Derivative Actions

Subscribe to Derivative Actions via RSS

Internecine litigations involving family-owned close corporations generate some of the murkiest fact patterns and knottiest legal issues known to the courts. This week’s New York Business Divorce looks at one such case, recently decided by Justice Bernard J. Fried, involving a family fight over a dissolved corporation, a second corporation with the same name,and real estate sale proceeds.
…
Continue Reading Court Permits Direct Rather Than Derivative Recovery in Post-Dissolution Action Against Controlling Shareholder for Misappropriation of Assets Held by Second Corporation Found to be “Mere Continuation” of Dissolved Corporation

Common law dissolution is something of a remedy of last resort for the oppressed minority shareholder who does not hold the requisite 20% of the corporation’s voting shares to bring a dissolution proceeding under BCL Section 1104-a. This week’s New York Business Divorce highlights a recent decision by Queens County Commercial Division Justice Orin Kitzes ordering a hearing to determine a common law dissolution petition brought by 15% shareholders of a restaurant business.
…
Continue Reading Court Orders Hearing On Minority Shareholder’s Petition for Common Law Dissolution

In the aftermath of last year’s Court of Appeals decision in Tzolis v. Wolff, giving LLC members a common law right to bring derivative actions, the Appellate Division, First Department, recently faced the question: Does Tzolis mandate recognition of an LLC member’s common law right to compel an equitable accounting of the LLC’s business affairs? See how the court answered in this week’s New York Business Divorce.
…
Continue Reading Court Adds Accounting Remedy to LLC Members’ Arsenal

Have room for one more 2008 top-10 list? This week’s New York Business Divorce highlights the 10 most interesting business divorce cases from last year, with updated case citations and links to previous write-ups.
…
Continue Reading Top 10 Business Divorce Cases of 2008

The Court of Appeals in Tzolis v. Wolff authorized derivative suits on behalf of LLCs. This week’s New York Business Divorce looks at two post-Tzolis lower court decisions addressing pre-action demand and contemporaneous ownership requirements for such suits.
…
Continue Reading Post-Tzolis Rulings Address Demand and Contemporaneous Ownership Requirements for LLC Derivative Actions

This week’s New York Business Divorce looks at a recent case in which the managing member of an LLC, relying on the operating agreement’s indemnity provision, sought to sell company assets for various purposes including payment of her own legal fees to defend against an action brought by the other members to remove her as manager.
…
Continue Reading Indemnity Provision Can Tilt the Playing Field in Litigation Between Business Partners