Lamonica, Salvatore

Tobias A. Lake is an associate with the firm's Municipal and Environmental/Land Use Teams. He is also a de facto member of the firm’s Litigation Team. 

Tobias’s background and primary experience is in environmental law and related issues of land use and zoning. During his time with Jacobowitz and Gubits, Tobias has successfully litigated numerous cases involving environmental and land use issues. Some of his more notable successes include:

• Defending the environmental review process for a proposed 850,000 square foot shopping center. The case involved over 1000 pages of Environmental Impact Statements and related documents and expert reports. At issue was whether the environmental review process sufficiently analyzed and mitigated alleged impacts to wetlands, vehicular and pedestrian traffic patterns, stormwater drainage and discharge, plant and animal species including alleged endangered/threatened/species of special concern, as well as alleged noise and visual impacts. Save Open Space v. Planning Bd. Of the Town of Newburgh, 74 AD3d 1350 (2d. Dept. 2010).

• Repelling numerous attempts to legally challenge a proposed 128 unit housing project. A neighboring property owner commenced a series of “NIMBY” lawsuits seeking to deter or delay the developer from receiving site plan approval. Mr. Lake had all of the lawsuits dismissed on procedural grounds. Guido v. Town of Ulster Town Bd., 74 AD3d 1536 (3d. Dept. 2010).

In addition to litigating disputes involving land use and zoning issues, Mr. Lake has had extensive involving in navigating proposed developments through New York’s land use approval process. He has appeared before planning and zoning boards in support of applications for site plan, subdivision, and special permit approvals, as well as variance applications, has worked with engineers, architects and planning consultants to secure necessary project approvals, and has contributed to drafting and revising Environmental Impact Statements and other required submissions. Mr. Lake has also appeared before municipal government boards on behalf of property owners who seek to limit or halt development projects which may have deleterious impacts upon their properties.

Tobias has also developed significant experience in various litigation practice areas. His predominant experience has been in landlord/tenant law and employment/labor law.

Tobias has appeared in dozens, if not hundreds, of summary eviction proceedings. He has taken numerous evictions to trial for landlords of both residential and commercial properties, some of which have resulted in substantial monetary judgments. He has also, on occasion, represented tenants in landlord/tenant disputes.

Mr. Lake has worked on labor/employment cases in both New York State and Federal Court. He has represented employees who have been discriminated against in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Americans with Disabilities Act, and the New York State Human Rights Law. He has appeared before the United States Equal Employment Opportunities Commission as well as the New York State Division of Human Rights.

In addition to landlord/tenant law and employment/labor law, Tobias has litigated cases involving issues of trespass, government takings, defamation, breach of contract, and mechanic’s liens, among other issues.

Mr. Lake received his Juris Doctor degree from Vermont Law School, consistently ranked as one of the top law schools in the country for environmental law, in 2007. He received his Bachelor of Science in Environmental Policy from Unity College in 2004, where he was honored by the Board of Trustees for his contributions to the student body.

Tobias is originally from Schenectady, NY. He joined the Jacobowitz and Gubits team in 2008, and currently resides in Ulster County.