In BLDG 44 Developers LLC v. Pace Companies N.Y., LLC, 2025 N.Y. Slip Op 32881(U) (Sup. Ct., N.Y. County July 25, 2025) (here), BLDG 44 Developers LLC sued Pace Companies New York, LLC for breach of contract, seeking...more
In Finkelstein v. U.S. Bank, N.A., 2025 N.Y. Slip Op 32882(U) (Sup. Ct., July 30, 2025) (here), plaintiff alleged that he was underpaid on his investment in a residential mortgage-backed securities (“RMBS”) trust due to the...more
8/26/2025
/ Breach of Contract ,
Conflicts of Interest ,
Contract Terms ,
Demand Futility ,
Financial Institutions ,
Investors ,
Mortgage Servicers ,
Mortgage-Backed Securities ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
No-Action Clauses ,
Trusts
On occasion, we examine procedural matters that have an impact on the substantive rights of the parties. In Richardson v. Beal, 2025 N.Y. Slip Op. 32804(U) (Sup. Ct., N.Y. County July 24, 2025) (here), the procedural matter...more
In Southgate Owners Corp. v. Esposito, 2025 N.Y. Slip Op. 32750(U) (Sup. Ct., N.Y. County July 24, 2025) (here), plaintiff sued defendant, a shareholder in its cooperative building, seeking a declaratory judgment that 80...more
In today’s fraud notes, we examine two cases: K.M. v. Ursuline School of New Rochelle, 2025 N.Y. Slip Op. 04643 (2d Dept. Aug. 13, 2025) (here), and Three C, LLC v. City Settlement Serv., Inc., 2025 N.Y. Slip Op. 04678 (Aug....more
On August 1, 2025, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) announced (here) that it charged a Wisconsin resident and three limited liability companies that he owns and controls – Investors Capital LLC, Global Investors...more
The Custody Rule provides that “it is a fraudulent, deceptive, or manipulative act, practice or course of business within the meaning of section 206(4) of the [Advisers] Act … for [a registered investment adviser] to have...more
This Blog has written frequently about the substance and scope of general releases. In New York, “a valid release constitutes a complete bar to an action on a claim which is the subject of the release.” If “the language of a...more
A claim for fraud requires “a material misrepresentation of a fact, knowledge of its falsity, an intent to induce reliance, justifiable reliance by the plaintiff and damages.” In First Trinity Life Ins. Co. v. Advance Funding...more
6/3/2025
/ Appeals ,
Appellate Courts ,
Business Litigation ,
Fraud ,
Insurance Litigation ,
Jurisdiction ,
Lottery ,
Misrepresentation ,
New York ,
Scienter ,
Summary Judgment
In Libman v. Hershey Co., 2025 N.Y. Slip Op. 31769(U), (Sup. Ct., N.Y. County May 5, 2025) (here), the motion court was asked to consider whether a front-of-the-package label on the Twizzlers candy wrapper violated General...more
The allure of guaranteed profits from sophisticated crypto asset and foreign exchange trading served as the underlying predicate for the claims asserted by the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) against Ramil Palafox...more
In Crawford v. Integrated Asset Mgt. Servs., LLC, 2025 N.Y. Slip Op. 01352 (2d Dept. Mar. 12, 2025) (here), the Appellate Division, Second Department reversed the denial of the defendants’ motion to dismiss the plaintiffs’...more
Previously, this Blog examined the doctrine of res judicata (here, here, here and here). Under the doctrine, a party may not litigate a claim where a judgment on the merits exists from a prior action between the same parties...more
Now and then a lawyer fails to meet a deadline or otherwise acts untimely. Several “saving” provisions in the Civil Practice Law and Rules (“CPLR”) are available to assist a lawyer when deadlines are missed. These include:...more
Pre-IPO investing involves buying a stake in a company before the company makes its initial public offering of securities. Many stock promoters invite potential investors to invest in a pre-IPO offering by providing an...more
2/10/2025
/ Broker-Dealer ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Financial Crimes ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Fraud ,
Initial Public Offering (IPO) ,
Investment Funds ,
Private Equity ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Fraud ,
Securities Regulation
We have written frequently about the substance and scope of general releases. In New York, “a valid release constitutes a complete bar to an action on a claim which is the subject of the release.” If “the language of a...more
