There appears to be an uptick in the filing of meritless corporate shareholder and LLC member oppression claims in New Jersey.  Not everything that majority shareholders do that upsets a minority owner is worth spending legal fees to pursue.

When the only allegations one can make are a failure to keep an absentee shareholder fully informed of all business transactions, and a failure to obtain that minority shareholder’s consent to such transactions, that alone is rarely a recipe for successful litigation.  » Read More

Years ago, oppressed minority shareholders in New Jersey corporations had more protection than oppressed members of a New Jersey LLC. When the statute was revised in 2014, that changed, and LLC members now have similar remedies available to them. But there is one little-known section of the New Jersey LLC statute that makes it a more powerful tool for the majority owners than the corporate statute – the ability to “dissociate” a member. » Read More

Recently, a defendant testified in a deposition that I was conducting that there was no reason that he could not fire my client, who was a 28% minority shareholder in a New Jersey corporation.  Since the defendant was the majority (51%) owner, he believed he could fire whomever he wanted. » Read More