It has been a year since amendments to the State Freedom of Information Law required that government agencies in New York provide a specific date by which records shall be provided to the public. Under the amendment to the Public Officers Law, if records cannot be provided within twenty business…
A sharply divided New York Court of Appeals upheld the position of New York City Mayor Bloomberg who refused to enforce the City’s Equal Benefits Law. On February 14, 2006, in the case the Matter of Council of the City of New York v. Bloomberg (http://www.courts.state.ny.us/reporter/3dseries/2006/2006_01111.htm) the Court held that…
At the present time there are 28 bills pending in the New York State Assembly and Senate related to condemnation of private property by government entities. The bills range from comprehensive revisions of the eminent domain law in New York to minor changes directed at specific aspects of the law.…
The Second Circuit Court of Appeals has remanded the case of Davis v. Town of Hempstead to the district court. The challenge involves actions taken in accordance with a local law that appears similar to many other local laws in New York State. Therefore the ultimate decision in this case…
The Appellate Division of the New York State Supreme Court decided a trilogy of cases on December 27, 2005 relating to a series of determinations by the City of New Rochelle Zoning Board of Appeals to permit construction of an addition to a local religious institution. The cases, Halperin v.…
On December 5, 2005 the Second Circuit Court of Appeals remanded the case of Brody v. Village of Port Chester back to the District Court on the issue of whether Brody had actual notice of the proceedings and procedures under New York Eminent Domain Procedure Law (“EDPL”) before his property…
A Long Island jury (Noghrey v. Town of Brookhaven) granted a verdict of 1.6 million dollars against the Town of Brookhaven as a result of the rezoning of two parcels of land. The property, which had been zoned to permit shopping center uses was rezoned and the owner claimed this…
The President of the New York State Bar Association has established a task force to study New York’s Eminent Domain Law in the wake of the controversy created by the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Kelo v. New London this year. The holding by the Court that municipalities may use…
Holding that a meeting held at which one of the members required for a quorum attended by telephone was invalid the Appellate Division of the New York State Supreme Court ruled that the equalization rate for six Westchester Communities was improperly established in the Matter of the Town of Eastchester…