Illinois LLC Manager Liability For LLC Contract Obligations – Some Basics
In 6030 Sheridan Road, LLC v. Wright Management, LLC, 2011 IL App. (1st) 093282-U, the plaintiff real estate developer sued defendants – an LLC property owner and its principal – for tortious interference with business relationship after a planned condominium conversion tanked. The plaintiff sued when the defendants terminated the condo conversion agreement because of their displeasure with the plaintiff’s handpicked real estate broker and marketing firm. The plaintiff sued c
Non-Shareholder of Closely-Held Corp. Can Be Liable Under Piercing Claim – IL Court
The Illinois First District recently considered whether a non-member of a closely-held corporation could be held personally responsible for debts of that LLC in Buckley v. Abuzir, 2014 IL App (1st) 130469, a trade secrets case involving rival Chicago-land bakeries. The plaintiff sued a corporate defendant (a competing bakery) alleging it hired away plaintiff’s top employee and stole plaintiff’s customers and secret recipes. The court entered a default judgment of over $400,
Is It A Corporate Obligation? Or An Individual/Personal One? Agent of A Disclosed Principal And Br
Sometimes it’s difficult to determine who the contracting parties are. A common example is where the contract text names the parties are two corporations but it’s signed by an individual. Or, the contract signer clearly notes his corporate affiliation (by stating his job title) next to his signature, but the body of the contract states that the parties are individuals (not corporations) or that the signer is personally guaranteeing the corporate obligations. Yellow Book Sal
Copyright Act Doesn’t Pre-empt Shufflin Crew’s Right of Publicity Suit – Northern District of Illino
Dent v. Renaissance Marketing Corp., 2015 WL 3484464 (N.D.Ill. 2015) involves a royalty dispute over the 1985 “Super Bowl Shuffle” – a storied (locally, at least) song and video performed by several Chicago Bears football players – the Shufflin’ Crew – to commemorate the Bears’ Super Bowl thrashing of the New England Patriots that year. And while the case’s connection to football coupled with its celebrity-slash-nostalgia sensibility naturally piques a reader’s interest, the
Contractual Disclaimers in Illinois: Social Relationships and Uneven Bargaining Positions
Spears v. Ass’n of Illinois Electric Cooperatives, 2013 IL App (4th) 120289 summarizes the general rules and exceptions that govern exculpatory clauses in Illinois. In the case, the plaintiff college student who signed up for a utility “pole climbing” class the defendant – a non-profit entity – offered through plaintiff’s college.
Before she took the class, plaintiff signed a release that immunized the defendant from all claims and injuries that could result from the clas
Lindsay Lohan’s Privacy Suit Versus Rapper ‘Pitbull’ Sunk By First Amendment (2013 – NY)
Lindsay Lohan is in the legal news again, giving us an excellent opportunity to illustrate some legal principles about the unauthorized use of a celebrity’s name (be it Lindsay Lohan or Rosa Parks) in a song or other artistic work. Ms. Lohan has let her lawyers loose on the rap singer Armando Perez, better known as “Pitbull.” Mr. Pitbull has created a song that, according to Ms. Lohan, contains an “unwarranted, unauthorized, and unfavorable” mention of her name in the lyrics.
Getting Default Money Judgments In Copyright Lawsuits – A Case Note
Malibu Media, LLC v. Funderburg, 2015 WL 1887754 (N.D.Ill. 2015) discusses the governing standards for obtaining a default judgment in Federal court in a decidedly post-modern fact context. The plaintiff adult film producer sued the defendant for copyright infringement based on the viewer defendant’s unauthorized movie downloads. Defendant orchestrated hundreds of movie downloads over a span of about three months through the BitTorrent file sharing system. BitTorrent basica
Liquidated Damages In Illinois Contracts: Some Quick Hits
Liquidated damages clauses appear frequently in a variety of commercial contracts and similar agreements. Several Illinois cases – some old and some very recent – examine liquidated damages clauses in multiple factual settings. Here are some bullet-point liquidated damages rules, gleaned from the caselaw: – Liquidated damages clauses are enforceable where: (1) the parties intended to agree in advance to the settlement of damages that migikht arise from a breach;(2) the amoun
Landlord’s Five-Day Notice That Ends On a Sunday Dooms Eviction Suit (Illinois 1st Dist.)
Holsten Management Corp. v. Diaz, 2014 IL App (1st) 131261-U vividly illustrates the dire results that can flow from a landlord’s failure to follow statutory eviction requirements to the letter. The plaintiff landlord issued a five-day notice after the residential tenant fell behind in her rent payments. The notice was issued on a Tuesday and it expired on a Sunday. The notice specified that the tenancy would be terminated on October 21, 2012 – a Sunday. The tenant didn’t
The Illinois Commercial Real Estate Broker’s Lien Statute: A Top 10 List
The Illinois Commercial Real Estate Broker’s Lien Act, 770 ILCS 15/1 (the “Act”), provides a broker whose owed commission money with a strong remedy against a breaching property owner, buyer or tenant. Here are some of the Act’s key provisions: 1. What It Applies To: “Commercial real estate.” This is defined as any real estate in Illinois other than (i) real estate containing one to 6 residential units, (ii) real estate on which no buildings or structures are located, or (ii
