CFSP 2024-AHP1 81-83 Seaman Avenue LLC v. 81 Seaman Realty LLC
- Ronnie Abrams
- 1:25-cv-04113
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In CFSP 2024-AHP1 81-83 Seaman Avenue LLC v. 81 Seaman Realty LLC, Judge Abrams ordered supplemental briefing about the trust’s structure.
81 Seaman Realty LLC was ordered to provide supplemental briefing, and CFSP 2024-AHP1 81-83 Seaman Avenue LLC was permitted to respond. The opinion also names Joel Wiener, the New York City Environmental Control Board, and unnamed defendants, but does not impose a briefing requirement on them.
What happened
In CFSP 2024-AHP1 81-83 Seaman Avenue LLC v. 81 Seaman Realty LLC, Defendant 81 Seaman Realty LLC argued during oral argument that the underlying trust was a non-traditional business trust because a “directing certificateholder” exercised some control over the trust’s affairs.
The court noted at least three Southern District of New York decisions rejecting similar arguments and treating trusts as traditional trusts despite having a directing certificateholder. The opinion did not decide which view applied here.
Judge Ronnie Abrams ordered 81 Seaman Realty LLC to file a supplemental letter by August 18, 2025, addressing those decisions and other similar rulings. The plaintiff could respond by August 20, 2025.
The detailed version
- CFSP 2024-AHP1 81-83 Seaman Avenue LLC v. 81 Seaman Realty LLC · No. 1:25-cv-04113
- Ronnie Abrams
- Aug. 14, 2025
Nature of the order
This was a procedural order directing supplemental briefing after oral argument. The court did not resolve the parties’ underlying dispute or decide whether the trust was a traditional or non-traditional business trust.
Issue discussed
Defendant 81 Seaman Realty LLC asserted that the underlying trust was a non-traditional business trust under Americold because it had a “directing certificateholder” with some control over trust affairs.
The court identified three decisions from the Southern District of New York that rejected similar arguments and held that a trust remained a traditional trust even when it had a directing certificateholder: Wilmington Tr., N.A. v. 115 Owner LLC, No. 20-cv-2157 (JMF); Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. v. 390 Park Eve. Assocs., LLC, No. 16-cv-9112 (LGS); and Wilmington Tr., N.A. v. Aevri Salina Meadows LLC, No. 23-cv-8824 (JPC). The opinion did not state the court’s ultimate conclusion on the trust’s status.
Court’s action
Judge Ronnie Abrams ordered 81 Seaman Realty LLC to file a supplemental letter by August 18, 2025, addressing the cited decisions and any other similar rulings bearing on its directing-certificateholder argument. The plaintiff was permitted to respond by August 20, 2025. The order was signed and dated August 14, 2025.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.