SERHANT LLC v Santa Federico, Douglas Elliman Realty, LLC, et al.
Attorneys and Parties
Brief Summary
This real estate brokerage commission dispute concerned whether a broker could maintain a tortious interference with contractual relations claim based on an exclusive listing agreement that contained an automatic renewal provision and a post-expiration survival-list requirement.
The lower court denied the summary judgment motion of Douglas Elliman Realty, LLC and Josh Rubin and granted SERHANT LLC summary judgment on its tortious interference with contractual relations claim.
The Appellate Division reversed the order granting SERHANT LLC summary judgment on tortious interference and denying summary judgment to Douglas Elliman Realty, LLC and Josh Rubin.
The court held that SERHANT LLC could not prove breach of a valid and enforceable brokerage agreement. Under 19 NYCRR 175.15 [prohibits a real estate broker from being a party to an exclusive listing contract containing an automatic continuation beyond the fixed termination date], the agreement's automatic renewal clause was void, so the agreement expired at the end of the original 180-day term on January 29, 2022. SERHANT LLC's survival list, served on February 15, 2022, was untimely under the contract's seven-business-day requirement. The court also held that General Obligations Law § 5-903(3) [statute governing certain automatic contract renewals and excluding renewals of one month or less] did not apply.
Background
SERHANT LLC sued in a dispute over a brokerage commission and asserted that Douglas Elliman Realty, LLC and Josh Rubin tortiously interfered with its contractual relations. The claim depended on an exclusive brokerage agreement that had a 180-day listing period, an automatic renewal provision, and a requirement that a survival list be served within seven business days after expiration of the term. The original 180-day term ended on January 29, 2022, and SERHANT LLC served its survival list on February 15, 2022.
Lower Court Decision
Supreme Court, New York County denied the summary judgment motion of Douglas Elliman Realty, LLC and Josh Rubin to dismiss the tortious interference with contractual relations claim and granted SERHANT LLC's cross-motion for summary judgment on that claim.
Appellate Division Reversal
The Appellate Division unanimously reversed, granted summary judgment to Douglas Elliman Realty, LLC and Josh Rubin, and denied SERHANT LLC's cross-motion. The court reasoned that a tortious interference claim requires a valid contract and an intentional inducement of breach or rendering performance impossible. Because the automatic renewal provision was void under 19 NYCRR 175.15, the brokerage agreement expired on January 29, 2022. SERHANT LLC's February 15, 2022 survival list was therefore untimely, and no enforceable contract right remained to support a tortious interference claim. The court further held that General Obligations Law § 5-903(3) did not save SERHANT LLC's position because the automatic renewal period was one month or less. The court also recalled and vacated its prior Decision and Order entered December 2, 2025.
Legal Significance
The decision reinforces that, in New York real estate brokerage disputes, a broker cannot base a tortious interference claim on an exclusive listing agreement whose automatic renewal clause is void under 19 NYCRR 175.15. It also underscores the need for strict compliance with contractual post-expiration notice requirements, such as survival-list deadlines, and clarifies that General Obligations Law § 5-903 does not apply where the automatic renewal period is one month or less.
A real estate broker cannot recover on a tortious interference theory when the underlying exclusive listing agreement expired, its automatic renewal clause was void, and the broker failed to timely serve the required survival list.