The qualifying phrase, “Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this Agreement,” can be a highly useful and efficient means to clarify the hierarchy of otherwise potentially competing contract provisions. It can also trigger thorny litigation when two “notwithstanding” clauses arguably conflict with one another, as in the case featured in this week’s New York Business
Latest from New York Business Divorce
Premature or Untimely? Both at the Same Time? When to Sue as a General Partner
Can a partnership dispute be premature and untimely simultaneously? That was the unfortunate outcome for a hapless general partner in this week’s New York Business Divorce.
LLC Member States Direct Claims Arising from Machiavellian Manager’s Tactical Bankruptcy Petition
The subject of this week’s post has it all: cinematic threats, emergency court orders, changed locks, an intentional foreclosure, a tactical bankruptcy filing, and a trip to the Second Circuit Court of Appeals. The resulting opinion is equally satisfying.
I’ll Have a Bacon Cheeseburger, Hold the Pickle and LLC Dissolution
On the menu in this week’s New York Business Divorce is a case about a restaurant menu, literally, and the disputed changes to it made by a 50% member of the operating LLC.
Winter Case Notes: Nice Try, But the Agreements Say What They Say
This week’s New York Business Divorce presents the 2025 Winter Case Notes, where we highlight a few recent decisions of interest featuring strict adherence to statutory language and the parties’ governing agreements.
No Unforced Errors Please: “For Cause” Removal Provisions Mean What They Say and Say What They Mean
In this week’s business divorce follies, an imprecisely-drafted notice of default and cure letter leads to a stunning defeat for a group of limited partners who tried to remove a limited partner “for cause” under the partnership agreement.
New York Top Court’s Advice to Prospective Investors in Delaware LLCs: Pay Close Attention to Controller’s Power to Amend LLC Agreement
This week’s New York Business Divorce features the highly anticipated ruling by the New York Court of Appeals, in a 4-3 decision in Behler v Tao, affirming dismissal of a complaint seeking to enforce an oral “exit opportunity agreement” involving a Delaware LLC.
Affiliated Entities, Conflicting Duties, and the Business Judgment Rule
A recent case from New York County caps a decade-long litigation saga and offers helpful guidance on when the business judgment rule applies to pocket-to-pocket transactions with common ownership on both sides.
New Year, New Law – New Opacity – for LLC Owner Disputes
This week in New York Business Divorce, read about what appears to be the first New York appeals court decision to enforce a waiver-of-dissolution provision in an LLC operating agreement, a departure from prevailing appellate case law holding broad anti-dissolution provisions void as against public policy.
The Little Buy-Sell That Could
The irony of litigation over buy-sell agreements is that such agreements are specifically intended to avoid litigation when owners die or become disabled or otherwise seek to exit the firm. Take, for example, last week’s Appellate Division ruling, reversing the lower court’s decision dismissing a claim to enforce an operating agreement’s buy-sell provision. Better yet,