A recent Court decision from the Civil Court of the City of New York (Kings County) involves a dispute regarding possession of real property located in Brooklyn, New York. More importantly, the building which is the subject of the litigation houses a synagogue which also serves as headquarters for the…
We wish to share a recent news article with our readers concerning whether selling real estate owned by religious institutions to developers benefits congregants and the neighborhood in general. Many properties owned by religious institutions have been owned by the organization for decades and, during that time, served the needs…
Recently in the news is an Appellate Court decision regarding a Lutheran Church located in Staten Island, New York City’s “forgotten” borough. This case involved a lawsuit brought by the Eltingville Lutheran Church against its parent organization, the Metropolitan New York Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America (the…
Recently in the news is a follow-up story relating to a dispute regarding control over a Chelsea synagogue. A prior blog post related the original story about a “rogue Rabbi” who took control of the synagogue pursuant to a lease agreement, and was accused of violating the lease by, among other things,…
A recent New York Supreme Court decision relates to the intersection of two major practice areas of our firm, foreclosure and Religious Corporation law. The case involved a mortgage loan taken out by Grace Christian Church, located in Brooklyn, New York. According to the Court, the Church mortgaged its property to the…
Recently in the news is a decision in a lawsuit regarding the potential eviction of a defrocked nun in a Russian Orthodox convent located in Nanuet, New York. This case is an interesting intersection of two areas of the law that our firm practices; namely, how the decisions of a religious…
Recently in the news is the filing of a lawsuit relating to the alleged mismanagement of a New York synagogue located in the Chelsea section of Manhattan for almost 100 years. The lawsuit alleges that an individual hired as a Rabbi for the temple has breached his contact by removing the…
A recently reported case in New York State Supreme Court (Nassau County) addresses issues covered in prior blog posts as they relate to the New York Religious Corporation Law. Kelley v. Garuda (Index No. 7016/2004) is a case involving a dispute regarding the International Society for Kirshna Consciousness and a temple…
Our firm wants to extend its best wishes to all Dads for a happy Father’s Day. We would like to mention some gift ideas of a legal nature that cannot be purchased in an ordinary department store. Your Father may be on the verge of retirement. As such, he may be…
News reports have recently discussed the Archdiocese of New York and their seeking Court approval to mortgage church-owned property. The purpose behind such action is for the Church to obtain a loan of $100,000,000.00 from JP Morgan, Chase, N.A., backed by a mortgage on Church-owned property located at 457 Madison Avenue…