Motion for Writ in Joel Friedman v. Abraham Friedman| Trellis.Law

On February 16, 2024 a Motion-Secondary was filed involving a dispute between Joel Friedman, and Abraham Friedman, for Other Matters - Contract - Other in the District Court of Kings County.

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SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK
COUNTY OF KINGS
Index No. 504754/2024

JOEL FRIEDMAN IAS Part 52
Hon. Francois Rivera
Plaintiff,
AFFIRMATION OF
v. ABRAHAM FRIEDMAN
IN OPPOSITION TO
ABRAHAM FRIEDMAN, MOTION TO COMPEL
AND IN SUPPORT OF
Defendant. CROSS-MOTION TO
QUASH AND FOR A
PROTECTIVE ORDER

ABRAHAM FRIEDMAN hereby affirms the following under penalty of perjury pursuant

to CPLR Rule 2106:

1. I am the Defendant in this action. I submit this affirmation: (a) in opposition to

Plaintiff Joel Friedman’s (“Plaintiff” or “Joel”) motion for an order pursuant to CPLR 2308(b)

directing non-party Gary Snitow (“Snitow”) to comply with the subpoena purportedly dated

February 20, 2024 (the “Subpoena”) seeking production of a certain Settlement Agreement entered

into between Abraham and Joel that Snitow is holding in escrow pursuant to the strict

confidentiality and non-disclosure provisions contained therein; and (b) in support of Abraham’s

cross-motion to quash the Subpoena pursuant to CPLR 2304 and for a protective order pursuant to

CPLR 3103(a) preventing Snitow from releasing the Settlement Agreement unless and until

directed to do so by Rabbi Moshe Yonah Mandel (“Rabbi Mandel”) in accordance with the terms

of the Settlement Agreement.

2. It is unfortunate that my brother Joel has decided to air a private family matter in

open court, for the whole world to see, rather than present this dispute to the forum we agreed upon

– before Rabbi Mandel. As an observant Jew, I have committed to bringing disputes before

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Rabbinical Court, and not in secular Court. Although Joel claims to be similarly observant, as

explained below, the Rabbinical Court has sent him several summonses and stern warnings,

including as recently as this month, but he has continually refused to appear. (Exhibit 1)1

3. To be clear, Joel has brought this action, and moved to grab the Settlement

Agreement, in a deliberate and calculated effort to use the highly sensitive, confidential, and

personal information contained in the agreement to tarnish the good reputation that I have built

over the past twenty-five years of public service and community endeavors. In so doing, Joel

acting out of extreme jealousy towards me and against the outcry of his family, who has pleaded

for him to stop his continued bad behavior.

4. By way of background, in December 2020, my brother and I entered into a

Settlement Agreement to resolve a particularly tumultuous episode in our already fraught

relationship. This Settlement Agreement contains highly confidential, personal, and sensitive

information which is not for public consumption. Accordingly, the Settlement Agreement

contained strict confidentiality and arbitration provisions to prevent the undue public disclosure of

the agreement. Specifically, as Rabbi Mandel explains in greater detail in his accompanying

affirmation, Rabbi Mandel would maintain the only signed original of the Settlement Agreement,

and he has the sole authority to release such agreement in the event of a breach. If either party

alleged the other had breached the agreement, they would engage in arbitration before Rabbi

Mandel to determine who, if anyone had breached, and to whom, if anyone, the signed agreement

should be released.

1
A number of the exhibits to this affirmation, including the summonses to Rabbinical Court annexed as Exhibit
A, are documents that were originally in the Yiddish or Hebrew languages. In such cases, the original Yiddish or
Hebrew language document is attached, immediately followed by an English language translation.

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5. Almost immediately after signing the agreement, Joel materially breached by

continuing his long history of harassment, intimidation, and bullying towards me and my family.

Until Joel’s breaching behavior, I had complied with my obligations under the settlement

agreement, including paying $160,000 of the $300,000 I had agreed to pay to Joel per the

agreement. However, in light of Joel’s failure to comply with the Settlement Agreement, I

suspended making further payments until the arbitral process could play out. Joel refused to

engage in the process and, instead, simply demanded that Rabbi Mandel release the agreement due

to my cessation of performance (which was justified as it was in response to Joel’s earlier material

breaches.)

