Litigation

Civil Litigation

Our trial team built its reputation on the zealous advocacy and representation of clients in the courtroom. Our team of experienced attorneys, coupled with our skilled investigators, support staff and advanced technological resources, provides us with the tools to successfully handle cases from inception to trial and jury verdict. Our team handles matters resulting from some of the most significant natural disasters in the State and City of New York. We handle various matters, including, the defense of catastrophic tort claims, breach of contract, construction disputes, fraud and misrepresentation, breach of fiduciary duties, indemnification and contribution.

Our team handles very sophisticated and complex legal matters on behalf of governmental agencies, fortune 500 companies and public authorities, including the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, the New York City Transit Authority, the Housing Trust Fund Corporation, First Insurance Funding, a division of Wintrust Bank, the City University Construction Fund , DHL Express and Hudson River Park Trust.

Rozario Touma, P.C., recently obtained dismissal of a claim against our State-client in a litigation matter involving Labor Law § 241(6) claims, for failure to timely serve a 90-day notice.

Rozario Touma, P.C., successfully moved for summary judgment on the issue of whether Plaintiff suffered a serious injury, and the complaint was dismissed.  Plaintiff sued our clients in negligence for injuries he claimed to have suffered in a motor vehicle accident when a bus owned and operated by Defendants, allegedly side-swiped the vehicle he was driving.  We argued that Plaintiff did not suffer a serious injury within the meaning of Insurance Law §5102(d) because the objective medical evidence of Plaintiff’s injuries to his cervical spine, lumbar spine, right knee and left shoulder showed he suffered only soft tissue injuries. 

Rozario Touma, P.C., successfully obtained a declaratory judgment against an insurance company that refused to provide legal representation to an insured property owner in a premises suit involving claims of personal injury. 

Rozario Touma, P.C., successfully negotiated a settlement on behalf of our client after the client defaulted on a premises liability action and his insurance coverage had lapsed.  We were able to unfreeze his assets and negotiate a reduced settlement. 

Rozario Touma, P.C., successfully negotiated a settlement of our creditor client’s claims before the Bankruptcy Court in the Eastern District of New York in connection with a failed real estate development project. 

Rozario Touma, P.C., has successfully represented its Landlord clients in United States District Court, Eastern and Southern Districts of New York, against claims Americans with Disabilities Act violations brought by disabled patrons who alleged discrimination because of limited access to the commercial spaces. 

Rozario Touma, P.C., represents its Landlord clients in Bankruptcy Court, both in the Eastern and Southern Districts of New York, as creditors in tenant Chapter 7 and 11 Bankruptcy filings. Representation includes filing proof of claims, proof of administrative claims, motions to lift automatic stays, motions to dismiss and motions to compel acceptance or rejection of leases.

Rozario Touma, P.C., successfully moved to dismiss a claim for breach of a construction contract wherein Plaintiff alleged that our client owed it monies under a series of grant agreements entered into with various homeowners who were affected by Superstorm Sandy. Plaintiff claimed to be a third-party beneficiary because it conducted construction and post-storm elevation-related work on the homeowners’ properties. 

Rozario Touma, P.C., actively represents its private client in breach of contract claims and has successfully obtained judgments on their behalf totaling over $1 Million. 

Rozario Touma, P.C., successfully represented a public authority in breach of contract claims to recapture grant funds as a result of defaults of grant Agreements awarding federally-funded grants to grant recipients who were affected by Superstorm Sandy. 

Labor & Employment

Our labor and employment team provides representation to a diverse group of clients. We defend employers and businesses in labor and employment litigation, as well as provide counsel and advice to companies on labor and employment issues in order to avoid claims of harassment and discrimination in the workplace. We represent clients before the New York City Commission of Human Rights, the New York State Division of Human Rights, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the Supreme Courts of the State of New York, and the United States Federal Courts, Eastern and Southern Districts of the State of New York.

Rozario Touma, P.C., recently secured a dismissal of a complainant’s claim against our public authority client, at the conclusion of a public hearing before the New York State Division of Human Rights.  Complainant alleged that he was discriminated against based on his race and national origin and perceived disability.

Rozario Touma, P.C., successfully moved for summary judgment in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, wherein the Court dismissed Plaintiff’s employment discrimination complaint against our clients.  We argued that Plaintiff’s Second Amended Complaint must be dismissed because Plaintiff did not adhere to the procedural pre-condition for instituting an action pursuant to Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. §2000e et seq., for failure to promote on the basis of sex and retaliation because of sex.  Plaintiff did not satisfy the procedural pre-condition because she did not exhaust the administrative remedies available to her at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission for her counts of failure to promote and retaliation by failing to promote.  We also successfully argued that Plaintiff’s complaint should be dismissed because she had not established a prima facie case of discrimination because Defendants set forth that Defendants had legitimate, non-discriminatory reasons for overlooking Plaintiff for the positions.

Rozario Touma, P.C., successfully obtained dismissal of a complaint before the NYSDHR, wherein the complainant alleged that his termination was based on national-origin discrimination.

