Commercial Litigation in New York: Real Estate and Lease Disputes on Long Island

What is commercial litigation in New York?

Commercial litigation in New York is civil litigation between businesses (or between businesses and individuals acting in a business capacity) over money, contracts, property, or business relationships. Procedurally it runs under the Civil Practice Law and Rules (CPLR), with cases of meaningful size typically filed in the Supreme Court of the county where the dispute arose or where the defendant resides or transacts business.

In a real estate-focused practice, commercial litigation overlaps heavily with property and lease law: a landlord suing a national chain tenant for unpaid rent, a buyer suing a seller for failing to close, neighbors litigating a boundary line, a partner pushing for partition or buyout of jointly owned investment property. The substantive law is contract, property, and equity; the procedure is the CPLR.

In my practice on Long Island, the most common commercial matters are commercial lease defaults, post-closing disputes between buyers and sellers, and disagreements between co-owners of investment property. These cases live at the intersection of real estate law and litigation, which is where this firm focuses.

How do I resolve a commercial lease dispute in New York?

Start with the lease. Read every provision that touches the issue: rent and additional rent, late charges, notice and cure periods, default, surrender, holdover rent (often 150% to 200% of base rent), insurance, indemnity, jury waiver, attorneys' fees, and any arbitration or venue clause. Most commercial lease disputes in New York are resolved by the written contract, not by background statutory protections.

Next, send (or respond to) the required notices precisely. Many commercial leases require a written notice of default with a specific cure period before the landlord can declare a termination or sue. Skipping or shortcutting a notice provision is a frequent reason landlords lose otherwise solid cases.

If informal resolution fails, the dispute usually goes to one of three forums: (1) Supreme Court for damages, declaratory judgment, or injunctive relief; (2) the District or City Court for a summary holdover or nonpayment proceeding (RPAPL Article 7); or (3) arbitration if the lease contains an arbitration clause. Choosing the right forum and the right first move is often the most important strategic decision in the case.

Can a landlord break a commercial lease in New York?

Not at will. A commercial landlord in New York can terminate a lease only when the lease itself grants the right to terminate (for example, on uncured tenant default, after a casualty that destroys a substantial portion of the premises, or under a contractual recapture or relocation clause) or when a court enters a judgment terminating the lease. Walking in and changing the locks is not lawful self-help, even commercially.

If the tenant is in default, the typical path is: (1) serve the contractually required notice of default with the stated cure period; (2) if uncured, serve a notice of termination; (3) commence a summary holdover proceeding in the District Court of the county where the property sits (Nassau or Suffolk for Long Island commercial property), or a Supreme Court action for additional relief such as money damages or injunctive relief.

Tenants on the receiving end of a termination effort should not assume the landlord did everything right. Defective notices, missed cure periods, waiver by acceptance of rent, and improper service are common defenses that can extend the tenancy or generate leverage for a negotiated resolution.

How do I find a commercial real estate dispute lawyer on Long Island?

Look for a lawyer whose actual day-to-day work is New York real estate and commercial leases, not a general-business litigator who occasionally touches real property. The substantive law of New York commercial leases, the RPAPL summary proceeding rules, and the local practices of the Nassau and Suffolk Supreme and District Courts are specialized; they reward counsel who is in those courthouses regularly.

I have practiced on Long Island since 1999 and handle commercial real estate disputes alongside the firm's residential real estate and landlord-tenant work. You can read more about how we approach these matters on the real estate law and landlord-tenant law pages, and on the dedicated commercial litigation page.

When you interview counsel, ask: How many commercial holdover and nonpayment proceedings have you actually tried or settled in Nassau and Suffolk in the last three years? Do you draft and review commercial leases as well as litigate them? Who will personally handle my file? Those answers separate genuine commercial real estate counsel from generalist litigators.

Litigation vs. arbitration for a commercial dispute: which is better?

Arbitration is only on the table if the contract requires it. If the lease, purchase agreement, or partnership agreement contains a valid arbitration clause, the dispute will generally go to arbitration before the named provider (often the American Arbitration Association or JAMS), and New York courts will enforce that clause subject to limited exceptions.

Arbitration's usual advantages are privacy, faster scheduling, and a single decision-maker familiar with the subject matter. Its usual disadvantages are limited discovery, very limited appeal rights, the cost of the arbitrator's time (which the parties pay), and the absence of a public record that can constrain future bad behavior.

Court litigation under the CPLR offers broader discovery, a public docket that often pressures settlement, motion practice (including summary judgment) that can resolve weak cases without trial, and meaningful appeal rights. The trade-off is that court calendars in Nassau and Suffolk Supreme Court are crowded, and contested commercial cases routinely take 18 to 36 months from filing to trial.

Types of commercial real estate disputes we handle

Commercial real estate litigation covers a wide field, but several categories come up over and over in Long Island practice. Each has its own substantive law, procedural posture, and strategic playbook.

Lease defaults and nonpayment of rent. Suits or summary proceedings to collect base rent, additional rent (CAM, taxes, insurance), late charges, and attorneys' fees under a commercial lease, including disputes over reconciliation of operating expenses and percentage-rent calculations.

Breach of contract (purchase, sale, and brokerage). Disputes over commercial purchase and sale agreements, including failure to close, contested down-payment disputes, misrepresentation claims, and broker commission disputes under contracts that often include specific procuring-cause language.

Title and boundary disputes. Quiet title actions, easement and right-of-way disputes, adverse possession claims, encroachments, and title-insurance coverage disputes affecting commercial parcels.

Partnership, LLC, and co-owner disputes. Disputes between members of an LLC or partners holding investment property: deadlock, breach of fiduciary duty, partition actions to force sale or buyout of jointly owned property, and accountings.

Holdover and eviction of commercial tenants. Summary holdover proceedings under RPAPL Article 7 to remove commercial tenants whose leases have expired or been terminated for default, including use-and-occupancy claims and post-judgment enforcement.

Litigation, mediation, or settlement: how to choose

Most commercial disputes never see a trial. The realistic question is rarely 'litigate or settle' but 'in what posture, and after which leverage moves, do we settle.' The three main paths each fit different facts.

Direct negotiation. Best when the relationship matters (a long-term tenant, an ongoing joint venture), the dispute is contained, and both sides are represented by counsel willing to deal. Cheapest and fastest if it works. Worst when one side is using delay as strategy.

Mediation. A confidential, non-binding process before a neutral. Useful once each side has enough information to value the case but before discovery costs spiral. Particularly effective in lease and partnership disputes where preserving an ongoing relationship has independent value. Can be done pre-suit or court-annexed mid-litigation.

Litigation through trial. Necessary when the other side will not pay or perform without a judgment, when significant non-monetary relief is needed (injunction, declaratory judgment, partition), or when an early-stage motion (preliminary injunction, summary judgment) can decisively reshape the case. Costs more and takes longer, but generates enforceable orders.