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Operating Agreements Breach of Duty

Patton Sullivan Brodehl LLP

LLCs Can Assert Offensive Claims Against Members

In “business divorce” litigation involving LLCs, it is common to see a disgruntled LLC member asserting claims against the LLC’s manager. Depending on the type of harm alleged, those claims might be asserted directly (by the...more

Farrell Fritz, P.C.

Help Comes From an Unexpected Place in LLC Deadlock Dissolution: The Third Department

Farrell Fritz, P.C. on

Join me if you know this refrain: In New York, deadlock is not an independent ground for LLC dissolution. But… Almost exactly two years ago from today, Peter Mahler published a post titled: “Has the Time Come for...more

DarrowEverett LLP

LLC's Failure to Execute Operating Agreement Opens Legal Trapdoor

DarrowEverett LLP on

While entity distinctness is a bedrock principle of corporate law, it may often appear redundant and unnecessary for a limited liability company (“LLC”) to sign its own operating agreement. That was likely the thinking of the...more

Farrell Fritz, P.C.

Top 10 Business Divorce Cases of 2024

Farrell Fritz, P.C. on

Welcome to our 17th annual edition of the Top 10 business divorce cases featured on this blog over the past year. This year’s selections buck the trend of previous years in which cases involving limited liability...more

Farrell Fritz, P.C.

Diving Into the Shallow Waters of New York Law Permitting Elimination of LLC Managers' Liability for Breach of Fiduciary Duty

Farrell Fritz, P.C. on

There’s a ton of Delaware caselaw enforcing Section 18-1101 (c) of that state’s LLC Act as amended in 2004, authorizing LLC agreements to eliminate the members’ and managers’ liability for breach of fiduciary duty, the only...more

Farrell Fritz, P.C.

Diving Into the Shallow Waters of New York Law Permitting Elimination of LLC Managers’ Liability for Breach of Fiduciary Duty

Farrell Fritz, P.C. on

There’s a ton of Delaware caselaw enforcing Section 18-1101 (c) of that state’s LLC Act as amended in 2004, authorizing LLC agreements to eliminate the members’ and managers’ liability for breach of fiduciary duty, the only...more

Patton Sullivan Brodehl LLP

Operating Agreement Doesn’t Excuse Breach of Fiduciary Duty

Many posts on The LLC Jungle blog have focused on the fiduciary duties owed by LLC managers to both the LLC’s members and the LLC itself. Other posts have focused on the pitfalls of LLC Operating Agreements that fail to...more

Farrell Fritz, P.C.

Enforcing the Guardrails on Transactions Involving Interested Directors of Close Corporations

Farrell Fritz, P.C. on

In my business divorce practice I deal with many closely held corporations that have only a few or perhaps just two shareholders, each of whom is actively involved in running the business. Within that category are many...more

Farrell Fritz, P.C.

Top 10 Business Divorce Cases of 2023

Farrell Fritz, P.C. on

Some years are easier than others to select the most significant business divorce cases. In this, the 16th year I’ve published this top-10 list, the task is made especially difficult by a veritable flood of court decisions...more

Farrell Fritz, P.C.

Where’s the Beef? Causation and Culpability Are Fatal Pitfalls in Zaycon Foods Lawsuit

Farrell Fritz, P.C. on

When representing an aggrieved plaintiff in a commercial matter, there are certain business torts that I tend to rely on more heavily than others.  If business torts were foods, for example, a claim like breach of contract...more

Patton Sullivan Brodehl LLP

“Equitable Buyout” as a Remedy for LLC Wrongdoing?

In the world of LLCs, buyouts — where one member sells his/her membership interest to another member or the LLC itself — are commonplace. Buyouts generally fall into one of two categories: contractual — where the...more

Patton Sullivan Brodehl LLP

LLC Operating Agreements: Indemnity, Arbitration, and Equity

LLC operating agreements frequently provide for indemnity to the LLC’s manager. This is consistent with the statutory default rule embodied by California Corporations Code section 17704.08(a), which provides for indemnity...more

Patton Sullivan Brodehl LLP

Diversion of LLC Funds Is Not “Protected Activity” Under California’s Anti-SLAPP Statute

California’s anti-SLAPP statute (Code of Civil Procedure section 425.16) aims to protect defendants from meritless lawsuits designed to chill “protected activity” — i.e., the exercise of rights of petition or free speech on...more

Farrell Fritz, P.C.

