Civil Remedies › Business Organization

Office of the Comptroller of the Currency’s Minimum Standards for Prioritization and Handling Borrower Files Subject to Imminent...

Office of the Comptroller of the Currency’s Minimum Standards for Prioritization and Handling Borrower Files Subject to Imminent Foreclosure Sale for all OCC Regulated Banks. The OCC guidance is significant because it...more

New Justice Department's FIRREA Cases Against Banks: Holding The Victim Responsible

The government’s ever-evolving response to the United States financial crisis has come full circle, as civil Justice Department Attorneys seek to rely on legislation enacted to protect financial institutions from fraud to sue...more

VERONICA GUTIERREZ, ERIN WALKER, and WILLIAM SMITH v WELLS FARGO BANK N.A.

CLASS ACTION FINDINGS OF FACT AND CONCLUSIONS OF LAW AFTER BENCH TRIAL AWARDING $203 MILLION TO WELLS FARGO'S CALIFORNIA CUSTOMERS

CLASS ACTION FINDINGS OF FACT AND CONCLUSIONS OF LAW AFTER BENCH TRIAL AWARDING $203 MILLION TO WELLS FARGO'S CALIFORNIA CUSTOMERS. A California judge ordered Wells Fargo to pay California customers $203 after finding that...more

Senator Elizabeth Warren's May 14, 2013 letter to Ben Bernanke, Eric Holder, & Mary Jo White

Senator Elizabeth Warren's May 14, 2013 letter to The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, U.S. Department of Justice...

Senator Elizabeth Warren Pushes Feds For Answer On Big Bank Enforcement WASHINGTON — Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) raised the stakes of her quest to find out why a single Wall Street bank has not been prosecuted in the...more

Court Of Appeal Makes Condominium Association Foreclosures More Costly

The Third District Court of Appeal recently issued an opinion that is a game changer for third-party purchasers of condominium units at foreclosure sales. The Third District’s opinion in Aventura Management, LLC v. Spiaggia...more

Directors Found To Be In Contempt Ordered To Pay $96,000 In Legal Fees

We previously blogged about the Boily case involving a dispute between some owners and the directors of a Condominium complex in Ottawa. This dispute revolved around the proposed alteration of the condominium’s courtyard. ...more

News Of The (Shareholder Derivative) World: Record-High $139 Million Settlement In News Corp. Phone Hacking Suit

Putting an end to shareholder derivative litigation arising from News Corp.’s phone-hacking scandal, the company’s directors agreed last week to a record-breaking $139 million cash settlement. According to the plaintiffs’...more

Recent Decisions Show Courts Closely Scrutinizing Fee Awards in M&A Litigation Settlements

Shareholder class and derivative suits quickly follow virtually every significant merger announcement. The vast majority of those suits that are not dismissed settle quickly, with the defendant corporation typically agreeing...more

National Consumer Law Center Re: Restoring the Wisdom of the Common Law: Applying the Historical Rule Against Contractual Penalty...

NATIONAL CONSUMER LAW CENTER (NCLS) Banks Raking In Billions In Profits From Overdraft Fees The notion behind an overdraft fee — in which a bank customer is charged a penalty for overdrafting his account — is twofold:...more

Don’t Lie About Assets Under Management

Umesh Tandon, president, chief compliance officer, and sole owner of Simran Capital Management, recently agreed to a settlement with the SEC relating to alleged violations of the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 and the...more

Franchising in Alberta -- April 2013: Fabutan: Renewal, Termination and the Duty of Good Faith

Fabutan: Renewal, Termination and the Duty of Good Faith - Background to the Dispute: Against the backdrop of a bitter family dispute, the Fabutan decision1 reinforces the maxim that business and family often do...more

Li v. Standard Fiber, LLC, C.A. No. 8191-VCN (Del. Ch. Mar. 28, 2013) (Noble, V.C.)

