Unitrade Mktg. Group, Inc. v 200 Fifth LLC, 2011 NY Slip Op 02116 [82 AD3d 594]

March 24, 2011

Appellate Division, First Department

— [*1]

Arnold E. DiJoseph, P.C., New York (Arnold E. DiJoseph, III of counsel), for appellants.

Jaroslawicz & Jaros LLC, New York (Natascia Ayers of counsel), for respondent.

Order and judgment (one paper), Supreme Court, New York County (Barbara R. Kapnick, J.), entered November 20, 2009, which confirmed the Special Referee’s report, dated February 29, 2008, and declared that the fee to petitioner law firm shall be the ten percent fee paid directly to petitioner by defendant landlord, unanimously affirmed, without costs.

The record supports the court’s confirmation of the Special Referee’s finding that, in settling the underlying action, defendant orally agreed to pay petitioner’s legal fee by adding ten percent to the settlement amount it agreed to pay respondents ( see generally Namer v 152-54-56 W. 15th St. Realty Corp. , 108 AD2d 705, 705-706 [1985]). The record indicates that respondents were aware of and consented to the oral agreement. As the court found, the oral agreement [*2] rendered respondents’ contingency fee agreement with petitioner irrelevant since respondent was relieved of its contractual obligation to pay petitioner’s legal fee. We have considered respondents’ remaining arguments and find them unavailing. Concur—Gonzalez, P.J., Catterson, Richter, Abdus-Salaam and RomÁn, JJ..