Justin Theroux scored a win in his years-long legal battle with his Greenwich Village neighbor — with a recent ruling paving the way for the actor to potentially be awarded damages, The Post has learned.
A Manhattan judge, in the ruling issued this week, found downstairs neighbor Norman Resnicow liable for two claims of private nuisance made by Theroux in his 2017 lawsuit accusing the real estate lawyer of launching a campaign of harassment against him and then-wife Jennifer Aniston after they started a $1 million renovation.
“Theroux has established as a matter of law that various aspects of Norman Resnicow’s behavior toward him constitute a private nuisance—an intentional, unreasonable, interference with Theroux’s use and enjoyment of his apartment,” Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Gerald Lebovitz ruled.
Theroux, 52, claimed in his suit that Resnicow, 76, had trespassed on his property, peeped into his windows, harassed workers and killed the ivy that grew on their shared roof terrace.
Lebovitz previously found Resnicow liable for trespassing on Theroux’ side of the roof deck space.
The judge rejected Resnicow’s request for the case not to be decided by a jury — saying Theroux was entitled to have jurors hear the case and that there were open questions for the panel to decide, according to the Monday ruling.
In particular, jurors will be tasked with determining the damages to be awarded to the “Mulholland Drive” actor — who the judge said could also seek punitive, or punishment, damages at trial.
Theroux — who split from the “Friends” actress in 2018 — is seeking at least $4.58 million in damages at trial.
The next court date and a trial date have not been set yet.
“The judge left many issues of facts for a jury to resolve and, therefore, we will need a jury trial to resolve them,” Resnicow’s lawyer Peter Levine told The Post Thursday.
Levine said he doesn’t know if the case will settle ahead of trial, but noted that prior negotiations had broken down in the past.
Still, the lawyer said he wouldn’t turn down an opportunity for more talks.
“But before we get [to trial], there will be a conference to discuss procedural matters and likely the subject of settlement will come up and my door is always open,” he said.
Among the claims Lebovitz left for a jury to decide, are allegation that Theroux allowed his deck umbrella to “encroach” onto Resnicow’s side of the patio by two feet.
The judge, however, tossed Resnicow’s counterclaims that Theroux deprived him of the use of his side of the space, and his seeking of damages for alleged water run-off from Theroux’ deck area.
The co-op board of the Washington Place building where the rivals live issued an eviction notice against Resnicow in 2022, and asked a judge to enforce the eviction in a lawsuit that is still pending.
Resnicow separately sued claiming the board was trying to make his life “as miserable as possible” to force him out.
He sought to dissolve the board, of which Theroux — star of HBO’s “The Leftovers” — is a member, but a judge threw out that suit, which is currently on appeal.
Theroux’ lawyer declined to comment Thursday.
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