Edward L. Schiff, an eminent authority on real estate law, died of heart failure on July 4 in New York City. A summer resident of Montauk for more than 40 years, he was 96.
Mr. Schiff specialized in cooperative and condominium housing, which he developed as a separate field of law. He was the attorney for the first conversion of an apartment building to condominiums in the United States, his family said, and served as attorney for more than 500 cooperative and condominium buildings in the metropolitan New York area.
He wrote extensively and lectured at Columbia University and New York University on the legal aspects of cooperative and condominium housing, and was regularly called on for opinions that often appeared in The New York Times, said his wife of 39 years, Betsy Pinover Schiff, who is a noted photographer of landscape architecture, gardens, and travel destinations.
A music enthusiast, he regularly attended Music for Montauk concerts and was a donor to Concerned Citizens of Montauk. He especially enjoyed sailing and walking on the beach with his wife. Throughout his later years, he was involved in cultural activities, serving as chairman of the Riverside Symphony for more than 25 years and studying acting with Austin Pendleton at the HB Studio, both in Manhattan. He immersed himself in theater and the Metropolitan Opera.
Later in life, he was trained as an interfaith minister, performing weddings in New York and California. He was a member of the Lotos Club, one of the oldest literary clubs in the United States, for more than 50 years. On the South Fork, he attended Temple Adas Israel in Sag Harbor for many years.
Edward L. Schiff was born on Dec. 21, 1928, in Brooklyn’s Brownsville neighborhood to Seymour Schiff and the former Bella Kotik. He grew up in that borough, attending Brooklyn Technical High School and Brooklyn College before earning graduate and postgraduate degrees from Brooklyn Law School. He served as a legal officer in the Navy from 1952 to 1955 before beginning his law career in 1956.
He served as senior partner of several prominent New York City and national law firms, including Schiff, Turek, Kirschenbaum, O’Connell, and Smith Gambrell Russell. He retired in 2022 at age 93.
Mr. Schiff’s first marriage ended in divorce. Along with Ms. Schiff, he is survived by three sons. They are David Schiff of Los Angeles, New York City, and Sagaponack, Paul Schiff of Brooklyn, and Richard Schiff of Montana, New York City, and East Hampton. Seven grandchildren also survive: Ruby, Augustus, Mickey, Henry, Kaylie, Luca, and Elliot Schiff. One great-grandchild and three daughters-in-law also survive, as does a brother, Norman Schiff of Washington, D.C.
Mr. Schiff was buried at Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn on July 11. His family has suggested memorial contributions to the Riverside Symphony, 2350 Broadway, No. 212, New York City 10024.
