Publications

In their monthly column in the New York Law Journal, Roy Reardon and Mary Elizabeth McGarry discuss a recent Court of Appeals decision that held that a real estate firm's relationship with a competitor in the transaction at issue was not sufficient to support an unjust enrichment claim. Whether that result was consistent with the court's precedent or whether the decision imposed a heightened standard to sustain such a claim was disputed between the majority and dissent. They also assess a decision in an insurance dispute arising out of a horrible crane collapse where the court held that if misrepresentations by the primary insured rendered the liability policy void such that the primary insured was not entitled to coverage, the additional insureds similarly would not be entitled to coverage. 

The court also issued two decisions of interest to criminal lawyers. First, it addressed whether a plaintiff in a malpractice action may recover damages from his criminal defense lawyer for nonpecuniary loss. Resolving a split between departments of the Appellate Division, the court held that such damages are not recoverable in those circumstances. Second, it held that an appeal lies from an oral order of a criminal court that is otherwise appealable, not only from a written order.