Game-changing developments are expected to occur in 2019 with respect to therapy dogs (i.e., service dogs and emotional support dogs) and real estate professionals must monitor these developments as they occur to stay on top of their game and avoid facing a lawsuit.

As some background, on April 18, 2018, Governor Cuomo signed S7319 into law. This statute charged "the commissioner of agriculture and markets shall convene a working group to examine the need for statewide standards for therapy dogs." Then, in October 2018, the working group published "A Report from the New York State Therapy Dog Working Group".

The Report is clear to note that "[therapy dogs are not defined in other laws under the Americans With Disabilities Act, Federal Housing Authority, NYS Human Rights Law, or New York City Human Rights Law" and that the current definition found at Article 7 of the Agriculture and Markets Law should be expanded to include "private homes" to its current definition of "any dog that is trained to aid the emotional and physical health of patients in hospitals, nursing homes, retirement homes and other settings and is actually used for such purpose, or any dog during the period such dog is being trained or bred for such purpose, and does not qualify under federal or state law or regulations as a service dog." As such, the definition would be relevant to suit under the New York State Human Rights Law (i.e., discrimination in housing) - Real Estate Brokers, Property Managers and Landlords take notice.

The Report calls for "standards regarding training, evaluation, certification, and identification of therapy dogs... especially in relation to service dogs and emotional support dogs." It is expected that further statutes will follow to enact the recommendations of the Report. It's important for real estate professionals to monitor these statutes as they go from bill to law rather than to learn about their rules from receiving a Summons and Complaint. Remember, the best real estate professionals are on the cutting-edge on changes to the law. Leveraging those changes makes you money. 

In a decision dated Nov. 6, 2018, the United States Supreme Court broadened the scope of the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA) to cover state and local governments regardless of number of employees. Public employers must now be advised that they may be liable under the ADEA, regardless of number of employees, and face additional exposure for claims of age discrimination.

Read the full article by Mordy Yankovich, Esq. published in The Suffolk Lawyer here. 

The dichotomy between a litigation and a transactional practice is stark. Simply, transactional counsel needs to adhere to the game of hot potato — don’t get stuck as the recipient of a notice when the music stops. Instead, counsel must assert a preservation right whenever counsel receives a notice that asserts contrary rights by the other party. Then, counsel should consult with litigation counsel to collaborate on how to best achieve the client’s goal through a hybrid of leveraging litigation and negotiating terms.

Click here to read the full article published in The Suffolk Lawyer. 

A lawsuit is not what you see on TV. On TV, a lawsuit is won by an attorney marching into court with a grand display of showmanship and a cunning tongue. The TV judge hearing the case makes a spot decision and it’s all over and decided before the final commercial break. In reality, a civil litigation takes years and is much more of a chess match than a swordfight. As opposed to this courtroom drama, a real case is typically decided on paper submissions that may be heard months after they are first provided to the court. Additionally, the decision is often made on a technical procedural rule, not on the merits or substance of the litigation.

You see, being right isn’t everything in real litigation. Instead, a real lawsuit is all about knowing how to play the game. The following is a summary of the stages of a litigation, but this chess match isn’t linear and each of the stages can appear out of order and can even reoccur again and again. So, civil litigants need a skilled advocate who is a master of the game if they want a shot at victory. Here is your game board:

• Must love technology and use it always, must be comfortable in a paperless office with cloud based systems

• Demonstrated proficiency in legal writing and oral advocacy;

• Dedicated, organized and detail-orientated;

• Ability to leverage substance rather than emotion;

• Experience drafting contracts.

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