In this memorandum opinion, the Delaware Court of Chancery stayed an action for advancement of legal fees and expenses, ruling that provisions in four separate agreements, when viewed together, demonstrated the parties’...more

Eluv Holdings (BVI) Ltd., et al. v. Dotomi, LLC, C.A. No. 6894-VCP (Del. Ch. Mar. 26, 2013) (Parsons, V.C.)

The Court of Chancery’s memorandum opinion in Eluv Holdings (BVI) Ltd. v. Dotomi, LLC awarded a defendant company summary judgment on plaintiffs’ claim for declaratory judgment regarding their purported ownership of...more

Kallick v. SandRidge Energy, Inc., C.A. No. 8182-CS (Del. Ch. Mar. 8, 2013) (Strine, C.)

In this opinion, the Court of Chancery granted a stockholder of SandRidge Energy, Inc. (“SandRidge” or the “Company”) injunctive relief after concluding that defendant-directors of SandRidge likely violated their fiduciary...more

In re PAETEC Holding Corp. S'holders Litig., C.A. No. 6761-VCG (Del. Ch. Mar. 19, 2013) (Glasscock, V.C.)

In this letter opinion, the Court of Chancery awarded attorneys’ fees and costs to plaintiffs’ counsel of $500,000 after analyzing plaintiffs’ unopposed fee request under the relevant Sugarland factors, and determining that...more

The Role of Arbitration in International Business

International commercial arbitration is the most common method for resolving disputes arising from agreements between businesses in different countries. In this detailed presentation, Igor Ellyn, QC, an experienced...more

Condo Alert: Sheave Jammer Settlement Funds -- March 29th, 2013 Deadline

In 2006, the Technical Standards and Safety Authority (TSSA) ordered that all elevator sheave jammers manufactured or installed by ThyssenKrupp be replaced. Many Condominium Corporations were affected by this order and had to...more

Board Enjoined from Impeding Hostile Consent Solicitation Without First Approving Rival Director Slate under Credit Agreement...

The Delaware Chancery Court recently enjoined a board of directors from impeding a stockholder’s solicitation of written consents to replace the board, unless the board first approved the stockholder’s nominees for purposes...more

Directors Found To Be In Contempt Of A Court Order

In a previous post, we reported on the Boily v. CCC 145 case, where a board of directors was ordered to reinstate the prior landscape of the condominium courtyard and to personally pay a substantial portion of the legal...more

Port Authority Lawsuit Reminds Businesses to Scrutinize Your Bills

Port Authority Lawsuit Reminds Businesses to Scrutinize Your Bills by Dennis C. Linken on March 6, 2013 A lawsuit filed by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey should remind businesses how important it is to...more

The Unintentional Business Partnership & Liability For New Post-Dissolution Obligations

This week we examine the unintentional creation of business partnerships, liability for obligations incurred after dissolution of a partnership, and take a look at partnership by estoppel. This is done through the context of...more

Proxy Season Brings a Third Wave of “Gotcha” Shareholder Litigation

Proxy season is upon us and the plaintiffs’ bar is demonstrating its resourcefulness by bringing a third wave of shareholder litigation. This new wave, which has not crested yet, consists of a return to derivative shareholder...more

Maryland's appellate courts preserve the corporate shield against efforts to pierce the corporate veil

Maryland remains one of the toughest jurisdictions for plaintiffs seeking to pierce the corporate veil and impose personal liability on corporate owners for contract debts. Maryland has long recognized an equitable claim to...more

Freedman v. Adams, et al., C.A. No. 4199 (Del. Jan. 14, 2013)

In this en banc opinion, the Delaware Supreme Court affirmed the Court of Chancery’s decision in Freedman v. Adams, et al., C.A. No. 4199-VCN (Del. Ch. Mar. 30, 2012), denying the plaintiff’s motion for an award of attorney’s...more

Noise Complaints In Condos : The Perils Of Failing To Enforce Condo Rules

Property managers and condominium corporations should take noise complaints seriously or risk facing serious financial consequences. In a recent case, a condominium corporation that failed to enforce its rules prohibiting...more