Authored by John Walker and Chris D. Treharne, ASA, MCBA, BVAL of Gibraltar Business Appraisals, Inc. a member firm of FCG
Issue 13:1
Estate of Saul Schneider, Appellant, v. Victor M. Finmann, et al., Respondents, et al., Defendant
New York Court of Appeals, No. 104, June 17, 2010
In a unanimous ruling, the New York Court of Appeals (the state’s highest court) determined that an estate can bring a legal malpractice suit against an attorney for damages associated with negligent representation which resulted in a larger estate tax liability.
The Takeaway
Privity: n. contact, connection or mutual interest between parties. The term is particularly important in the law of contracts, which requires that there be “privity” if one party to a contract can enforce the contract by a lawsuit against the other party. Thus, a tenant of a buyer of real property cannot sue the former owner (seller) of the property for failure to make repairs guaranteed by the land sales contract between seller and buyer since the tenant was not “in privity” with the seller.