6. Joel is no doubt incensed by Rabbi Mandel’s refusal to simply release the

agreement given that, originally, Rabbi Mandel had been Joel’s paid advocate.

7. Thus, Joel commenced this action and almost immediately sought to have his prior

attorney, Snitow, release a signed copy of the agreement that Snitow has been holding in escrow.

When the attorney refused, Joel brought this motion.

8. To be clear, although Joel’s complaint purports to seek recovery of the payments

that he alleges I owe him (which he forfeit when he failed to comply with his obligations under

the agreement), the complaint is a red herring.

9. Rather, Joel’s goal in his harassment, intimidation, and bullying (of which this

action is merely one component) is to humiliate me. Thus, he has concocted this entire litigation

as a machination to do that which his one-time advocate, Rabbi Mandel, has correctly refused to

do – immediately provide him with a signed copy of the Settlement Agreement, which he then

intends to disseminate throughout the community. Joel must not be allowed to abuse and

pervert the judicial process to further his personal vendetta against me.

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10. Indeed, to expose this action for the sham that it is, I have already proffered

payment of any remaining amount that I owe under the Settlement Agreement, plus interest at the

Court’s statutory interest rate of 9% per annum. If Joel truly is only interested in recovering the

amounts that I was to pay him under the Settlement Agreement, then, having received such

payment he would discontinue this action. I have no doubt that he will not discontinue, because

his main goal is not the money, it is to hurt me.

11. This is made even clearer by the fact that, in a subsequent family court matter

between Joel and I, Joel, after having brought the instant motion, has sought to have the Court

issue a subpoena directing Snitow to release the Settlement Agreement! Joel is so intent on getting

his hands on the signed Settlement Agreement that he is abusing the judicial process in two

separate proceedings in two different courts!

12. The Court should not countenance Joel’s underhanded, deceptive tactics and,

instead, should enforce the dispute resolution provisions that were agreed to in the Settlement

Agreement, which gives Rabbi Mandel the sole discretion to decide whether the Settlement

Agreement should be released and, if so, to whom.

A. My Background

13. To get a better understanding of the irreparable damage that Joel is attempting to

inflict upon me and my family, it is important to have an understanding of my background and

reputation.

14. For over twenty-five years, I have had the honor of serving as a police chaplain to

a number of different state and federal law enforcement agencies.

15. I take great pride in the fact that, through my services as a law enforcement

chaplain, I have provided guidance and support, both spiritual and otherwise, to many law

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enforcement officers. I have been widely recognized for my work as a chaplain, being the recipient

of, to name just a few, the NYPD/DEA Appreciation Award in 1998; the American Red Cross

9/11 Leadership Award in 2001; the New York State Senate Civilian of the Year Award in 2005;

the United States Marine Corp Award of Excellence in 2007, and the Putnam County Sheriff’s

Office Lifetime Achievement Award in 2008. More recently, I was honored to receive the FBI’s

Director’s Community Leadership Award in 2016, and I have also been honored by the United

States Department of Justice in 2021 and in 2022. On April 7, 2023, I was profiled in The Blue

Magazine for my work with law enforcement officers. See Rabbi Abe Friedman - Anchor of Hope

(thebluemagazine.com) (last accessed April 12, 2024).

16. In addition, for the past twenty years, I have been a liaison for the Satmar

community, which is the one of the largest Jewish sects in New York State with tens of thousands

of members.

17. In my personal, community, and professional life, I strive to be a person of high

moral character, who wants to do right by my fellow man. To be clear, I do not serve as a law

enforcement chaplain out of a desire for recognition; rather, I feel that it is a higher calling to

provide comfort to first responders who put their lives on the line every day.

18. This feeling was instilled in me by my father, the late Rabbi Morton Friedman. My

father was widely recognized in the community for his forty-five years of community and public

service, including supporting law enforcement, aiding children with cancer, and other causes

important to him. And he not only provided spiritual guidance to those in need, but, as an EMT

technician, he also saved countless lives. Before his passing, my father asked me to continue his

good work helping the community and law enforcement. I have complied, not out of a sense of

familial obligation to him, but rather, out of a sense of extreme admiration and respect for my

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father and the way he lived his life. Every day, I strive to live up to the ideals that he instilled in

me.

19. My public service work is dependent upon my good reputation. My reputation

must not be sullied by false allegations.

