Limited Liability Company Act Transforms Principles of LLCs A new set of laws governing New Jersey limited liability companies will become effective in March. The changes are profound. The Limited Liability Company Act fundamentally changes a number of bedrock principles about the manner in which limited liability companies are organized and managed. Limited Liability…
Corporate Dissolution Claims of Foreign Entities Not Proper Corporations and other business entities are creatures of the law of the state where they were organized. Delaware and Nevada, for example, compete as the state of choice when organizing a new business entity. And the simple fact is that most of the businesses organized under…
LLC Member Who Refused to Retire Was Expelled by Managers The challenges in making the transition from the the founding members of a successful enterprise to the second generation of managers are often difficult, as this litigation involving that has endured for nearly a decade demonstrates. It may be that the business has…
The New Jersey Appellate Division affirmed a trial court decision holding that lease renewals would revive stale claims in a partnership dispute. In Munoz v. Perla, et al., A-5922-08T3, the Munoz brought claims, among others, for breach of fiduciary duty for his partners’ failure to charge fair market rates in…
Disputes Between Shareholders Not Exempt from Arbitration Act An oppressed shareholder claim is not outside the reach of the New Jersey Arbitration Act, the Appellate Division of Superior Court held in litigation that appears to arise in significant part from a broken promise over the lease of a BMW. The…
It’s the Wednesday afternoon before Thanksgiving and the phone rings with a new client. The situation in the office has become an emergency. Either someone has been locked out or someone needs to be locked out, or someone is walking out the door with a key client. Many of our…
Partnership Failed to Keep Inactive Partner Informed The fiduciary duties owed among partners can change with time and circumstances, and the disclosures that were appropriate when all of the partners worked together in the business may become inadequate when one of the partners has ceased to take an active role. This is the…
Promoters of LLC Subject to Breach of Fiduciary Duty Claims Limited liability companies are clearly the vehicle of choice for new, closely held businesses. That means that more often than not the principals have some existing relationship before they take up their new business together. Can that prior relationship create…
Small business owners sometimes run into difficulties with their business partners after much time has passed since they first set up the business. They come to discover that the operating agreement either does not address their problem or the result is not what they intended. Small business owners should take…
Sometimes an expert valuation opinion, however well documented, leads to a conclusion that just doesn’t square with reality. That was the case with an expert opinion in Rughani-Shah v. Noaz, Docket No. A-4943-08T2 (Sept. 16, 2011) that valued a one-third interest in a medical practice at just $25,000. The trial…