131 Perry Street Apartment v. Clausner, 2022 NY Slip Op 33018(U), N.Y. Supreme, Sept. 8, 2022 (Hon. Arlene P. Bluth) involves a situation asked of counsel representing condominiums and cooperatives on a regular basis; who is responsible for the repairs and damage stemming from alterations to the interior of a cooperative apartment, which were previously made by the predecessor shareholder?

In 131 Perry Street Apartment, the plaintiff, a residential cooperative corporation, brought an action to compel a tenant-shareholder to repair the custom-made French atrium doors that were alleged to be leaking and causing damage to the apartment below. While neither party disputed that the atrium doors had been replaced by Clausner's predecessor in interest, most proprietary leases, including the one between Clausner and the apartment corporation, place the obligation for repair of entrance and terrace doors on the apartment corporation, absent replacement of such doors by a shareholder.