In Torricelli v. VB Asset Management, LLC, 23-CV-9176 (VEC), 2024 WL 1718820 (S.D.N.Y. Apr. 22, 2024), the court applied two seemingly contradictory doctrines when dismissing an alter-ego based breach of contract claim under Delaware law and a claim for tortious interference with contract under New York law, each brought against an investment company concerning a contract with its wholly-owned subsidiary. The court’s decision highlights the fact that courts will respect the twin realities of corporate separateness and a parent company’s role in overseeing its subsidiary… Read more
Contract Law
Fiduciary Duty Established by Contract May Be Released by Contract, Too
In Stephanie Clegg v. Sotheby’s, 23-cv-01995, 2003 WL 8281487 (S.D.N.Y. Nov. 30, 2023), the Southern District of New York held that the fiduciary duties of a consignee could be defined by a written consignment agreement and further modified by subsequent written agreements between the parties… Read more
Statute of Frauds Did Not Preclude Enforcement of Oral Agreement for the Payment of Money Over Period of Years
In Robinson v. Synergy Alternative Capital, LLC, 652043/2020 (N.Y. Sup. Ct., N.Y. County), the court held that the statute of frauds did not preclude enforcement of an alleged oral agreement to pay a discretionary bonus over a period of several years, where the company could have paid the bonus within one year… Read more
Rescission of Contract Inappropriate Where Breach Did Not Defeat the Purpose of the Parties’ Agreement
In Argutto v. J.P. Hunter Co., Inc., Case No. 623638/2018 (Sup. Ct. Suffolk County, Sep. 22, 2022), the court denied a motion for summary judgment seeking rescission of a contract where the defendant’s breach, though consequential, was not so fundamental as to defeat the purpose of the contract… Read more
Summary Judgment in Lieu of Complaint Granted After Unopposed Showing of Default on Commercial Lease Guarantees
In 1619-1625 Amsterdam Avenue, LLC v. Costa Casvikes, Case No. 652037/2022 (July 7, 2022), the court granted an unopposed summary judgment in lieu of complaint to a plaintiff property owner seeking payment under two guarantees of a commercial lease… Read more
Conversion Claims Fail Where Duplicative of Breach of Contract Claims
In Westcon Grp., Inc. v. CCC Technologies, Inc., 7:19-cv-02303 (PMH) (S.D.N.Y. Sep. 12, 2022), the court granted summary judgment dismissing a conversion claim as duplicative of a cause of action for breach of contract… Read more
Claims Against International Cargo Broker Preempted by Montreal Convention
In A.S.A.P Logistics, Ltd. v. UPS Supply Chain Solutions, Inc., 20-CV-4553 (E.D.N.Y. Sep. 19, 2022), the court dismissed breach of contract and tort claims as preempted by the Montreal Convention… Read more
SDNY Awards Rule 11 Sanctions for Complaint over Speculative Allegations
In (RC) 2 Pharma Connect, LLC v. Mission Pharmacal Co., 1:21-cv-11096 (S.D.N.Y. Sep. 14, 2022), the district court imposed Rule 11 sanctions against plaintiff for filing pleadings based on speculative allegations of breaches of contract… Read more
Extrinsic evidence is inadmissible to contradict unambiguous contract terms; a party cannot anticipatorily breach a contract obligation that does not exist
In Art Works Inc. v. Al-Hadid, Index No. 651267/2021 (N.Y. Sup. Ct., N.Y. County, May 10 2022), the New York Supreme Court held that a consignment agreement did not give an art gallery an ownership interest in an artist’s consigned work. The court also held that a party’s insistence on agreement to terms for a mediation did not constitute anticipatory breach of the contract’s mediation provision… Read more
Online Reviews that Lowered Business’s Star Rating Were “Devious” But Not “Disparaging”
In SA Luxury Expeditions, LLC v. Schleien, 22-CV-3825 (S.D.N.Y. Aug. 29, 2022), the court held that fake Trust Pilot reviews that reduced plaintiff’s overall star rating but were not explicitly negative did not constitute “disparaging” remarks as defined by a prior settlement agreement between the parties… Read more