Jodi Pulice’s JRT Realty filed a lawsuit against Cushman & Wakefield on Monday, the New York Daily News reported, accusing Cushman of defamation and tortious interference in business relations.
The complaint, which first emerged last month, is part of the growing fallout from the scandal concerning potential corruption in the city’s commercial real estate dealings.
JRT alleges that Jesse Hamilton, the deputy commissioner for real estate at the Department of Citywide Administrative Services, pressured Cushman to put his alleged friend and executive Diana Boutross in charge of the company’s business dealings with the city. Hamilton allegedly threatened that Cushman would lose its city deal if Boutross wasn’t put in charge of the account.
Both firms hold a contract with DCAS where they share in commissions on leases between the city and private landlords, which is in the process of being evaluated for renewal. When Boutross emerged, however, she worked to “destroy the reputation” of JRT and cut it out of commissions, according to the suit.
In April, Boutross allegedly emailed DCAS officials to let them know JRT wouldn’t be involved in brokering leases due to “performance issues.”
Moreover, DCAS’ latest contract eliminated a provision mandating a minimum number of deals brokered by women-owned enterprises, according to the lawsuit. JRT fits into that category and feared the removal of the provision could translate to less business with the city.
A spokesperson for Cushman said the company will “review and respond accordingly” to the complaint. DCAS and Hamilton did not return the Daily News’ requests for comment.
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Boutross is allegedly friends with Hamilton and Ingrid Lewis-Martin, Mayor Eric Adams’ chief adviser at City Hall who resigned ahead of an indictment on bribery charges linked to other dealings. In September, prosecutors seized phones from Boutross, Lewis-Martin and Hamilton as they returned from a trip to Japan.