B. Joel’s Troubled Past

20. My desire to help my fellow man extended, quite naturally, to my younger brother,

Joel. For years, he has long been a bit of a “lost soul,” unable to maintain a steady job. I understand

that some people may have difficulty “finding their way,” and I wanted to help him as best as I

could, as befitting an older brother, and as requested by my late father.

21. When Joel was having financial difficulties, I gladly offered a lending hand,

providing assistance to help him pay his bills, including his rent, car payments, and general day-

to-day expenses, which accumulated to thousands of dollars. (Exhibit 2) Joel told me that he

would pay me back out of the proceeds of a deal on which he expected to close, and he was very

apologetic when that payment was delayed due to delays in finalizing the deal. (Exhibit 3)

22. I provided this assistance to Joel when he had no one else to turn to, due to a

longstanding feud between him and his in-laws.

23. In addition to helping Joel financially, I also helped Joel get involved in public

service work, including helping him to procure positions as a chaplain to law enforcement agencies

himself. At the time, Joel was very appreciative of my efforts. (Exhibit 4)

24. However, despite all my efforts, Joel has continued to have difficulties, often of his

own making. As time went by, Joel’s behavior became more and more questionable and, at times,

downright scandalous. Joel’s behavior was extremely embarrassing for the entire Friedman

family.

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25. For example, Joel is known to have engaged in inappropriate extramarital

relationships. I learned of these relationships from other Rabbis in the community and I have

personally observed Joel bringing women into the William Vale Hotel on a number of occasions.

This behavior is extremely scandalous and shameful in the Orthodox Jewish community of which

I and my family are a part.2 When it came time to finalize the settlement, Joel requested that I

erase, destroy all evidence of this and other embarrassing incidents involving him. In the interest

of maintaining peace, I agreed to his request.

26. As Joel’s behavior reflected poorly on me and my family, I spoke with him about

these affairs, and even offered to pay for him to have therapy (which his own confederates have

privately admitted he needs.) He did not respond kindly to these gestures.

C. Joel’s Attacks On Me, My Wife, And My Family

27. It is widely known in the community that Joel has long been very jealous of my

success.3 After having helped him out financially and in his community life, as described above,

over time, he started asking me for more and more money, but he was less and less appreciative.

28. Worse, Joel took steps to damage my reputation in the community. He would

contact law enforcement agencies and my business partners to make false allegations about me.

This was done intentionally to damage my otherwise sterling reputation in the community and in

my business endeavors. Indeed, before this action commenced, I had never even been a party to a

litigation.

29. In addition, Joel would harass and bully me and my family constantly.

2
It is also well known that Joel claims to be an owner of the William Vale Hotel, which, upon information and
belief, is untrue.
3
Indeed, news of Joel’s jealousy and his campaign against me has even spread beyond the Orthodox
Community, as evidenced by the accompanying Affidavit submitted by Michael E. DiSilvio, who has been a long-
time friend of the Friedman family.

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30. Further, for the past several years, Joel has been recruiting his cronies, including

Chaim Meyer Rosenberg (“Rosenberg”) and Moishe Indig (“Indig”), to bully, harass, and extort

money from me in exchange for promises that Joel would cease his harassing and bullying

behavior.

31. Not only did Joel’s behavior severely damage my relationship with him, it caused

incredible distress to my family as a whole. My mother and the rest of my family would cry about

Joel’s behavior constantly, begging me, as the older brother, to do something to help Joel get

professional help so he can lead a healthy and productive life.

E. The Confidential Settlement Agreement
And Rabbi Mandel’s Role As Arbitrator
With Respect To Such Settlement Agreement

32. In the hopes of ending the ongoing dispute between Joel and me, I reached out to

Joel to ask him to have the matter resolved in Beth Din, as is customary in the Orthodox Jewish

community.

33. After refusing the Beth Din summons at first, Joel eventually hired Rabbi Mandel

to serve as his “toyen” (advocate/lawyer before the Beth Din). I chose Rabbi Yitzchuck David

Landau as my toyen.

34. Although originally Joel’s advocate, Rabbi Mandel ultimately determined to try to

bring peace between my brother and me. With the assistance of Rabbi Mandel, the parties were

able to enter into the Settlement Agreement which was designed to resolve the parties’ grievances.

Both sides had a number of obligations under the Settlement Agreement, including, inter alia¸ Joel

agreeing to permanently cease his harassing, bullying, and intimidating behavior, and my offering

to pay Joel the total sum of $300,000.00 as a showing of good faith.

