A Manhattan judge dismissed the allegations that Cushman & Wakefield improperly dealt city lease contracts worth millions in annual commissions to Mayor Eric Adams’ administration.
Manhattan State Supreme Court Justice Anar Patel last month granted Cushman’s motion to dismiss the lawsuit filed by JRT Realty in January, Crain’s reported. The suit claimed Cushman conspired with New York City officials to consolidate control over the city’s 22 million square feet of leased space.
Patel’s decision focused on JRT’s legal claims rather than corruption allegations. JRT failed to prove its lost business over an email by Cushman citing “performance issues” as the reason for terminating the subcontractor relationship, according to Patel.
“No reasonable person could infer that JRT was terminated given the text of the email,” Patel said during a hearing. She also dismissed JRT’s breach of contract claims.
Cushman said it ended its relationship with JRT due to changed city diversity requirements and a deteriorating professional relationship.
An attorney for JRT appealed the ruling last week.
Pulice’s firm alleged Cushman teamed up with longtime Adams aide Jesse Hamilton to box out her firm and hand lucrative deals to Cushman broker Diana Boutross. The suit claimed Hamilton openly told city lease negotiators that certain deals were “only a C&W deal” and called Boutross “my broker.”
JRT filed an amended complaint in February, adding Boutross and brokers Gus Field and Ron Lo Russo as individual defendants. The amended complaint alleged Boutross bragged about getting the city contract and told Pulice, “Don’t worry. I have a rabbi,” when questioned about her lack of government leasing experience.
Cushman & Wakefield said in a statement it was pleased with the development and said the claims were “meritless.”
“The ruling supported our belief that many of the plaintiff’s claims had no relevance to this lawsuit and were added to the amended complaint for an improper purpose,” said the firm.
The statement added the firm has a “decades-long relationship” with the Department of Citywide Administrative Services that spans “multiple mayoral administrations.”
The controversy has reshaped the city’s real estate brokerage landscape. DCAS didn’t renew Cushman’s contract when it expired last fall and is now seeking up to five firms as tenant representatives.
The agency also now requires firms to disclose conflicts of interest and relationships with city officials.
Last fall, Manhattan prosecutors seized phones from Boutross, Hamilton and ex-Adams adviser Ingrid Lewis-Martin upon their return from a trip to Japan. Lewis-Martin was later indicted on unrelated corruption charges.
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