Adam Leitman Bailey, P.C.’s Creative Lawyering Allows Major Company to Fend Off Bankruptcy, Acquire Six Months to Vacate Office Space and Waiver of Back Rent
A large company with over a thousand employees needed to downsize as a result of consumer’s use of the internet for shopping. The company owed over a hundred thousand dollars in back rent and needed time to find a subtenant for the commercial office space and time to make a deal with the landlord before being evicted.
The commercial tenant gave the firm its mission–they needed Adam Leitman Bailey, P.C. to keep them in possession for three months.
The landlord immediately sued for nonpayment of rent.
By attending a meeting with the property owner Adam Leitman Bailey, P.C. saw that the tenant may think it needed only three months but he saw the tenant needing at least six months before it would be ready to do the sublease and secure new space before a judgment of possession and eviction was authorized by a court of law.
The landlord’s lease was very well done leaving few options available. Adam Leitman Bailey, P.C. found a creative angle and a mistake in the lawsuit giving ammunition to fight the nonpayment proceeding and made a motion to end the case. Instead of fighting the firm’s first motion to cancel the case, the landlord’s attorney discontinued the action and started the case over to save time to rush the eviction.
A new nonpayment case was commenced shortly thereafter.
These events brought another month for the firm’s client and now the firm was ready to unleash its creative legal theory dealing with the lack of service of process of a non-manager, officer of director, or cashier.
Adam Leitman Bailey, P.C. realized that this legal theory had a decent chance of winning in front of a good judge. However, the fact that almost two hundred thousand dollars in back rent was owed, any judge think twice before dismissing the case.
In any event, the trial never occurred. The case was adjourned to discuss settlement while a subtenant was found and accepted.
Six months later, lease documents were signed with a subtenant and the firm’s client, the tenant of record, was released for all claims. The firm’s client found smaller space, never had to pay the past due rent owed to the landlord and successfully fought off bankruptcy by being released from the lease.
Adam Leitman Bailey and Christopher Halligan appeared for Adam Leitman Bailey, P.C. Dov Treiman drafted the motion papers.