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35. I was reluctant to sign the Settlement Agreement at first, due to it containing

sensitive, personal, and extremely confidential information and statements contained therein.

However, the Settlement Agreement contained strict confidentiality and non-disclosure

provisions. Indeed, Joel and I would not even have possession of the signed agreement. Rather,

the agreement provided that Rabbi Mandel—who was Joel’s toyen—would hold the only signed

original copy of the agreement in escrow, with Joel and my attorneys each holding a copy of the

agreement in escrow, subject to the confidentiality and non-disclosure provisions.

36. As Rabbi Mandel affirms in his accompanying affirmation, there is one narrow

exception to the confidentiality and non-disclosure provisions of the agreement – in the event that

one party was found to have breached the agreement, then Rabbi Mandel would have the discretion

to release the agreement to the non-breaching party.

37. However, even with regards to this, there was a clearly specified procedure that

needed to be followed. Specifically, as Rabbi Mandel further explains, in the event of a claimed

breach, the non-breaching party would make an application to Rabbi Mandel for a preliminary

determination that the claimed breach was a bona fide claim, and that the agreement had, indeed,

been breached. If, and only if, Rabbi Mandel determined that a breach had occurred, then he would

release the agreement to the non-breaching parties. The agreement explicitly stated that Rabbi

Mandel was Joel and my chosen “arbitrator” for the purpose of determining whether a breach had

occurred, warranting a release of the agreement. (Rabbi Mandel provides an English language

translation of the relevant dispute resolution and confidentiality provisions of the Settlement

Agreement at Paragraphs 9 and 10 of his affirmation. I respectfully incorporate such language by

reference into this affirmation.)

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38. Notably, this language was found in the Settlement Agreement itself, and not in the

escrow agreement which Joel refers to only. Joel, no doubt, knows that the agreement contains

this “arbitrator” language, and he is trying to deceive the Court by referring only to vague language

in the escrow agreement.

39. Again, it must not be overlooked that, Rabbi Mandel was originally Joel’s

advocate. I was entrusting the agreement (and with it, my good reputation) with someone who

had advocated for, and was paid for by, Joel.

40. However, I have great respect for Rabbi Mandel, who has a well-deserved

reputation in the Jewish community of being a skilled and fair arbitrator and mediator who has

successfully resolve countless disputes. Thus, I felt comfortable that Rabbi Mandel would take

his role as sole arbitrator with respect to the release of the agreement seriously, and thus, that the

Settlement Agreement would not be unjustly or unduly disseminated in contravention of the

confidentiality provisions. So, despite my initial hesitance, I entered into the agreement with Joel

in the hopes that it would achieve a lasting peace between my brother and me.

41. My and Joel’s attorneys were also allowed to hold a copy of the Settlement

Agreement, subject to the same restrictions from release and disclosure.

42. Accordingly, along with the Settlement Agreement, Joel and I also signed an

Escrow Agreement detailing, inter alia, the terms by which our attorneys would be holding the

copies of the signed agreement. (Exhibit 5) In particular, the Escrow Agreement confirmed Rabbi

Mandel’s position as being the person with the sole authority to direct the release of the Settlement

Agreement, with a reference to the procedures set forth in the Settlement Agreement. Specifically,

the Escrow Agreement provides, in relevant part:

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In the event of a violation or breach of the underlying Settlement Agreement, the
injured party may present said violation to Rabbi Mandel, who is solely authorized
to direct the release of the Settlement Agreement by the appropriate Escrow Agent
for any and all enforcement proceedings against the violating party or Escrow
Agent as set forth in the underlying Settlement Agreement.

(Id.)

43. In accordance with the Escrow Agreement, a copy of the Settlement Agreement

was given to Joel’s counsel, Snitow.

F. Joel Breaches The Settlement Agreement But Refuses To Participate
In The Dispute Resolution Mechanism Set Forth In The Agreement

44. Having signed the Settlement Agreement, I was hopeful that this would mark a new

period of détente between Joel and me.

45. Unfortunately, I was mistaken.

46. It has since become clear to me that Joel is consumed by his anger and jealousy

towards me. I am fearful that he will not stop his campaign against me until he has succeeded in

completely ruining my reputation and my life.

