Overview
- Cushman & Wakefield filed a New York State Supreme Court case seeking $10.2 million plus fees over an alleged unpaid commission from the $510 million sale of 1334 York Avenue to Weill Cornell Medicine.
- Cushman says a 2023 written agreement promised a 2% fee if Sotheby’s sold the property to the medical school during its 30-year lease, and that only the lease commission was paid.
- The firm says Sotheby’s kept it out of the sale talks, learned of the deal from news reports, and had its 2025 invoice refused.
- Sotheby’s denies any breach, calling the claim meritless and vowing to fight it in court.
- The dispute unfolds as reports describe cash strains at the auction house, including offers of 7% interest to sellers who wait longer for payouts, a $248 million pre-tax loss in 2024, and more than $1 billion owed to clients, alongside a shift to the Breuer building and a Queens site.