Sakele Brothers, LLC v. Pegasus Shipping, Inc.

(Civ. Ct. N.Y. Cty. 12/8/03)

We represented: Plaintiff

Debra Samuels, J.

DECISION and ORDER Plaintiff's motion for summary judgment is granted. Plaintiff is awarded judgment in the amount of $19,668.25, plus interest from November 1, 2001, and costs. In addition, Plaintiff is entitled to recover its reasonable attorneys' fees in connection with this action, in an amount to be determined after a hearing in Special Term, Part II. Plaintiff shall serve a copy of this order with proof of service of same and notice of entry thereof on Defendant, on the Clerk of Special Term, who shall schedule a hearing to determine Plaintiff's reasonable attorneys' fees and notify the parties of the date and time thereof.

The conclusory allegations made in the affidavit of Tariq Moahmood, Defendant's President, are not sufficient to defeat summary judgment. The assertions that the leased premises were "completely uninhabitable" and that conditions there "made it impossible to conduct business" are no substitute for concrete, specific descriptions of the conditions that allegedly required abandonment of the premises, supplemented as appropriate (for example, as to air quality) by expert evidence. Moreover, Mr. Mahmood fails to distinguish between restrictions on access attributable to conditions. Plaintiff might have remedied any restrictions imposed on the general public in the area by law enforcement and other public authorities in the wake of the September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center. The former would constitute a breach of Plaintiff's obligations; the latter would not.