In Bloomberg Law and Law360, Gregg Weiner and Alex Simkin Discuss $60M NYC Civil Rights Settlement

Bloomberg Law and Law360 covered the preliminary approval of a $60M class action settlement in Dorce v. City of New York, with litigation & enforcement global co-chair Gregg Weiner quoted in the Bloomberg Law article and litigation partner Alex Simkin quoted in Law360. The settlement in the case, which was reached with the City of New York on behalf of property owners whose buildings were seized without compensation under the city's Third Party Transfer program, was first announced in September.

Gregg explained that the program did not provide just compensation, "Under the third-party transfer program, there was no foreclosure sale, and therefore there were no proceeds that were being paid over to the property owner, nor was there any other form of compensation," he said.

Alex described the challenge at the center of the case, “We're not challenging the right of the city to take the property. We're challenging the right of the city to keep more than the taxes," he said.

A final approval hearing is set for May 5, 2027.

The Ropes & Gray team was led by Gregg and Alex, and included appellate and Supreme Court practice leader Doug Hallward-Driemeier, and litigation & enforcement associates Will Piereson, Cambrey Dent, Mohammed Hassan, Chloe Aubuchon, Bradley McKnight, Briana Thomas, Matt Kaufman, and Jared Coltey.