What happens when a law firm breakup combines self-help with firm funds, weaponized billing practices, a fatal deemed admission, and a federal court’s refusal to entertain dissolution? Ballon Stoll gives us the answer—and several cautionary lessons.
Every so often a case comes along that reads less like a business dispute and more like a cautionary tale about the perils arising out of unwritten deals among friends. As we’ve written about before, these cases can be brutal to defend, particularly where the pleadings just robust enough to survive a motion to
In this week’s New York Business Divorce, read about the faithless servant doctrine as it expands from the law of agency and employment to business divorce.
Continue Reading Faithless Servant in Business Divorce Cases
State courts far and away are the dominant arena for business divorce litigation. Just for kicks if not giggles, this week’s New York Business Divorce takes a look at some recent cases involving partnership disputes decided by federal courts.
Continue Reading Federal Courts Wade Into Business Divorce: Recent Decisions of Interest
A recent decision by the Eleventh Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals has created a split among the Circuits on the question whether federal District Courts should decline to adjudicate corporate dissolution actions under the Burford abstention doctrine. Learn more in this week’s New York Business Divorce.
Continue Reading U.S. Circuit Courts Split on Abstention Doctrine in Dissolution Cases
Can the federal statute that brought down John Gotti also play a role in business divorce litigation? This week’s New York Business Divorce looks at the sparse and largely if not entirely unsuccessful role the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organization Act a/k/a RICO has played in litigation between co-owners of closely held firms.
Continue Reading Civil RICO: A Blunt But Elusive Tool in Business Divorce Cases
This week’s New York Business Divorce highlights a noteworthy case in which, following the death of a 50% shareholder, dysfunctional buy-sell agreements led to multi-front shareholder litigation in state and federal courts.
Continue Reading Buy-Sell Agreements Are Supposed to Deter Litigation, Not Foment It
Statutory judicial dissolution claims are not welcome in federal courts which have been using the Burford abstention doctrine to divert them to state court. This week’s New York Business Divorce examines a first impression federal court decision giving the same treatment to a common-law dissolution claim.
Continue Reading Another Door Closes to Federal Court in Judicial Dissolution Cases
Is an LLC a nominal party in dissolution proceedings such that its citizenship can be ignored for purposes of securing diversity jurisdiction in federal court? Get the answer in this week’s New York Business Divorce.
Continue Reading LLCs as Nominal Parties in Dissolution Cases: An Uncertain Portal to Federal Court Jurisdiction
There are many hurdles to bringing a business divorce case in federal court based on diversity of citizenship. This week’s New York Business Divorce examines one case in which the would-be federal litigant almost – but not quite – made it through the door of a federal courthouse.
Continue Reading For Want of a Penny: Business Divorce Case Almost Makes it Into Federal Court