Reuters
Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos.
- Amazon may have to pay up to $21.7 million for reneging on an intent to lease a space in one of the realtor's Manhattan towers back in 2014.
- A New York Supreme Court Judge issued a summary judgement Monday, ruling that the ecommerce giant had breached the terms of an agreement to lease space in the Durst Organization's 1133 Sixth Avenue office.
- A court hearing is set for later this month to determine exactly how much Amazon will pay.
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Amazon may be liable to up to $21.7 million for backing out of a deal with the Durst Organization to lease space in the realtor's Midtown, Manhattan, building, according to a summary judgement issued by the New York Supreme Court.
A judge ruled against Amazon in a five-year legal dispute on Monday, writing that there was "no question" that Amazon had breached the terms of the agreement with Durst, The New York Post first reported.
The lawsuit alleged that Amazon signed a letter of intent to lease office space at Durst's 1133 Sixth Avenue building back in 2014, which forbade the ecommerce giant from negotiating with any other landlord until it finalized its decision. Instead, Amazon carried on negotiating with other landlords.
Amazon ultimately leased 470,000 square feet of office space from a rival realtor, Vornado Realty Trust, Bloomberg reported in November 2014.
The Durst Organization did not respond immediately to Business Insider's request for comment. Amazon declined to comment through a spokesperson.
A court hearing is set for later in January to determine exactly how much Amazon will pay. Durst sued Amazon for $25 million, which included the value of the lease as well as $1.6 million spent on renovations, according to the New York Post.
