Commercial Lease Disputes
Verified Update
Ruling Issued
A Texas appeals court ruled a dental practice's fraud and overcharge claims against its former shopping-center landlord Brixmor were filed too late, affirming summary judgment.
The Texas Thirteenth Court of Appeals affirmed summary judgment for Brixmor GA Apollo II TX LP against Veena Dental PA, a tenant at the Northshore Plaza shopping center in Portland, Texas, that had sued Brixmor in 2024 alleging the landlord misrepresented its leased space as 1,863 square feet when it was actually about 1,500 square feet, resulting in years of rent overcharges. The court held Veena's breach-of-contract, fraud and DTPA claims were all barred by limitations, since Veena's own 2013 construction plans reflected the true, smaller square footage and made the discrepancy discoverable well before Veena measured the space in 2023.
Unspecified rent-overcharge and fraud damages (space leased as ~1,863 sq ft; tenant alleged true size was ~1,500 sq ft)
Retail
Why it matters: The ruling shows that a tenant's own records -- here, construction plans it commissioned at lease signing -- can defeat a later discovery-rule argument no matter when the tenant actually checks them against the lease. It also underscores how a landlord's standard assignment-and-release clause on a property sale can extinguish liability for a transferring landlord's alleged pre-sale misconduct once a successor assumes the lease, leaving a tenant to pursue a claim against an exited party.
Oct 29, 2026
Thirteenth Court of Appeals, Corpus Christi-Edinburg, Texas
Lending & Foreclosure
Verified Update
Filed
AmBase's 111 West 57th Investment LLC accused Apollo's ACREFI Mortgage of transferring funds to its parent, ARI, for no consideration, escalating the Steinway Tower mezzanine fight in a new Manhattan Supreme Court suit.
AmBase Corporation disclosed that its 111 West 57th Investment LLC vehicle filed a Summons with Notice on October 19, 2026 in Supreme Court, New York County, against ACREFI Mortgage LLC and its indirect parent, Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance, Inc., alleging ACREFI improperly transferred funds to ARI for no consideration or equivalent value. The suit is a new, separate action from the long-running 'Lender Action' over the 2017 strict foreclosure that wiped out the plaintiffs' equity in the Steinway Tower project at 111 West 57th Street.
unspecified — alleged no-consideration fund transfer from ACREFI to its parent
Why it matters: The filing shows that AmBase's litigation campaign against Apollo-affiliated lenders over the Steinway Tower mezzanine loan continues to widen beyond the original foreclosure dispute into intercompany-transfer theories, following the New York Court of Appeals' May 2026 revival of the plaintiffs' good-faith claim. Mezzanine lenders should expect continued scrutiny of fund movements between special-purpose lending subsidiaries and their parents following a foreclosure that eliminates a junior equity holder's position.
Oct 19, 2026
Supreme Court of the State of New York, New York County
Lending & Foreclosure
Verified Update
Filed
An Apollo-tied lender group sued to foreclose on the long-delayed Mandarin Oriental Residences condo tower in Boca Raton for $417.7M, seeking priority over a $24.1M mechanics' lien and buyer claims.
A lender group led by Via Mizner Lender 1 LLC, tied to Apollo Global Management, sued to foreclose on the long-delayed Mandarin Oriental Residences condo tower after Penn-Florida affiliate Via Mizner Owner III stopped paying interest in June 2024, missed the loan's September 2025 maturity, and missed a February 2025 completion deadline. The complaint seeks to subordinate a $24.1M mechanics'-lien claim from construction manager Strategic Group Builders and the claims of unit buyers, while a related Chapter 11 case over the adjoining hotel component heads to an August 14 bankruptcy auction.
$417.7M foreclosure claim
Why it matters: A live illustration of capital-stack priority in a distressed vertical construction project: a senior mortgage foreclosure seeking to leapfrog both a perfected mechanics' lien and buyer deposit claims, running in parallel with a separate bankruptcy sale of an affiliated asset. CRE lenders, contractors, and preconstruction condo buyers should watch how the court treats escrowed versus disbursed deposits and lien-priority arguments, as the outcome will bear on workout and lien-perfection strategy for other stalled vertical projects.
Jul 17, 2026
Fifteenth Judicial Circuit Court, Palm Beach County, Florida
Lending & Foreclosure
Verified Update
Ruling Issued
New York's highest court revived an AmBase vehicle's good-faith claim against Apollo-affiliated mezzanine lenders over a $25M Steinway Tower loan sale followed by a strict foreclosure of its equity.
New York's highest court reinstated AmBase investment vehicle 111 West 57th Investment LLC's implied-covenant-of-good-faith claim against Apollo-affiliated mezzanine lenders over the 2017 sale of a $25M junior mezzanine loan (secured by the plaintiff's equity in the Steinway Tower project) to Spruce Capital Partners at par value, despite internal models showing roughly $600M in underlying equity value. Spruce initiated a UCC Article 9 strict foreclosure two days after acquiring the loan, wiping out the plaintiff's equity; the Court held Apollo's contractual 'sole discretion' to assign the loan does not exculpate it from good-faith-and-fair-dealing claims and remitted the case to Supreme Court, New York County, while affirming dismissal of related tortious interference claims.
$65M equity investment; $25M junior mezzanine loan; ~$600M underlying equity value alleged
Why it matters: Resolves a split among Appellate Division departments in the lender's favor of accountability, aligning New York with Delaware law: broad 'sole discretion' clauses in loan and pledge agreements no longer categorically foreclose implied-covenant claims when a counterparty alleges the discretion was exercised as part of a bad-faith scheme to strip a joint-venture partner's equity. Mezzanine lenders, sponsors, and equity investors in New York-governed capital stacks should expect a lower pleading bar for bad-faith challenges to loan assignments and strict foreclosures going forward, even where assignment rights are drafted as unqualified.
May 28, 2026
New York Court of Appeals
