"Karp told the court that his former attorney, Leo Jacobs, did not file opposition papers despite being paid between $25,000 and $50,000 to fight enforcement of the guarantee. Jacobs PC has disputed that version of events, with a firm spokesperson saying it "had a different strategy which Eli was aware of and which successor counsel had implemented." The judge ultimately granted the motion to vacate, giving Karp new time to contest the deficiency, as reported by The Real Deal."
"A 2025 ruling had found Karp personally liable for roughly $15 million, the difference between the loan and the property's later appraised value, but Karp has argued that the underlying valuations are unreliable. Central to his argument are two BBG appraisals that swing widely: a $46.2 million estimate in 2019 and a $29.6 million appraisal in 2024. Those figures underpin Karp's allegation of inflated underwriting."
"After the fallout with his former counsel, Karp hired KOR Law LLP to file the motion to vacate, tapping former Jacobs PC attorney Muriel Raggi to lead the effort. Public attorney directories list KOR Law at One World Trade Center and show the firm handling New York civil litigation matters. KOR Law's directory entry confirms the firm's New York address and practice focus, according to LawInfo."
"Karp has also sued a Greystone affiliate and BBG, accusing them of engineering a "loan-to-own" scheme. Those claims and the appraisal figures are detailed in reporting and court documents reviewed by The Real Deal."
A judge vacated a roughly $15 million personal guarantee connected to a rental building at 271 Lenox Road in East Flatbush. The ruling restores the ability to challenge a deficiency judgment after the property’s 2024 foreclosure and allows a late defense. The decision turned on a claimed lawyer misstep involving failure to file opposition papers despite payment of $25,000 to $50,000. The former attorney disputed the account, citing a different strategy known to the client and implemented by successor counsel. After the change, Karp hired KOR Law LLP, led by former Jacobs PC attorney Muriel Raggi. Karp also contests liability based on disputed appraisals and has sued related parties over an alleged loan-to-own scheme.
Read at Hoodline
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]