A Recurring Business Divorce Feature: Usurpation of Corporate Opportunity

Farrell Fritz, P.C. on

One of the earliest signs that a closely-held business is headed for divorce lies in how its owners treat new opportunities. When the relationship among the owners reaches a certain level of distrust, an owner presented with...more

Farrell Fritz, P.C.

Never the Twain Shall Meet: Damages Claims Do Not Offset the Purchase Price in Buy-Sell Agreements

Farrell Fritz, P.C. on

Nestled between Broadway and Church Street in New York City’s hottest neighborhood is the landmarked, stone-façade building at 66-68 Reade Street.  Now marketed as the superluxury boutique condominium complex 66 Reade, the...more

Hicks Johnson

The Importance of “Plain and Unambiguous Language” When Eliminating Fiduciary Duties in Delaware

Hicks Johnson on

The Delaware Limited Liability Company Act allows for the fiduciary duties of a member to be expanded, restricted, or eliminated by provisions in the operating agreement of a limited liability company (“LLC”). If drafters...more

Farrell Fritz, P.C.

Gordon Ramsay’s The Fat Cow: Dishing Up Damages and Dissolution

Farrell Fritz, P.C. on

You know you’re in big trouble if the post-trial decision in a lawsuit you filed begins like this: “The court finds the plaintiff, Rowen Seibel, not credible. This is primarily because it appears he fabricated evidence...more

Hicks Johnson

Exculpation Provisions in LLC Agreements: A Comparison of Delaware and Texas

Hicks Johnson on

Case law involving limited liability companies (LLCs) is rapidly evolving. Some states, most notably Delaware, permit LLCs to limit or eliminate liability for breaches of fiduciary duty by an LLC’s members or managers. Other...more

Gray Reed

Caution: Court Finds Fiduciary Waivers Ineffective

Gray Reed on

In In re Cadira Group Holdings, LLC (2021 WL 2912479 (Del. Ch. July 12, 2021)), the Delaware Court of Chancery has again shown its inclination to treat an agreement that purports to replace traditional fiduciary duties with...more

Farrell Fritz, P.C.

Disguised Agreements and Dissolution

Farrell Fritz, P.C. on

Appearances can be deceiving. - That, essentially, was the argument made in two recently decided cases involving claims for judicial dissolution. ...more

Allen Matkins

Do LLC Members Owe Fiduciary Duties? Yes And No

Allen Matkins on

Does a member of a limited liability company owe a fiduciary duty to the company and the other members?  Section 17704.09(a) of the California Corporations Code states that a member owes a duty of loyalty and a duty of care. ...more

Patton Sullivan Brodehl LLP

LLC Operating Agreements Can Reduce Fiduciary Duties

LLC managers owe fiduciary duties both to the LLC and to the LLC’s members, similar to the duties owed by a partner to other partners in a partnership.  (Corp Code §17704.09.)  These include the duty of loyalty, care, and...more

Gray Reed

Villareal v. Saenz: Fiduciary Duties Will Go On

Gray Reed on

In Villareal v. Saenz, a district court magistrate judge for the Western District of Texas, San Antonio Division, has recognized that members exiting a limited liability company may continue to hold fiduciary duties despite...more

Farrell Fritz, P.C.

Court Enjoins Dilution of Brewing Company LLC Membership Interest

Farrell Fritz, P.C. on

Most folks associate beer with pleasure. Many craft brewers will tell you they went into business for that reason: to make themselves and others happy (and, oh yeah, make money). ...more

Morris James LLP

The Court of Chancery Provides Guidance on Whether Deprivation of an LLC Member’s Contractual Right to Vote Provides a Direct or...

Morris James LLP on

The derivative suit concept so familiar in the corporate context has been grafted onto the limited liability form. The contractual nature of limited liability companies and their often closely-held membership can pose...more

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