When mold knocks, what do you do?Noted environmental lawyer, Daniel J. Sitomer, did not become New York's leading mold expert overnight. In fact, it took 25 years of hard work and dedication to develop the capability necessary to solve diverse environmental problems and to achieve his current level of expertise, which enables him to offer swift, simplified and complete resolution of the risks presented by mold. During his 25-year career, Sitomer has combined his experience in environmental and construction law, specializing in the development and implementation of environmental management programs and systems; project oversight; emergency management; crisis response, and the prosecution and defense of environmental suits throughout the United States United States, officially United States of America, republic (2005 est. pop. 295,734,000), 3,539,227 sq mi (9,166,598 sq km), North America. The United States is the world's third largest country in population and the fourth largest country in area. for companies suffering under the most complicated environmental problems. Sitomer projects include the 1989 Gramercy Park Gramercy Park (sometimes misspelled as Grammercy) is a small, fenced-in private park in the Gramercy neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City, New York State[1]. steam pipe explosion and resulting asbestos asbestos, mineral asbestos, common name for any of a variety of silicate minerals within the amphibole and serpentine groups that are fibrous in structure and more or less resistant to acid and fire. contamination and environmental claims; the 1993 World Trade Center attack and resulting claims; and the September 11, 2001, World Trade Center attack and resulting environmental remediation Generally, remediation means providing a remedy, so environmental remediation deals with the removal of pollution or contaminants from environmental media such as soil, groundwater, sediment, or surface water for the general protection of human health and the environment or from a and claims. Sitomer's extensive base of knowledge, data bank, experience and training have given him a unique and in-depth understanding of the impact mold presents to real estate owners and professionals. While most lawyers must engage consultants to guide them through the intricacies of mold identification and management, Sitomer's first-hand knowledge enables him to develop integrated systems and approaches to limit mold liability. It is this hands-on approach that has caused Sitomer to be sought by developers, lending institutions Noun 1. lending institution - a financial institution that makes loans financial institution, financial organisation, financial organization - an institution (public or private) that collects funds (from the public or other institutions) and invests them in , construction and design professionals and the real estate brokerage community to help design programs that address this soon-to-be uninsurable uninsurable Health insurance A high-risk person without health care coverage through private insurance who falls outside the parameters of risks of standard health underwriting practices. See Underwriting. risk. Sitomer's years developing environmental programs for asbestos, lead, and other chemicals and contaminants enabled him to create state-of-the-art systems and techniques that address every aspect of mold management. Utilizing technology and an extraordinarily comprehensive database, he has been able to centralize cen·tral·ize v. cen·tral·ized, cen·tral·iz·ing, cen·tral·iz·es v.tr. 1. To draw into or toward a center; consolidate. 2. a multitude of mold-based data and information that is hard to find anywhere else. These resources allow him to provide the most comprehensive and effective mold management approaches resulting in an extraordinarily high level of success. With this intensive historic background, it is not surprising that Sitomer has been retained by real estate, construction and design professionals in New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of to steward them nationally through the legal, financial and health risks created by the presence of mold. As one of the foremost experts on mold, Sitomer is positioned to offer a level of advice and counsel that provides a new level of "comfort" regardless of the nature or threat presented by mold. Many mold-related issues still remain vague. However, the property damage caused by the presence of mold cannot be disputed. Equally evident is the ever-increasing litigation An action brought in court to enforce a particular right. The act or process of bringing a lawsuit in and of itself; a judicial contest; any dispute. When a person begins a civil lawsuit, the person enters into a process called litigation. against real estate owners, investors, condominium condominium In modern property law, individual ownership of one dwelling unit within a multidwelling building. Unit owners have undivided ownership interest in the land and those portions of the building shared in common. managers, cooperative boards and construction and design professionals as well as real estate brokers. With aggressive plaintiffs' attorneys attempting to identify easy targets for quick settlements, it is likely that the risk will become even greater in the long term. Therefore, now is the time to create defensive strategic planning Strategic planning is an organization's process of defining its strategy, or direction, and making decisions on allocating its resources to pursue this strategy, including its capital and people. to prevent long-term liability risk. It is critically important to understand, as well, that every response to mold--whether a minor settlement or a major claim--has a multitude of issues that may negatively impact companies and real estate portfolios for years to come. Although it is well understood that personal injury suits have been unsustainable in New York due to the lack of consensus in the medical community, juries seem to be becoming frustrated frus·trate tr.v. frus·trat·ed, frus·trat·ing, frus·trates 1. a. To prevent from accomplishing a purpose or fulfilling a desire; thwart: at the medical community. Most recently, in Massachusetts, a jury awarded more than $500,000 to the plaintiff, mitigating mold claims for more than eight years. Steps--and the correct steps--must be taken today to avoid future risk and liability and to avoid becoming a target for plaintiffs' lawyers. Mold requires careful planning--not a knee-jerk reaction to a short-term risk--in order to effectively protect real estate portfolios. |
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