Elise G. Liebowitz

Elise Liebowitz was wonderful... I needed help with a major real estate transaction in NYC. When she realized that I was a complete novice, Elise seamlessly shifted gears from super efficiency to all due efficiency but with everything clearly explained in layman's terms. She got the business done ve...ry much to my advantage, taking on several bureaucracies and their various attorneys... A year later when there was a tax hitch (not at all her fault), she dug up exactly the correct paperwork in a matter of minutes (seriously, minutes)... I simply could not be more pleased.

Elise Leibowitz is an over-priced real estate attorney who does a mediocre job and has a pretty poor style. She doesn't listen very well. After I hired her to review my company's lease, I briefed her by phone. I'm pretty sure she didn't take notes, because throughout the lease negotiation, she kept i...gnoring the items of most concern to me while bringing up things that were of little consequence. Despite my asking her for a fee estimate, I never got one. Worst of all, she really angered my landlord's attorney by revealing information that my broker was still negotiating with the LL's broker. This resulted in a late night phone call from my broker saying the LL insisted that I signed the lease, as is, the next morning or I would lose the space. The LL said, "That attorney of yours is a piece of work. It makes me wonder what kind of tenant you'd be." When the bill came, it was about 1/3 higher than I felt was fair for the work she had done. (It was a $12,000 bill; I told her I wanted to pay $8,000.) She denied that she had done anything to jeopardize the deal and would only reduce her fee by $275. There are a lot of real estate lawyers in this city. No need to waste your time (and money) with her.

Elise Leibowitz is a highly-skilled and honest attorney. I have had the pleasure to see her work up close with both my own matters and those of my mother. Elise did a real estate closing for me on my 130 year-old house on Long Island, and expertly quarterbacked the transaction saving me from several... nasty pitfalls thrown up by the buyers and their lawyer. She saved me significant money, more than easily surpassing her reasonable fees. What’s more, she is such a diplomat that the buyers themselves, as well as their crotchety old attorney (a WWII vet), were highly impressed with and fond of her by the time of closing. Where Elise truly shines, however, is in the way she has represented, or should I say, has treated my mother. After her 50+ year marriage to my father ended, a former self-made Wall Street executive, my mother was lost in a myriad of thorny and highly emotional issues, including fighting with a stout NYC co-op board; the attempted suicide of a close relative; complicated taxes; and renewed estate planning. These were just a few of the hurdles my mother faced after her divorce. Elise not only handled the legal aspects, but was there for my mother on an emotional level rarely seen in lawyers today. I was not equipped to do the things that Elise did, and I thank God that she was there for Mom. If you want this kind of service in a NYC lawyer, you will have to look far and wide as few practice this way anymore. I’ll add that Elise fees are much lower than top law firm fees, despite her service being equal or better. In the areas she practices, you will not find this kind of talent and personal touch at Elise’s fee level. Good luck with your own matters, and I hope this review was helpful.