47. Very shortly after signing the Settlement Agreement, Joel and his associates

(including Rosenberg and Indig) restarted their campaign of harassment, bullying, and

disparagement against me, perhaps with even greater fervor than before. Joel and his associates

continued to disparage me both to my professional and law enforcement contacts, as well as in the

Orthodox Jewish community in general. In dealing with colleagues, Joel boasted about his

connections with law enforcement officers, district attorneys, and agencies in an attempt to

demonstrate the bona fides of his false claims, as well as to insinuate that Joel could convince law

enforcement to prosecute anyone at his behest.

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48. In addition, Joel and his associates extended their campaign of harassment to

include harassment, intimidation, and bullying against my family. The attacks against my family

were so bad that I was concerned for my wife’s safety, and we hired security guards for protection.4

49. Joel engaged in this behavior even though I made $160,000.00 in initial payments

due under the Settlement Agreement.

50. Joel’s continued campaign against me clearly constituted a material breach of the

Settlement Agreement.

51. I determined that, given Joel’s repudiation of his obligations under the Settlement

Agreement, he was not entitled to receive payments under the Settlement Agreement pending the

dispute resolution process before Rabbi Mandel specified in the agreement.

52. Accordingly, I reached out to Rabbi Mandel to invoke the dispute resolution

mechanism set forth in the Settlement Agreement.

53. However, as Rabbi Mandel has confirmed, Joel ignored Rabbi Mandel’s

communications asking him to participate in arbitration to determine whether Joel had breached

the Settlement Agreement. Rather, Joel, through his attorney, Snitow, simply demanded that

Rabbi Mandel release the Settlement Agreement based on my non-payment.

54. Rabbi Mandel correctly refused to release the Settlement Agreement, but rather,

continued to urge Joel to appeal for an arbitration. Joel continued to refuse.

55. As a result of Joel’s repeated and continuing refusal to participate in arbitration

before Rabbi Mandel, on or about June 14, 2021, my attorney, Daniel L. Stein of Mayer Brown

LLP, wrote to Rabbi Mandel to request an immediate conference “to present [my] evidence of

Rabbi Joel Friedman’s violations.” (Exhibit 6) This letter also advised Rabbi Mandel to preserve

4
The attacks against me and my family have been so bad that I have been conferring with my attorney about
filing a legal action against Rosenberg and Indig for their behavior against me.

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all correspondence and documents regarding certain other disparaging allegations that Joel had

made against me.

56. Following this letter, Rabbi Mandel continued to reach out to Joel to have him

appear, but Joel would not appear before Rabbi Mandel. Rather, by this point, Joel was threatening

to go to secular Court because Rabbi Mandel would not release the agreement to Joel as Joel no

doubted expected of his one-time advocate.

57. For his part, Rabbi Mandel seemed determined to fulfill his obligations as arbitrator

under the Settlement Agreement, and explicitly advised Joel and me not to take any action in

secular Court until he had rendered a decision. (Exhibit 7)

58. All the while, Joel and his associates, including Rosenberg and Indig, continued to

harass and bully my family and I, and to spread lies about me to interfere with my business and

my community work.

59. Joel and his associates contacted my associates to disrupt my business activities,

and, in a clear abuse of power, Joel even used his position as a member of Community Board 3 to

interfere and intimidate my colleagues and associates.

60. Even as Joel was refusing to appear before Rabbi Mandel, I continued to reach out

to him in an attempt to resolve our situation. Despite all that had gone on between us, Joel was

still my family, and I know that my father would not want his sons fighting. (Exhibit 8)

61. In furtherance of these attempts to sow peace, in January 2022, I invited and paid

to bring Joel and his family along on a trip to Europe that I had organized to honor the memory of

my father. I paid for plane tickets for Joel and his family, including a first-class ticket for Joel.

During this trip, I made a point to publicly acknowledge and praise Joel, and even offered him a

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seat of honor next to me and several respected Rabbis at the dais during a celebratory meal.

(Exhibit 9)

62. I even did not balk when Joel invited Indig to go on the trip with us.

63. Upon returning from the trip, Indig sent me a text message thanking me for

organizing the trip, and for how nicely I treated Joel. Indig wrote, in part (in translation): “How

beautifully you welcomed everyone with such warmth in friendship, how beautifully you

delivered yourself to everyone happily and so warmly, especially for your brother Joel and

me.” (Exhibit 10 (emphasis added))

64. Joel also sent me a text message thanking me for the trip. (Exhibit 11)

65. However, the good feelings between us did not last, and it was not long before Joel

and his associates started up their campaign of bullying and harassment against me again.

