In this week’s New York Business Divorce, we consider an unusually nuanced opinion from Commercial Division Justice Marcy S. Friedman about the rules of law (and many exceptions to them) governing the rights of litigants to jury trials in business divorce cases.
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The Common-Law Tort of Breach of Fiduciary Duty: The Total Package
In this week’s New York Business Divorce, read about the exceedingly versatile cause of action of breach of fiduciary duty and the many remedies courts may award upon a finding of breach. This week’s post focuses on two remedies in particular: disgorgement of profits obtained through self-dealing, and recovery of attorneys’ fees when pled derivatively.
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How to Resolve Competing Estate Plans of an LLC Owner with a Double Life
Man marries and has a daughter. He executes an operating agreement providing for his wife and daughter to take his LLC interest upon death. But the man has an alleged mistress, who allegedly begets a daughter out of wedlock. The man then executes a will providing for his alleged mistress and out-of-wedlock daughter to take his LLC interest upon death, contrary to the operating agreement. What could go wrong? You can read about this steamy litigation in this week’s New York Business Divorce.
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Will the Pandemic Be a Boon for Future LLC Dissolution Claimants?
In this week’s New York Business Divorce, we consider a remarkably thoughtful opinion by Commercial Division Justice Jennifer G. Schecter containing some noteworthy hints about the future of LLC dissolution claims in light of the coronavirus pandemic and its catastrophic economic impact on New York closely-held businesses.
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The Pre-Suit Demand Requirement for a Corporation in Liquidation or Receivership
In this week’s New York Business Divorce, we consider a thoughtful decision from Manhattan Commercial Division Justice Andrea J. Masley about the rules for pleading pre-suit demand or demand futility upon a “liquidator” appointed to wind up the affairs of the corporation, including the rarely-litigated concept that allegations of pre-suit demand or demand futility can potentially “relate back” to a prior pleading that is “validly in litigation.”
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Who Is a “Control” Person for Purposes of the Dissolution Statute’s Surcharge Provision?
Can a shareholder petitioning for dissolution under Section 1104-a of the Business Corporation Law rely upon the “surcharge” provision of the statute to sue a non-shareholder, director, or officer for corporate misappropriation as an end-run around legal obstacles to an otherwise viable substative cause of action? We tackle that issue in this week’s New York Business Divorce.
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Bending the Rules of Standing: The De Facto Merger Doctrine
Typically used to seek a money judgment against a successor entity, in this week’s New York Business Divorce, read about a novel appellate decision relying upon the “de facto merger” doctrine to authorize a post-judgment equitable accounting against a successor entity in which the plaintiff admittedly lacked an ownership interest or fiduciary relationship.
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Resignation: Antidote for Internal Dissention and Deadlock?
Under what circumstances, if at all, does resignation of one member of a two-member board of directors eliminate “deadlock” and “internal dissention” as an available grounds for corporate judicial dissolution? In this week’s New York Business Divorce, we consider a recent ruling by Justice Andrea Masley on that important question.
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Gull Wing Takes Flight, Pleading Gets Stricken
Bad things happen when evidence gets spoliated, as an adversarial husband and wife learned the hard way in this week’s New York Business Divorce.
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Can the Company Pay My Legal Fees? – Part Two
New York law imposes some strict limits on the ability of closely-held business owners and fiduciaries to recover advancement and indemnification of their legal fees from the entity in defense of derivative actions and other business divorce disputes. When advancement rights are abused, there are ways for minority owners to fight back. Read on in this week’s New York Business Divorce.
Continue Reading Can the Company Pay My Legal Fees? – Part Two