In Katsorhis v. 718 W. Beech St, LLC, 2025 N.Y. Slip Op. 00211 (1st Dept. Jan. 15, 2025) (here), the Appellate Division, Second Department considered a fraud claim that the lower court sustained on the grounds that defendant...more
1/27/2025
/ Breach of Contract ,
Construction Contracts ,
Consumer Protection Laws ,
Damages ,
Evidence ,
Fraud ,
Misleading Statements ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Property Owners ,
Real Estate Development ,
Real Estate Transactions
In New York, litigants often grapple with the appropriate limitation period to apply to breach of fiduciary claims. There is no single statute of limitations that the courts and the parties can look to. “Rather, the choice of...more
Under New York law, written agreements are construed in accordance with the parties’ intent. “The best evidence of what parties to a written agreement intend is what they say in their writing.” As such, “a written agreement...more
1/14/2025
/ Appeals ,
Assignments ,
Breach of Contract ,
Contract Interpretation ,
Contract Modification ,
Contract Terms ,
Evidence ,
Litigation Strategies ,
New York ,
Statutory Interpretation ,
Written Agreements
The justifiable reliance element has been described as a “fundamental precept” and a “venerable rule”. The requirement is one of the five elements of a fraud cause of action: (1) a misrepresentation or a material omission of...more
1/6/2025
/ Appeals ,
Cause of Action Accrual ,
Damages ,
Due Diligence ,
Fraud ,
Joint Tenancy with Right of Survivorship ,
Justifiable Reliance ,
Marital Assets ,
Misrepresentation ,
Omissions ,
Ownership Interest ,
Scienter ,
Summary Judgment
Two weeks ago, this Blog wrote about an enforcement action involving an investment adviser’s former co-chief investment officer who had been charged with running a more than $600 million cherry-picking scheme (here). Today,...more
12/23/2024
/ Cease and Desist Orders ,
Cherry Picking ,
Enforcement Actions ,
ETFs ,
False Statements ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
Misleading Statements ,
Permanent Injunctions ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Securities ,
Securities Act of 1933 ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Settlement
In Valkyrie AI LLC v. PriceWaterhouseCoopers LLP, 2024 N.Y. Slip Op. 06141 (1st Dept. Dec. 5, 2024) (here), the Appellate Division, First Department affirmed an order involving claims for unfair competition, tortious...more
12/16/2024
/ Bad Faith ,
Confidential Information ,
Contract Terms ,
Established Business Relationship ,
Fraudulent Inducement ,
Independent Contractors ,
Misappropriation ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Non-Disclosure Agreement ,
Non-Solicitation Agreements ,
Third-Party ,
Tortious Interference ,
Trade Secrets ,
Unfair Competition
In Farage v. Associated Ins. Mgt. Corp., 2024 N.Y. Slip Op. 05875 (Nov. 26, 2024) (here), the New York Court of Appeals examined the enforceability of an insurance contract’s two-year suit limitation period. In a 4-3...more
12/9/2024
/ Apartments ,
Appeals ,
Bad Faith ,
Claims Adjusters ,
Compliance ,
Contract Terms ,
Denial of Insurance Coverage ,
Enforcement ,
Fire Damage ,
Insurance Industry ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Multi-Family Housing ,
New York ,
Property Damage ,
Restoration Terms
The Bank Secrecy Act (“BSA”) and implementing regulations promulgated by the U.S. Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (“FinCEN”) require that broker-dealers file a suspicious activity report (SAR”) with...more
12/3/2024
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Bank Secrecy Act ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Cease and Desist ,
Censures ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Compliance ,
Enforcement ,
Filing Requirements ,
FinCEN ,
Popular ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Exchange Act of 1934 ,
Settlement ,
Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs)
In Singh v. T-Mobile, 2024 N.Y. Slip Op. 05554 (2d Dept. Nov. 13, 2024) (here), the Appellate Division, Second Department affirmed the dismissal of an action for, among other things, breach of contract, breach of the covenant...more
11/18/2024
/ Breach of Contract ,
Cause of Action Accrual ,
Compensation ,
Conspiracies ,
Covenant of Good Faith and Fair Dealing ,
Dismissals ,
Fraud ,
Management Agreements ,
Sprint ,
T-Mobile ,
Unjust Enrichment