Former Mayor of New York Rudy Giuliani speaks to reporters as he leaves his apartment building in New York, Wednesday, Aug. 23, 2023. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
Calling the request “a sound exercise of business judgment,” the judge in Rudy Giuliani’s bankruptcy case allowed the debtor to hire Sotheby’s International Realty to put the former mayor’s multimillion-dollar NYC apartment up for sale.
U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Sean Lane issued the order Friday, writing that he was additionally “satisfied” that Giuliani’s request was “otherwise in the best interests” of his estate.
In May, Giuliani lawyer Heath Berger filed an application asserting that Sotheby’s and a top real estate broker known for the sales of “premier and super-luxury residences and apartments” were more than well-qualified to market the debtor’s posh Manhattan digs as his various creditors look to collect.
“Given the value of the Residence, sale of the Residence cannot be achieved without the retention of a highly sophisticated and experienced broker to market and sell the Residence,” the Giuliani filing said. “Thus, the retention of Sotheby’s and the compensation structure proposed herein is reasonable and easily meets the business judgment test.”
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Judge Lane agreed and issued a series of orders regarding what Sotheby’s will and won’t be required to do on its end as the Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings continue.
One of the requirements is weekly updates for the court and Giuliani’s creditors on potential buyers’ interest in the property.
“[A]t least once a week, with such reporting to beginning on the Thursday following entry of this Order, Sotheby’s, with the full consent of the Debtor, shall provide an update, which update may be in the form of an e-mail, to the Debtor’s counsel and counsel for the Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors regarding all activity related to the Residence, including, without limitation, showings, open houses, outreach, in-bound inquiries and any other information related to the sale of the Residence,” the judge said.
If there any offers, Lane continued, Sotheby’s “shall” send those documents to creditors’ lawyers “before any decision is made to accept, reject or counter the offer and any communication takes place regarding such decision with the party who provided the offer[.]”
Read the order here.
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