Kasowitz Partner Moves Forward With Fraud Suit in Manhattan Supreme Court
The investors are seeking at least $10 million in damages, according to court papers.
May 06, 2020 at 06:40 PM
2 minute read
A Manhattan Supreme Court justice ruled Monday that a fraud case filed by Kasowitz Benson Torres in August can move forward, denying a motion to dismiss on key claims against Cardinal Equity LLC, a merchant cash advance syndication venture.
Kasowitz partner Jed Bergman represents a group of plaintiffs who had invested in Cardinal and who allege that the venture and its managing partner fabricated data and inflated its success.
The investors are seeking at least $10 million in damages, according to court papers. Bergman argued that millions of dollars in losses were hidden from the plaintiffs, who were repeatedly told that their investments were profitable.
New York County Supreme Court Justice Joel Cohen granted the defendants' motion to dismiss several claims, but he allowed several claims to move forward, including fraudulent inducement and breach-of-contract claims against Cardinal and a fraud claim against managing partner Arty Bujan.
Bergman described the ruling as a "big win" for the investors.
"Justice Cohen's thorough decision accurately explains how Cardinal and Bujan 'lured' plaintiffs into investing millions of dollars in their merchant cash advance business and then 'withheld and manipulated information' about the investment," Bergman said in a statement. "We look forward to recovering the significant damages that our clients have suffered."
Bujan and Cardinal were previously represented by attorneys at Ellenoff, Grossman & Schole, but a motion to withdraw as counsel is currently pending before Cohen. The attorneys withdrew because they were owed more than $40,000 in legal fees, according to their motion.
Bujan did not return a request for comment left at the Cardinal offices Wednesday.
Cohen also dismissed all claims against a third defendant, who had allegedly been a corporate officer of Cardinal.
This content has been archived. It is available through our partners, LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law.
To view this content, please continue to their sites.
Not a Lexis Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
Not a Bloomberg Law Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
NOT FOR REPRINT
© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
You Might Like
View AllTrump's SEC Overhaul: What It Means for Big Law Capital Markets, Crypto Work
Trump's SEC Likely to Halt 'Off-Channel' Texting Probe That's Led to Billions in Fines
Law Firms Mentioned
Trending Stories
- 1Justices Will Weigh Constitutionality of Law Allowing Terror Victims to Sue PLO
- 2Nevada Supreme Court to Decide Fate of Groundbreaking Contingency Cap Ballot Measure
- 3OpenAI Tells Court It Will Seek to Consolidate Copyright Suits Under MDL
- 44th Circuit Allows State Felon Voting Ban Challenge to Go Forward
- 5Class Actions Claim Progressive Undervalues Totaled Cars
Who Got The Work
Michael G. Bongiorno, Andrew Scott Dulberg and Elizabeth E. Driscoll from Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr have stepped in to represent Symbotic Inc., an A.I.-enabled technology platform that focuses on increasing supply chain efficiency, and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The case, filed Oct. 2 in Massachusetts District Court by the Brown Law Firm on behalf of Stephen Austen, accuses certain officers and directors of misleading investors in regard to Symbotic's potential for margin growth by failing to disclose that the company was not equipped to timely deploy its systems or manage expenses through project delays. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton, is 1:24-cv-12522, Austen v. Cohen et al.
Who Got The Work
Edmund Polubinski and Marie Killmond of Davis Polk & Wardwell have entered appearances for data platform software development company MongoDB and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The action, filed Oct. 7 in New York Southern District Court by the Brown Law Firm, accuses the company's directors and/or officers of falsely expressing confidence in the company’s restructuring of its sales incentive plan and downplaying the severity of decreases in its upfront commitments. The case is 1:24-cv-07594, Roy v. Ittycheria et al.
Who Got The Work
Amy O. Bruchs and Kurt F. Ellison of Michael Best & Friedrich have entered appearances for Epic Systems Corp. in a pending employment discrimination lawsuit. The suit was filed Sept. 7 in Wisconsin Western District Court by Levine Eisberner LLC and Siri & Glimstad on behalf of a project manager who claims that he was wrongfully terminated after applying for a religious exemption to the defendant's COVID-19 vaccine mandate. The case, assigned to U.S. Magistrate Judge Anita Marie Boor, is 3:24-cv-00630, Secker, Nathan v. Epic Systems Corporation.
Who Got The Work
David X. Sullivan, Thomas J. Finn and Gregory A. Hall from McCarter & English have entered appearances for Sunrun Installation Services in a pending civil rights lawsuit. The complaint was filed Sept. 4 in Connecticut District Court by attorney Robert M. Berke on behalf of former employee George Edward Steins, who was arrested and charged with employing an unregistered home improvement salesperson. The complaint alleges that had Sunrun informed the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection that the plaintiff's employment had ended in 2017 and that he no longer held Sunrun's home improvement contractor license, he would not have been hit with charges, which were dismissed in May 2024. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer, is 3:24-cv-01423, Steins v. Sunrun, Inc. et al.
Who Got The Work
Greenberg Traurig shareholder Joshua L. Raskin has entered an appearance for boohoo.com UK Ltd. in a pending patent infringement lawsuit. The suit, filed Sept. 3 in Texas Eastern District Court by Rozier Hardt McDonough on behalf of Alto Dynamics, asserts five patents related to an online shopping platform. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Rodney Gilstrap, is 2:24-cv-00719, Alto Dynamics, LLC v. boohoo.com UK Limited.
Featured Firms
Law Offices of Gary Martin Hays & Associates, P.C.
(470) 294-1674
Law Offices of Mark E. Salomone
(857) 444-6468
Smith & Hassler
(713) 739-1250