Trump Sued Over Leaks at Fancy 40 Wall St.

By Matt Dunning
POSTED AUGUST 29, 2008

Accustomed to doling out scathing criticism and on-the-spot firings on his television show “The Apprentice,”  Donald Trump may soon find himself on the receiving end of some harsh news at the hands of a New York County judge.

Trump, whose name is emblazoned above the main entrance to the landmark office tower at 40 Wall St., is being sued by one of the building’s tenants over chronic flooding on the top floor. The trial is scheduled to begin Sept. 19.

“I don’t want to call us suckers, but we trusted Trump, and I guess that came back to haunt us,” said John P. Bostany, a high-profile copyright and trademark lawyer who, in 2004, signed a five-year lease on the entire 61st floor of the Wall Street building for The Bostany Law Firm.

Bostany said Trump personally showed him the rental space and agreed to fix an existing leak in the tower’s antique roof. A year later, according to Bostony, the first of what became a series of eight major floods in three years forced him and his employees to work elsewhere.

“Donald assured us that he would repair any existing leaks,” Bostany said. “It’s not right. We made the mistake of trusting him.”

It won’t be the first time Bostany has locked legal horns with a celebrity. In 2003, he represented a former Bad Boy Records executive in a suit against Sean  “Diddy” Combs. He also represented a
woman who sued rapper and Tribeca resident Jay-Z in 2001 because her name was allegedly omitted from the credits to one of his songs.

Bostany stopped paying his $21,000-a-month rent in April 2007, claiming that he could no longer sublet any of his space and that he had lost thousands of dollars in office equipment and furniture. He also said he had spent countless hours rebuilding case files destroyed in the floods. 

Soon afterwards, the lawsuits started flying.

Trump—by way of his 40 Wall St. LLC, which manages the building—filed a claim against Bostany in May for the unpaid rent that, by last month, totaled more than $300,000 including maintenance fees and late charges.

Bostany countered with a second suit, asking to be let out of his lease, as well as a yet-to-be-determined amount of money in damages.

“He was expecting Trump quality, and he got a rainforest,” said Christopher Halligan, Bostany’s attorney.

A county judge ruled Sept. 4 that Trump himself would not have to appear in court during the lawsuit. Halligan and Bostany had issued a subpoena for Trump's testimony.

"They're doing nothing but grandstanding," said Jonathan Newman, Trump's attorney. "Mr. Trump has several buildings in and around the city. Do you really think he's the one telling someone what needs to be fixed in a particular building?"

In court papers Newman claims that 40 Wall St. LLC has spent more than $96,000 on repairs and inspections for the leaky roof since 2006. Yet Bostany said water still finds its way into the office nearly every time it rains, as recently as last month.

“It isn’t safe to practice law up here,” Bostany said. “It’s not fit for a law firm.”

In June, Newman tried unsuccessfully to have Bostany’s countersuit thrown out, claiming that the only issue was the unpaid rent. Trump wanted the case expedited to a summary judgment, which would have bypassed a trial.

“The alleged leaks are the 800-pound gorilla in the room that cannot be ignored,” Judge Arthur Engoron wrote in his decision on Trump’s motion to skip the trial. “This Court understands the petitioner’s desire for a quick and simple trial solely about non-payment. But...the respondant is entitled to make his case.”

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