From Casetext: Smarter Legal Research

First v. Benchmark

Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, First Department
Feb 21, 2008
48 A.D.3d 327 (N.Y. App. Div. 2008)

Opinion

No. 2832.

February 21, 2008.

Order, Supreme Court, New York County (Helen E. Freedman, J.), entered January 8, 2007, which granted defendants' motion for partial summary judgment, dismissing the first, second and fourth causes of action, unanimously affirmed, with costs.

Tarter Krinsky Drogin LLP, New York (Edward R. Finkelstein of counsel), for appellant.

Andrew Greene Associates, P.C., White Plains (Stanley S. Zinner of counsel), for respondents.

Before: Mazzarelli, J.P., Williams, Sweeny, Catterson and Moskowitz, JJ.


The restrictive covenants not to compete or solicit, set forth in the contract of sale, had expired. Furthermore, the expressly negotiated covenant not to compete superseded the normally implied common-law covenant, particularly where, as here, the customers are generally identifiable, and enjoining solicitation of former clients after the negotiated time period would be tantamount to preventing defendants from acting as a title insurer in Westchester County ( see MGM Ct. Reporting Serv. v Greenberg, 74 NY2d 691; Titus Donnelly v Poto, 205 AD2d 475).

Defendants met their burden of demonstrating entitlement to summary judgment on the issue of claimed confidential documents and related violation of fiduciary duty, and plaintiff did not meet its burden of demonstrating the existence of issues of fact to warrant a trial ( see Zuckerman v City of New York, 49 NY2d 557).

We have considered Plaintiffs remaining arguments and find them without merit.


Summaries of

First v. Benchmark

Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, First Department
Feb 21, 2008
48 A.D.3d 327 (N.Y. App. Div. 2008)
Case details for

First v. Benchmark

Case Details

Full title:FIRST AMERICAN TITLE INSURANCE COMPANY OF NEW YORK, INC., Appellant, v…

Court:Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, First Department

Date published: Feb 21, 2008

Citations

48 A.D.3d 327 (N.Y. App. Div. 2008)
2008 N.Y. Slip Op. 1607
851 N.Y.S.2d 523

Citing Cases

People's United Ins. Agency, Inc. v. Bentivegna

The parties to a sale of the business that includes its goodwill remain free, however, to expressly contract…