Real property disputes in New York — deed fraud, quiet title under RPAPL Article 15, fraudulent conveyances under DCL §§ 273 and 276, partition under RPAPL Article 9, HECM reverse-mortgage foreclosure defense, and estate real property matters. Michel Law represents owners, heirs, and estate fiduciaries in contested matters where the first filings determine whether recovery is possible. In deed fraud, the window measures in days, not weeks: by the time a fraudulent instrument is recorded in the City Register or County Clerk's office, the fraudster may already be marketing the property, taking out predatory loans against it, or conveying it to a straw buyer who will claim bona-fide-purchaser status. The remedy is RPAPL Article 15 quiet title, usually paired with an immediate lis pendens under CPLR Article 65 to arrest further transfers and with injunctive relief against the counterparties. In partition and foreclosure, procedural posture at the outset shapes every subsequent motion — the choice between RPAPL 915 reference and summary judgment, the sequencing of answer, counterclaim, and cross-claim, the treatment of surplus funds. Bronx, Kings, Queens, and Nassau County each have their own calendaring quirks and judicial preferences that matter. These insights address the first 72 hours after a wrongful deed is discovered, the mechanics of RPAPL 1501 quiet title pleadings, the strategic use of lis pendens, bankruptcy-abuse delay tactics (serial Chapter 13 filings timed to foreclosure sales), HECM-specific foreclosure defenses under 24 CFR 206, and how real property litigation integrates with Surrogate's Court estate administration where the decedent held fee title.
RPAPL Article 9 gives any tenant in common or joint tenant the right to force partition of jointly held NY real property. Standing, in-kind vs sale, equitable adjustments, and pleading posture.
RCL § 12 requires Attorney General or court approval before a NY religious corporation can mortgage, sell, or lease real property for over five years. The application, the review standard, and the timeline.
When an owner or heir discovers a wrongful deed, the window to recover the property is measured in days, not weeks. What happens in the first filings determines whether recovery is possible.
Discovering a forged deed on ACRIS triggers a 72-hour window where preservation steps decide whether the property can be protected while the merits are litigated. A deed-fraud litigator's playbook.
Forged deeds are void ab initio in NY. Quiet title under RPAPL Article 15, with same-day lis pendens, is how the record is cleared.