Yankwitt LLP Secures Major Victory in Federal Court with Dismissal of Breach of Oral Partnership and Related Claims

A Yankwitt LLP litigation team led by Partner Ross Morrison successfully secured the dismissal of nearly all claims in a complex commercial dispute involving a breach of an alleged oral partnership agreement.

The plaintiff had filed a lawsuit in federal court in the Southern District of New York claiming that he had entered into a verbal agreement with Yankwitt LLP’s client—an inventor of a unique respiratory mask with the effectiveness of a KN95 mask —establishing a 50-50 partnership. The plaintiff further alleged that, in entering into the alleged partnership, he had made representations to our client that his professional connections and experience would help advance the product’s development and secure funding for the development company subsequently set up by our client.

After the company was formally established, the plaintiff became a member of the business’s advisory board, for which the plaintiff and other advisory board members were offered a small percentage of equity in the company. The plaintiff claimed that he was undervalued, alleging that he as a purported co-inventor of the mask, and partner with our client, he was entitled to a much larger equity interest.

After an extensive discovery process, Yankwitt LLP filed a motion for summary judgment, arguing that as a matter of law no such oral partnership existed, and that the formation of the company by our client supplanted any such partnership. The court agreed with these arguments and granted Yankwitt LLP’s motion as to all but a single claim for unjust enrichment – a tremendous motion practice victory for our client showcasing the strength of Yankwitt LLP’s persuasive brief writing.