Landlord's Motion for Interim Rent Denied Against $1.16 Million in Arrears
Applebee's owed more than $1.16 million in pandemic arrears and the landlord had already won summary judgment on liability. A motion to compel interim rent was defeated by counterclaims that could exceed the arrears.
$1.16M+
interim payments refused
- Resolved
- Public court
- Year
- 2021
- Case
- Bay Plaza Community Center, LLC v. Bay Plaza Apple, LLC
- Index
- Index No. 650040/2021
- Court
- Supreme Court of the State of New York, New York County
- Judge
- Justice Arlene Bluth
- Decided
- August 26, 2021
The situation
By November 2021 Applebee's owed more than $1.16 million in rent unpaid since the COVID-19 pandemic. The landlord had already obtained summary judgment on liability and now moved to compel pendente lite payments during the litigation. The restaurant was struggling to make payroll and stay open; forced ongoing rent would have closed its doors just as outdoor dining began to take effect. The landlord had also obstructed its ability to generate revenue — removing the restaurant's outdoor dining furniture and, in one incident, brandishing firearms at customers, which led to the arrest of one of the landlord's security guards.
The approach
Leave was sought to add counterclaims that the landlord interfered with Applebee's outdoor dining operations during COVID-related restrictions, and that the restaurant's damages could exceed the arrears owed — converting an uncontested collection motion into a two-sided accounting.
The outcome
The court granted the amendment over the landlord's objections and denied the request for interim payments, reasoning that requiring payment before the counterclaims were resolved could force the restaurant to claw money back later. The restaurant defeated the demand for court-ordered monthly rent while preserving counterclaims that could eliminate the landlord's net recovery.
The full write-up
This page keeps the figures and the holding. The firm's own account of the matter, in full, is here:
Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Each matter is different, and the results described here were achieved on the specific facts of those matters.