08/13/2026
Bleakley Platt & Schmidt attorney Stephen J. Brown secured a significant victory for the appellants in Nolletti v Nolletti in the Appellate Division, Second Department of the New York Supreme Court. The dispute involved shareholder rights, estate administration and governance of a family agricultural nursery business that had been passed down to the owner's five children in equal shares. The plaintiffs sought a preliminary injunction to prevent our clients from exercising their rights as equal shareholders.
The court reversed the Supreme Court’s earlier order, denied the plaintiffs’ motion for a preliminary injunction, and dismissed the complaint. The Court concluded that the plaintiffs’ theory lacked standing because their claims depended upon another party’s potential interest in the company, rather than their own shareholder interests.
The decision represents an important result for the firm’s clients and removed judicial restraints affecting the governance and operation of the family-owned business.
