Matter of Congregation Shaare Zedek v Leventhal
2018 NY Slip Op 04284 [162 AD3d 479]
June 12, 2018
Appellate Division, First Department
Published by New York State Law Reporting Bureau pursuant to Judiciary Law § 431.
As corrected through Wednesday, August 1, 2018


[*1]
 In the Matter of Congregation Shaare Zedek, Respondent,
v
Steven R. Leventhal, Appellant.

Michael M. Buchman, New York, for appellant.

Axinn, Veltrop & Harkrider LLP, New York (Russel M. Steinthal of counsel), for respondent.

Order, Supreme Court, New York County (Debra A. James, J.), entered July 27, 2017, which, insofar as appealed from as limited by the briefs, denied appellant's objection to the petition for lack of standing, unanimously affirmed, without costs.

Petitioner religious corporation seeks authorization pursuant to Religious Corporations Law § 12 and Not-for-Profit Corporation Law §§ 510 and 511 to redevelop the site of its synagogue building into a mixed-use synagogue and residential condominium. Appellant opposes petitioner's project. However, he lacks standing to be heard in opposition to the petition, because he is not a "member, officer or creditor" of petitioner (Not-for-Profit Corporation Law § 511 [9] [b]; see Female Academy of the Sacred Heart v Doane Stuart School, 91 AD3d 1254 [3d Dept 2012]; Matter of Bridge to Spiritual Freedom, 304 AD2d 574 [2d Dept 2003]; Matter of Friends World Coll. v Nicklin, 249 AD2d 393, 394 [2d Dept 1998]). Appellant's status as a potential creditor, by virtue of the fact that he is the plaintiff in a pending action against petitioner, does not constitute status as a judgment creditor or otherwise suffice to confer standing. Concur—Richter, J.P., Webber, Kahn, Kern, Oing, JJ.