Malecki Law is pleased to announce that we recently obtained Summary Judgment dismissal on behalf of a well-known Chinese inventor, who was a Defendant in the case that was pending in the Commercial Division of New York Supreme Court in New York County. Our client was sued by hedge fund Abax Lotus Ltd. over speculative investments Abax made more than eight years ago in a company called China Mobile Media Technology, Inc. The Inventor was a shareholder in China Mobile Media. Abax has filed a notice of its intention to appeal the decision, which both dismissed Abax’s motion for judgment, and granted the Inventor’s motion dismissing all claims against him.
Our client was personally named in the New York State lawsuit, alongside the company he worked for, over Abax’s investment. Abax previously obtained a judgment against the company, but sought to hold the Defendant personally liable. Justice O. Peter Sherwood, ruling from the bench, correctly noted that the Defendant-Inventor’s agreement as a shareholder did not make him personally liable for the company’s failures.
Correctly citing the seminal New York Court of Appeals case Hooper Assocs. v. AGS Computers, Inc., Justice Sherwood determined that the indemnification provisions relied on by Abax for the Defendant’s supposed liability did not apply. Justice Sherwood went further, determining that Abax “[did not] have the goods” to establish their claim against the Defendant.