In this week’s New York Business Divorce, read about the hurdles one can face when attempting to change course after suing for, or stipulating to, dissolution. The lesson: when suing for dissolution, be prepared to see it through to the bitter end. …
Continue Reading An Extreme Case of Petitioner’s Remorse

In the wild west of LLC derivative lawsuits, the First Department’s recent decision in Bd. of Managers of 28 Cliff St. Condominium v Maguire, 2020 NY Slip Op 06844 [1st Dept Nov. 19, 2020] offers—albeit indirectly—an additional foothold for a successful plaintiff to assert his right to recover his fees from an award in favor of the LLC.
Continue Reading Fee Sharing in LLC Derivative Suits: A Common Law Right and a One Way Street 

Former timeshare owners of the iconic Gurney’s Inn in Montauk, New York, who dissented from a cash-out merger suffered a reversal of fortune when, earlier this month, the Appellate Division, First Department, reversed the trial court’s determination of the fair value of their shares, finding that their appraiser’s evaluation of the resort property was “highly inflated.” Get the full story in this week’s New York Business Divorce.
Continue Reading Dissenting Shareholders’ Challenge to Appraisal of Famed East End Resort Hits Dead End

You’d think amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, with restaurants struggling to stay open, that their owners would have more pressing issues to deal with than litigating against their co-owners, but as you’ll see in this week’s New York Business Divorce, some things never change.
Continue Reading Business Divorce on the Menu

In this week’s New York Business Divorce, we discuss a recent decision serving as a reminder to corporate shareholders planning to bequeath their shares of stock to ensure no contracts prohibit them from doing so, lest they leave behind a very disappointed beneficiary.
Continue Reading When Estate Plans and Stock Transfer Restrictions Collide

Can a shotgun turn into a minefield? The answer is “yes” judging from a recent decision by Manhattan Commercial Division Justice Andrew Borrok finding a defective exercise of provisions in an LLC agreement for a deadlock-triggered shotgun buy-out. Read about it in this week’s New York Business Divorce. …
Continue Reading LLC Member Pays the Price For Not Sticking to Deadlock-Breaking Script

Partners of New York limited partnerships should sit up and take notice of a new, first-impression decision holding that the commencement of a dissolution proceeding against, or the appointment of a receiver for, the limited partnership can, in and of itself, result in withdrawal of the general partner and dissolution of the entity, even if the limited partnership agreement does not say so. Read about this important decision with profound implications for New York limited partnerships and their owners in this week’s New York Business Divorce.
Continue Reading Limited Partnerships and the Self-Fulfilling Dissolution Petition

The phrase “naked expulsion clause” is not a biblical reference to Adam and Eve’s eviction from the Garden of Eden. It’s about a provision in an LLC agreement at the center of a recent ruling by the Appellate Division, Second Department, in a 10-year litigation saga involving a fractured family-owned business. This week’s New York Business Divorce has the story. …
Continue Reading Court Enforces LLC Agreement’s “Naked” Expulsion Clause

In this week’s New York Business Divorce, read about a first-of-its-kind decision announcing the existence under New York law of a potentially viable claim for common-law LLC dissolution.
Continue Reading First-Impression Decision Recognizes a Cause of Action for Common-Law LLC Dissolution

A bidding war 20 years ago over the purchase of maid’s quarters in a ritzy Park Avenue co-op. A series of co-op board rejections of a shareholder’s proposed sale of his apartment. A recent court decision denying a books-and-records petition. What’s the connection? Find out in this week’s New York Business Divorce. …
Continue Reading Court Bounces Books-and-Records Petition in Feud Over Park Avenue Co-op Board’s Rejection of Prospective Purchasers