The limited liability company (LLC) has become one of the most commonly used business entities in New York because of the many benefits it provides to its members and managers. LLCs allow members to satisfy their business needs while still providing them with the same limited liability protection that limited partnerships provide. Although the flexibility of an LLC can be very beneficial, it is this commentator’s view that members of a New York LLC should not rely on New York’s Limited Liability Company Law (LLCL) to govern the activities of an LLC. If persons choose to form an LLC, it is essential that they have a clearly written operating agreement that provides explicit terms for, among other things, the LLC’s dissolution. A number of New York cases illustrate issues that arise when an operating agreement is vague on how to dissolve the LLC. Indeed, as discussed below, an LLC can be difficult to dissolve if the operating agreement is not explicit in this regard.
Under LLCL §702 a court may dissolve an LLC “whenever it is not reasonably practicable to carry on the business in conformity with the articles of organization or operating agreement.” In Matter of 1545 Ocean Avenue., LLC1, the Appellate Division for the Second Department articulated two factors courts in that department must consider when deciding if an LLC can be dissolved. The petitioner for the dissolution must show: (1) the management of the company is unable or unwilling to reasonably permit or promote the stated purpose of the company to be realized or achieved; and (2) continuing the company is financially unfeasible. In that case, the court found a dissolution was not justified.
Other New York cases demonstrate the obstacles LLCs can face when they do not have clear dissolution provisions in operating agreements. In Yu v. Guard Hill Estates, LLC2 the trial court did not allow a dissolution to occur when the only justification for dissolution was discord between family members. The court stated as follows: “While [the petitioner] complains that his family members have engaged in certain activities to further their personal ‘vendetta’ against him, his unflattering characterization of his family’s actions is not sufficient to support a cause of action that his family has abandoned the purpose of the LLC.” Another example when a New York court found that an LLC could not be dissolved is the case Kassab v Kasab3, where the Queens County Commercial Division denied dissolution because the “exile” of a member participating in the partnership did not satisfy either prong established in 1545 Ocean Avenue.4
However, there have been some New York cases where dissolution was allowed pursuant to LLCL §702. In Matter of 47th Rd. LLC5, the court stated that the existence of personal vendettas between two brothers who were “partners,” which threatened to result in physical violence and ruin the business, could result in a judicial dissolution. A similar result occurred in Matter of D’Errico6, after the majority members of an LLC named Epic locked out all of the minority members from the premises of the business and prevented the minority members from accessing all business accounts. The majority members even formed a new LLC called BeyondEpic. As a result of BeyondEpic having been formed, the court stated as follows: “BeyondEpic … reduced Epic to an entity that operates solely at BeyondEpic’s sufferance.” Accordingly, the court found that judicial dissolution of Epic under LLCL §702 was warranted.
As New York courts continue to establish precedents for LLCL §702, the significance of an unambiguous dissolution provision in LLC operating agreements is essential. While partners in a business at its inception are often not thinking about its demise, it is important to try to anticipate issues which should lead to a dissolution of the LLC. The cases discussed in this article exemplify how operating agreements that do not clearly delineate the grounds for dissolution can cause serious issues for persons involved in those LLCs. Simply relying on the default dissolution statute, LLCL §702, is a risk no members of a New York LLC should take.
Richard B. Friedman
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1 Matter of 1545 Ocean Ave., LLC, 72 A.D.3d 121 (2010).
2 Yu v. Guard Hill Estates, LLC 2018 N.Y. Slip Op 32466(ii) (Sup.Ct. Sept. 28, 2018).
3 Kassab v. Kasab, 65 N.Y.S.3d 492 (N.Y. Sup. 2017).
4 Supra note 1.
5 In Matter of 47th Rd. LLC 54 N.Y.S. 3d 610 (N.Y. Sup. Ct. 2017).
6 Matter of D’Errico No. 610084 (Sup.Ct. Nassau County Aug. 21, 2018).