Litigation

Protecting our clients’ interests at the trial and appellate levels
Our Approach

Our attorneys prosecute and defend lawsuits in federal, state, and municipal courts. We take the time to learn each client’s individual case as though we lived it. Our reputation for high quality oral and written advocacy is one we have cultivated with the courts and our adversaries over decades.

Our litigators are also pragmatic and drive litigation strategy based on a client’s business and individual goals. That means litigating through trial and/or appeal, utilizing alternative dispute resolution such as mediation and arbitration, or advising on settlement strategies. And because we are a full-service firm, we bring our insight as land use, zoning, municipal, transactional, and real estate practitioners when we litigate. Our litigation department is also frequently called upon to litigate commercial and business disputes unrelated to our real estate development practices.

What We Do

  • Article 78 proceedings
  • Appeals
  • State/federal land use constitutional and civil rights
  • Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA)
  • Fair Housing Act (FHA)
  • Padavan Law
  • Condemnation and Eminent Domain
  • Property and title disputes, including adverse possession/prescriptive easement
  • Contract and business disputes
  • Environmental, including SEQRA and NY Navigation Law
  • Arbitration/mediation
  • Zoning and building code enforcement actions
  • Administrative Hearings
Recent News
Jody and Jacob closed an approximately $6.8 million purchase of 113 acres of undeveloped land in the Town of Kent in Putnam County on behalf of a developer client. The property is approved for up to 150 new residences. The closing culminated a four-year transaction. Jody negotiated the purchase agreement and managed the multifaceted land...
Lee Lefkowitz and Jaclyn Cohen successfully defended a summary judgment motion brought by a plaintiff trying to foreclose on a mechanic’s lien against one of Z&S’s clients concerning a residential development in Scarsdale. Hon. Nancy Quinn Koba of the Supreme Court Westchester County agreed with Z&S’s argument that the plaintiff failed to offer sufficient facts...
Judge Hal Greenwald granted Z&S’s motion to dismiss, which resolved the case in their client’s favor, before any discovery commenced or any answer to the Complaint was filed. Z&S primarily argued that the case was an illegal “Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation,” under New York State’s new “Anti-SLAPP” legislation, which prohibits lawsuits focused on stifling...