66. When I advised Rabbi Mandel of this in April and May of 2023, Rabbi Mandel

again called Joel to appear before him and Joel again refused. Rabbi Mandel also once again

warned that Joel should not usurp his role as arbitrator by commencing an action in secular Court.

(Exhibit 12)

67. In addition, Joel’s wife and his teenage children have taken up Joel’s mantle and

have started engaging in aggressive behavior towards my children, including using derogatory

language and threats of physical violence against my children in public.

68. More recently, Joel has started passing out pamphlets throughout Williamsburg

which called for people in the community to take physical action against me. (Exhibit 13)

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G. Joel’s Attempts To Obtain and Disseminate The Settlement Agreement

69. Joel understands how damaging the public release of the Settlement Agreement

would be to me. Indeed, Joel, Rosenberg, and Indig have been boasting that they are going

to find a mechanism to obtain and disseminate the Settlement Agreement to the public.

70. Joel further understands that, even though Rabbi Mandel was originally his toyen,

Rabbi Mandel takes his role as arbitrator of disputes under the Settlement Agreement seriously.

Rabbi Mandel has and continues to flatly refuse to release the Settlement Agreement until he has

been able to render a determination as to who has breached the Settlement Agreement pursuant to

his power as arbitrator. Accordingly, Rabbi Mandel has insisted that the arbitration procedure set

forth in the Settlement Agreement be followed, and that Joel and I must appear before him as

arbitrator.

71. I have consistently agreed to make myself available to appear before Rabbi Mandel.

72. However, Joel, realizing that Rabbi Mandel is not his puppet, has refused to

participate in arbitration before Rabbi Mandel, no doubt, out of concern that Rabbi Mandel will

rule against him given the clear evidence of Joel’s material breaches of the agreement almost

immediately following its execution.5

73. Indeed, Joel and his associates have even begun a campaign of bullying and

intimidation against Rabbi Mandel in the hopes they can strongarm him into releasing the

Settlement Agreement. Rabbi Mandel has not acquiesced.

5
For his part, Rabbi Mandel, in his affirmation, makes clear that he has not rendered a determination on the
merits of either my or Joel’s claims of a breach, and he cannot do so until the parties appear before him. (See Mandel
Aff., ¶¶-18-19)

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74. Thus, Joel has now concocted this litigation as a means to circumvent Rabbi

Mandel’s clear and sole authority to determine to whom, if anyone, the Settlement Agreement

should be released.

75. Contrary to Rabbi Mandel’s explicit directive not to commence any court

proceeding until he has had an opportunity to render his decision, in his role as arbitrator, on

February 16, 2024, Joel instead commenced this action under the guise of seeking recovery for my

non-payment. (NYSCEF Doc. 1)

76. That this action was all a ruse to release the Settlement Agreement was made clear

when, one week later, Joel moved by Order to Show Cause, for an order compelling Snitow to

comply with a subpoena that Joel had already served upon him demanding that Snitow release the

signed copy of the Settlement Agreement that Snitow was holding in escrow. (NYSCEF Doc. 5,

et seq.) For his part, Snitow refused to release the Settlement Agreement to his client until directed

to do so by Court order. (NYSCEF Doc. 13) Incredibly, Joel made this motion to obtain a signed

copy of the Settlement Agreement even before I had been served with the Complaint in this action.

77. The timing of the motion reveals Joel’s true motive in bringing this action –

obtaining the Settlement Agreement so that he can release it for all the public to see.

78. That Joel’s motive is to publicly humiliate and destroy me will be revealed by the

fact that, on April 10, 2024, my attorney forwarded to Joel’s attorney a payment of $152,600.00,

which represents payment of the remaining $140,000.00 under the Settlement Agreement, plus

statutory interest at a rate of 9% per annum for a period of time dating back to before I suspended

making payments. (Exhibit 14)

79. If Joel has brought this action simply to enforce my payment obligations under the

Settlement Agreement, then he should accept such payment as a victory and discontinue this action

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as having been fully resolved. While only time will tell whether he does this, I have doubt that he

will continue on with this sham litigation, thus exposing what his true motive is – to obtain the

Settlement Agreement to use against me in the Court of public opinion.

