Michael Fleiss

Background

About Michael Fleiss

Michael, a partner at Schwartz Sladkus Reich Greenberg Atlas LLP, is an experienced litigator whose practice focuses principally on real estate-related cases, with a concentration on condominium and cooperative matters. He has handled many construction defect cases involving every aspect of building construction and design. He also provides general legal counsel to the boards and managing agents of the firm’s condominium and cooperative clients. Michael has also represented cooperative and condominium boards in disputes with shareholders and unit owners, sponsors, banks, architects, engineers, contractors, and adjacent landowners. He has handled litigation matters involving breach of contract, fraud, trespass, nuisance, breach of a sponsor’s implied obligation to sell its unsold apartments, ground and apartment leases, commercial leases, the Interstate Land Sales Full Disclosure Act, code and regulatory compliance, cooperative and condominium conversions, and building management. Michael represented the class of tenants of Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village in commencing litigation to challenge their landlord’s right to deregulate rent stabilized apartments while receiving New York City J-51 tax abatements in Roberts v. Tishman Speyer Properties, L.P, in which New York’s highest court ultimately issued a landmark decision holding such apartment deregulation to be illegal. Michael also represented the rental tenants of Ruppert and Yorkville Towers in opposing the efforts of the developer of that complex to withdraw from New York’s Mitchell-Lama low- and moderate-income housing program, and successfully negotiated a landmark settlement that allowed tenants to purchase their apartments at substantial discounts or alternatively to remain as renters with varying levels of limitations on rent increases and rent subsidies from New York City and the landlord, depending on each tenant’s income. Michael's practice also includes commercial litigation.