Opinion
570891/02.
Decided February 5, 2004.
Tenant appeals from a final judgment of the Civil Court, New York County, entered September 13, 2002 after a nonjury trial (Eileen A. Rakower, J.) awarding possession and a monetary judgment of $51,860 to landlord and a judgment of the Civil Court, New York County, entered September 24, 2002 after a hearing (Eileen A. Rakower, J.) awarding landlord attorneys' fees of $8,636.24.
Final judgment entered September 13, 2002 (Eileen A. Rakower, J.) and judgment entered September 24, 2002 (Eileen A. Rackower, J.) affirmed, with $25 costs.
PRESENT: SUAREZ, P.J., DAVIS, SCHOENFELD, Justices.
Since the commercial lease agreement between the parties provides that any modification of the terms of the lease must be in writing, tenant's claim that the parties modified the rental amount by oral agreement in May 2001 is barred (General Obligations Law § 15-301; 99 Realty Co. v. Eikenberry, 242 AD2d 215). While tenant argues that landlord's acceptance of a lesser rent than that set forth in the lease ratified the alleged oral modification, landlord's attorney's letter of July 2, 2001 expressly advising that tenant's failure to pay the lease rental of $8,000 constituted a breach "evinced an immediate rejection of any purported agreement to modify the lease" (Joseph P. Day Realty Corp. v. Jeffrey Lawrence Associates, Inc., 270 AD2d 140, 142).
Tenant's claim that it was entitled to a rent reduction as a result of the alleged loss of use of part of the space — which tenant never abandoned — is not supported by the record evidence (cf., 81 Franklin Co. v. Ginaccini, 160 AD2d 558).
We have considered tenant's arguments addressed to the award of attorneys' fees and find them lacking in merit. The demand in the petition sufficed as proper notice to invoke the obligation (see, AD 1619 Co. v. VB Management, Inc., 259 AD2d 382), and there is no cause to disturb the trial court's assessment of fees (see, Lefkowitz v. Van Ess, 166 AD2d 556).
This constitutes the decision and order of the court.