At the 2023 LLC Institute recently held in Denver, CO, the NYBD authors had the pleasure of sharing their views from the Business Divorce trenches on emerging trends or potential trends in LLC litigation.  Here is a recap of the lively panel discussion, Frontiers of LLC Member Litigation: Sex Discrimination as Oppression, Freeze-Out Mergers, and Direct vs. Derivative Claims.
Continue Reading Greetings from the American Bar Association’s 2023 LLC Institute

In this week’s New York Business Divorce, read about the Appellate Division – First Department’s important decision last Friday clarifying how courts must apply the internal affairs doctrine to the question of standing to sue in derivative cases involving non-New York incorporated entities.
Continue Reading Derivative Standing and the Internal Affairs Doctrine

This week’s New York Business Divorce offers a trifecta of sorts, offering summaries of three recent decisions, one involving an LLC, another a partnership, and another a close corporation.
Continue Reading Recent Decisions Enforce LLC Member’s Right of First Refusal, Restrict Partnership Accounting, and Allow Damages Claim for Breach of Oral Shareholders Agreement

If you petition for deadlock-based dissolution, be prepared to liquidate via public sale. This week’s post explores the Second Department’s recent decision reversing a post-dissolution buyout of one shareholder via private auction.
Continue Reading Second Department Rejects Private Auction for Deadlocked Corporation

In this week’s New York Business Divorce, read about an unusually brazen case of misappropriation of corporate opportunity culminating in a hefty judgment against the perpetrators, including punitive damages and an accounting surcharge.
Continue Reading Misappropriated Watering Hole Becomes Money Judgment Sinkhole

When a shareholder petitions for dissolution, many states have statutes allowing the corporation to respond by buying out the complaining shareholder. This week’s post takes a look at several recent decisions concerning buyout elections across the country.
Continue Reading A Cross-Country Road Trip of Elections to Purchase in Dissolution Proceedings

In this week’s New York Business Divorce, we consider some recurring problems for corporate and general counsel in business divorce cases, including difficult issues of attorney-client privilege and the appreciable risk of disqualification when roles change from corporate to litigation counsel.
Continue Reading Pitfalls for Corporate Counsel in Business Divorce Disputes

Postnup agreement clashes with LLC agreement’s transfer restrictions in this week’s New York Business Divorce featuring a querelle de famille among the French heirs to the Bic pen fortune.
Continue Reading Operating Agreement Trumps Postnup in High Stakes Battle Over Transfer of LLC Interest

Statutes and caselaw have imposed several limitations on shareholders’ ability to enter into enforceable voting agreements. But those limitations apply in the corporate context—few have migrated over to LLC member voting agreements. And as a recent decision from the First Department demonstrates, LLC member voting agreements may have fewer formality requirements than one might expect.
Continue Reading First Department Recognizes Cause of Action for Specific Performance of LLC Member Voting Agreement