire complaint as time-barred.
Dismissal upheld
For: General contractor
Represented a general contractor and its principal as respondents on a subcontractor's appeal in a second action arising out of a Manhattan hotel project. The Appellate Division, First Department, upheld the dismissal of the subcontractor's account stated, unjust enrichment, and quantum meruit claims as time-barred, held that the subcontractor had not alleged facts sufficient to pierce the corporate veil and reach the contractor's principal, and rejected its attempt to recast the dispute as one for fraud.
Claims struck
For: General contractor
Represented a general contractor as appellant from a trial court order that had allowed a subcontractor to amend its complaint to add fraudulent conveyance claims under the Debtor and Creditor Law. The Appellate Division, First Department, held that leave to add those claims should not have been granted: they were time-barred and did not relate back to the original pleading. The court modified the order to deny the amendment as to all three fraudulent conveyance claims.
The matters described on this site are illustrative and do not describe every matter the firm has handled. Each matter turns on its own facts, and the absence of a stated outcome should not be read as a comment on the result. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.
Related practices
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