Richard L. Claman, Esq.
Partner
Litigation
Richard L. Claman is a member and the partner-in-charge of the litigation department. He joined the Firm in 1990, after nine years at the former Rosenman & Colin.
Mr. Claman concentrates his practice in general commercial litigation, with an emphasis on commercial real estate litigation, and in particular representing owners/landlords in disputes arising from purchases/sales of buildings, landlord-tenant matters, ground-lease issues, and zoning/development issues. He appears regularly in the Supreme Court, and in the Civil Court's Commercial Landlord-Tenant part; and he has considerable experience before the Appellate Division, and the federal District Court and Second Circuit Court of Appeals. He has also been involved in numerous bankruptcy litigations, representing landlords where tenants have filed.
Based on this extensive experience, Mr. Claman wrote a 14-part series in Real Estate Weekly on how courts have applied (or failed to apply) the provisions of the "REBNY" form commercial lease. He has lectured on procedure in commercial landlord-tenant proceedings at the Association of the Bar of the City of New York, and is regularly asked to serve as a mediator for the Alternative Dispute Resolution Program of the Commercial Division of the Supreme Court, New York County.
Education
Harvard Law School - 1980
Harvard College - 1977
Bar Admissions
New York - 1981United States District Court, Southern, Eastern and Northern Districts of New York
United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
United States Supreme Court
Honors and Awards
Thurgood Marshall Award, Association of the Bar of the City of New York - 1988
- for pro bono representation of two individuals on death row in Florida
Professional Associations
Association of the Bar of the City of New York
Reported Decisions
- 401 West 14th Street Fee LLC v. Mer du Nord Noordzee, LLC (“Markt Restaurant”), 34 A.D.3d 294, 825 N.Y.S. 2d 15 (1st Dep’t, November 2006)
- Kenyon & Kenyon v. Logany, 33 A.D.3d 538, 823 N.Y.S. 2d 72 (1st Dep’t, October 2006)
- Green 440 Ninth LLC v. Duane Reade, 2005 WL 3240673 (AT 1st Dep’t, December 2005)
- Jacobs Private Equity, LLC v. 450 Park LLC, 22A.D.3d 347, 803 N.Y.S. 2d 14 (1st Dep’t 2005)
- Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel LLP v. Metropolitan 919 Third Avenue LLC, 6 Misc.3d 796, 791 N.Y.S. 2d 318 (Sup. Ct. N.Y. Co. 2004)
- Automatic Data Processing v. York Hunter (M.S.) Inc., 2/5/04 N.Y.L.J. 17 (col. 1) (Civ. Ct. N.Y. Co.)
- Mason v. Dep’t of Buildings, et al., 759 N.Y.S.2d 470, "Decision of the Day", 5/30/2003 N.Y.L.J. 18 (col. 1) (1st Dep’t)
- SLG 17 Battery LLC v. Broderick, 1/04/02 N.Y.L.J. 18 (col.1) (AT 1st Dep’t), affirming 1/19/00 N.Y.L.J. 27 (col. 3)(Civ. Ct. N.Y. Co.)
- Metropolitan 919 Third Avenue LLC v. P.J. Clarke’s Restaurant Corp. 12/20/01 N.Y.L.J. 21 (col.2) (AT 1st Dep’t)
- 110-45 Queens Blvd. Garage, Inc. v. Park Briar Owners, Inc., 696 N.Y.S. 2d 490 (2d Dep’t 1999)
- Doros v. New Green 1140 Realty, LLC, 1998 WL 886980 (2d Cir.)
- Pinnacle Equities New York, Inc. v. Zapco 1500 Investment, L.P., 9/3/97 N.Y.L.J. 22 (col. 3) (Sup. Ct. N.Y. Co.)
- 69th St & 2nd Ave. Garage Assoc. v. Ticor Title Guarantee Co., 207 A.D.2d 225, 622 N.Y.S.2d 13, 1/30/95 N.Y.L.J. 25 (col.3) ("Decision of the Day") (1st Dep’t 1995), leave to appeal denied, 87 N.Y.2d 802 (1995)
- In re Sanshoe (EBG Midtown Corp. v. McLaren/Hart Environmental Engineering Corp.), 139 B.R. 585 (S.D.N.Y.), aff’d, 993 F.2d 300 (2d Cir. 1993)