80. As if there were any doubt about Joel’s bad faith motivation in commencing this

action and filing this motion, Joel is also seeking to obtain a release of the settlement agreement

through a bogus Family Court proceeding that he commenced against mere days after filing this

motion.

81. Specifically, on February 27, 2024, less than a week after filing this motion, Joel

obtained a Temporary Restraining Order against me in Family Court on a phony claim that I made

threatening statements against him. At some point thereafter, and entirely without notice to me,

Joel then asked that Hon. Marjorie R. Steinberg, J.S.C., who is presiding over the Family Court

matter, “so order” a subpoena directing that Snitow release the Settlement Agreement to him

(discovery is not allowed in Family Court proceedings absent court order).

82. Thus, after having brought the instant motion to enforce his pretextual subpoena in

this action, Joel has sought the exact same relief in an entirely different proceeding in an entirely

different court commenced a few days after Joel served his subpoena on Snitow in this case. There

can be no doubt that Joel and his team planned out this action and the Family Court proceeding all

at once, and that the two proceedings are part of the same malicious, coordinated effort to obtain

the Settlement Agreement from two different angles.

83. At a hearing held on April 5, 2024, Judge Steinberg expressed serious concerns

about the good faith basis of Joel’s request, questioning why he would need a Settlement

Agreement from 2020 to demonstrate that he is at any risk of “harm” today—more than three years

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later. Ultimately, Judge Steinberg directed Joel to file a formal motion requesting the subpoena

by early May, which motion has yet to be filed.

84. This Family Court proceeding only underscores that Joel’s entire goal through these

Court actions is to get his hands on the Settlement Agreement through improper means and for

untoward purposes. Joel’s actions in both Court proceedings are entirely in bad faith and an abuse

of the judicial process.

85. Regardless, at the end of the day it must not be overlooked that Joel’s motion papers

(which notably do not contain an affirmed statement by Joel himself), completely misconstrue

Rabbi Mandel’s role as arbitrator. Joel’s motion papers discuss only the escrow agreement, while

completely ignoring the actual language of the Settlement Agreement. Joel does this intentionally

because the escrow agreement does not specifically refer to Rabbi Mandel as arbitrator, whereas,

as Rabbi Mandel explicitly affirms, the actual Settlement Agreement does. There can be no doubt

that Joel knows what the actual Settlement Agreement says, having signed it originally. Joel is

simply using the confidentiality provision of the agreement, coupled with the vaguer language of

the escrow agreement, to end run around the actual arbitration mechanism of the Settlement

Agreement. The Court should not abide this tactic.

86. The bottom line is, this Court must not allow Joel to abuse the judicial process

to circumvent Rabbi Mandel’s role as the sole arbiter of the release of the Settlement

Agreement in furtherance of his personal vendetta against me. To do so would be a grave

miscarriage of justice that would have a severe and permanent ruinous effect on my life and my

livelihood.

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87. Accordingly, I respectfully submit that this Court should: (a) deny Plaintiff’s

motion to compel compliance with the subpoena; (b) grant Abraham’s cross-motion to quash the

Subpoena and for a protective order restraining Snitow from releasing the signed Settlement

Agreement unless and until directed to do so by Rabbi Mandel following the parties participating

in arbitration before him as set forth in the agreement; and (c) grant such other and further relief

as to this Court may deem just and proper.

I affirm this 13th day of April, 2024, under the penalties of perjury under the laws of New York,
which may include a fine or imprisonment, that the foregoing is true, and I understand that this
document may be filed in an action or proceeding in a court of law.

______________________________
Abraham Friedman

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WORD COUNT CERTIFICATION

I, Ethan A. Kobre, an attorney admitted to practice before the Courts of the State of New

York, hereby certify that this Affirmation complies with the word count limits contained in Rule

202.8-b of the Uniform Rules of the Supreme Court of the State of New York because it contains

5,405 words, excluding the parts of the Affirmation excluded by that rule. In making this

certification I have relied upon the word count of the word-processing system used to prepare the

memorandum, i.e., Microsoft Word.

Dated: New York, New York
April 13, 2024
Ethan A. Kobre

Ethan A. Kobre

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April 15, 2024

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February 16, 2024

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Motion-Secondary: Joel Friedman v. Abraham Friedman

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