Dear Clients, Colleagues, and Friends:
The steady routine of the legal business provides a respite from international and domestic crises that seem to occur more frequently and with greater intensity. During these unprecedented, challenging times affecting our personal and business lives, we want to convey our prayers and good wishes for your health, success, and well-being.
Due to the recent turmoil in the stock market and international markets, many of our clients have inquired about our perspective on the New York economy. Our vantage point as litigators in Manhattan provides us access to information unreported in the mainstream media about the economy. The end of pandemic-era backstops, high interest rates, and tougher lending standards, have affected the type and nature of cases we handle.
As a data point, commercial chapter 11 bankruptcy filings and personal bankruptcy filings have increased by double-digits compared to the same time last year. Business filings rose 40.4 percent, from 13,481 to 18,926, in the year ending Dec. 31, 2023. Our firm represents creditors in the high-profile bankruptcy cases of WeWork, Big Lots, and Celsius Networks.
The difficult economic environment has caused a rise in demand for legal services for the types of claims that arise when businesses cut corners and simply can’t pay on time. We have experienced a rise in claims of unpaid trade vendor claims, unpaid independent contractors, breach of contract cases, wage-and-hour cases arising under the Fair Labor Standards Act and New York Labor Law, Americans with Disabilities Act, and for advice related to employee layoffs and severance.
The gradual improvement in New York’s economy is localized. Businesses that we represent in the Bronx complain about crime and vagrancy to the extent that businesses close earlier because of safety concerns. While the commercial real estate market in New York shows signs of continued improvement, the price per square foot for class A buildings near Grand Central (aside from One Vanderbilt) is still below pre-pandemic levels and landlords are offering attractive incentives to potential tenants. As businesses continue to recall employees back to the office in the fall, landlords expect market conditions to improve.
Given the economic challenges, we are especially pleased to share with you that our practice is growing as we welcome Eliott Dosetareh, J.D., in September. Eliott is a 2024 graduate of Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law in New York City.
Notable achievements for Levin-Epstein & Associates, P.C. in the third quarter of 2024 include the firm’s obtainment of a financial recovery in a judgment collection matter of over half-a-million-dollars within a couple months of engagement. Our commercial contingency practice successfully resolved several plaintiffs’-side commercial contingency breach of contract cases.
To the extent that you or any of your colleagues have cases where a contingency arrangement makes financial sense, please contact us to assess the potential for a mutually productive collaborative relationship regarding referral arrangements with participation fees for commercial contingency cases and plaintiffs’-side employment cases.
We want to thank you for contributing to our continued success. You know us, you know our experience, and you know the quality of our work. We would be most grateful to be retained in these areas, among others:
- litigation before trial or appellate courts or administrative bodies, especially matters involving real estate, partnership disputes, and creditors' rights;
- litigation avoidance - the crucial effort to negotiate agreements to resolve disputes before they cross the threshold of the courthouse;
- domestic and international arbitration and mediations;
- bankruptcy litigation and creditors' rights work, including avoidance actions, preference actions, discharge and dischargeability actions;
- employment litigation in all aspects of employment law, including issues involving restrictive covenants and trade secrets, wage-and-hour issues, Fair Labor Standards Act issues, and breach of contract issues;
- business divorce litigation, including contested stock valuations, derivative actions and other disputes between owners of closely held business corporations;
- counseling and strategic planning that defy easy categorization, requiring a deep understanding of the pertinent legal issues and also of the business (and sometimes personal) considerations that must be taken into account to reach a favorable outcome; and
- representing investors, restauranteurs, restaurant management companies, and chefs in New York City's hospitality sector.
With heartfelt good wishes for a healthy, happy and productive year, we remain,
Sincerely yours,