Rozario Touma, P.C., obtained dismissal of a complaint filed in the New York County Supreme Court wherein Plaintiff alleged that she was terminated based on her national origin and sex.

Rozario Touma, P.C., represented a not-for-profit client in labor disputes with a local union, which claimed that our client breached the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) on medical insurance coverage and wrongful employee termination.  The wrongful termination grievance was arbitrated in July 2022, and the Arbitrator found in favor of our employer client and dismissed the claim.

Rozario Touma, P.C., successfully defended racial discrimination claims brought against our client. The scope of representation included defending against claims alleging racial discrimination because the complainants were of a different national origin. In addition, our firm defended against claims that our client, a property management company, discriminated and retaliated against tenants because of their national origin.  Our firm also successfully defended our client against claims alleging that complainants were terminated because of their race and then replaced with less-qualified persons of a different race.  

Rozario Touma, P.C., successfully defended disability discrimination claims brought against our client. The scope of representation included defending against claims of retaliation for allegedly terminating an employee because the employee filed a worker’s compensation claim and defending against claims of harassment and discrimination for allegedly terminating an employee because she was pregnant. 

Rozario Touma, P.C., represented a sovereign nation in employment and labor disputes in the Southern District Court of New York, for claims of wages and unpaid overtime and provided advice and counsel to the sovereign nation’s Consulate in New York City on preventing future allegations of unpaid wage and overtime claims.

Rozario Touma, P.C., advised its client on labor and employment matters. The scope of representation included reviewing and amending their employee manual to ensure compliance with federal, state and local statutes and laws, drafting a memorandum of law regarding off-boarding of an employee and potential implications of discrimination. 

Rozario Touma, P.C., provided extensive formal training on employment laws and Source of Income Discrimination in New York City to its management-company client.  The scope of our training included updates on the statutes and laws, client participation, employee training, amendments to the employee handbook and successfully defended the client before the NYCCHR.

Real Estate

Our Attorneys provide top quality services to clients regarding reversion and recapture litigation, construction litigation, Article 78 proceedings, Article 881 litigation and construction access, tax foreclosure matters and commercial landlord and tenant matters. We represent clients, including management companies, developers, religious institutions, governmental entities and public authorities, throughout the five boroughs of New York City.

Rozario Touma, P.C., represents our public authority client in litigation and transactional matters regarding breach of contract, construction litigation, reversionary interest actions, recapture litigation, Article 78 Proceedings and Eminent Domain Proceedings, as well as drafting real property releases, property redevelopment extension agreements and deed transfers. Our firm represented the client in an action for the disposition of multiple properties through an Eminent Domain Proceeding for the Staten Island Blue Belt Program. In addition, our firm reviewed and advised the client regarding Grant Agreements associated with the utilization of federal funding, through FEMA and HUD for the construction and rehabilitation of storm-impacted properties in the State of New York.

Rozario Touma, P.C., actively represents our public authority clients in commercial leasing and licensing matters. Our firm drafts and negotiates commercial lease agreements and license agreements. In addition, our firm commences summary proceedings in Housing Court to recover rental arrears and possession of commercial units. The scope of representation includes drafting Notices to Cure Defaults, Termination Notices, Rent Demand Notices, Non-Payment Petitions, Holdover Petitions, Surrender Agreements, Motions and Warrant Requisitions. In addition, our firm represents the client on infrastructure projects to secure substations throughout the City of New York by drafting license access agreements for access to adjoining properties to build floodwalls and to renovate subway stations. Our firm also represents the client by drafting easement agreements for permanent access to adjoining parcels.

Rozario Touma, P.C., actively represents our public trust client in real estate matters involving commercial tenants, licensees, permitees and concessionaires. The scope of representation includes advising our client regarding its obligations to its commercial tenants, licensees, permitees and concessionaires, drafting Notices to Cure Default, Rent Demand Notices, and Notices of Termination. The scope of representation also includes advising our client regarding summary proceedings and ejectment actions, representing our client in a Supreme Court action involving a Yellowstone injunction and representing our client, as creditor, in a Chapter 11 Bankruptcy filed by a tenant. In addition, our firm represented our client by reviewing the ground lease a particular Pier and advising on the public-private partnership for financing and redevelopment of that particular Pier and the impact of COVID-19.

Rozario Touma, P.C., represented a developer against seven neighboring contiguous property owners who delayed construction on our client’s $65 Million project by refusing to engage in negotiations for construction easement access to the adjacent properties. Our office filed an emergency order to show cause with the Supreme Court and was able to successfully negotiate license and access agreements so that our client would commence work.

Thorobird Companies, LLC. Rozario Touma, P.C., represented Thorobird in the development of the Grand Apartments Project, which included the construction of 94 units across three buildings in the South Bronx, for affordable housing. The scope of representation included filing Petitions pursuant to RPAPL § 881, against nine (9) adjacent property owners to obtain License Access Agreements. Ultimately, we were successful in obtaining the License Access Agreements through court orders for each of the nine (9) adjacent properties.