Tuesday, October 12, 2010 1:19:08 AM
JJ is not as wrong as you are saying. I just read the case. In fact, if the evidence is there, he is 100% correct. I have been in several employment situations involving Negligent Misrepresentation and Unjust Dismissal. I was involved in one courtroom case. There was no jury. I put on the stand a former employer that had misrepresented certain facts during a hiring interview. The person in question melted on the stand. A judge is very good at telling if a person is lying, and most people, when they are faced with a Courtroom situation, will not lie. Not even the best con artists. I simply put the person on the stand, asked some questions, and revealed him to be a liar. I was representing myself.
This lawsuit could be indeed worth millions. And it is not just against JBI, it is PERSONAL against JB. That is really powerful. Most CEOs run for the hills when it becomes personal. That is crossing a legal line that has only been crossed in the last decade (personal liability by a CEO). He is really going after him.
If we were talking about a few months salary, that would be Unjust Dismissal (asking for more Severance). This case is not that. It is not even mentioned.
Count 1 - Breach of Contract. Implies that the 2-year contract has been breached, essentially that even if there was a 60-day out clause, it was not exercised for a good reason with fiduciary responsibility and as such the contract (for the plaintiff to be employed as a VP of M&A) was not honored. The wording of the out clause would not matter. According to the plaintiff, he got given different assignment and a Termination Letter. The new assignment was nowhere near what was promised. It could be argued by the defendant that in carrying on, the plaintiff basically accepted the new assignment. Basic alleged facts are that he got shafted and given a relatively meaningless role, then abruptly fired. So, if the contract was breached he would be owed the full 120k/ year for 2 years... plus any outstanding stock options or stocks he received as part of his employment package. Based on the 100000 shares. Based on current stock prices... which is not much. So that is 240k.
Count 2 - Equitable Accounting. Legal term for he did not get paid... straightforward. All he has to do is to produce accurate records of his compensation.. and likewise the defendant JBI. Good for expenses, severance, stock payments.
Count 3 - Negligent Misrepresentation. This is a catch-all term to basically say "JB lied to me". This is where the big $$ are. Boils down to who said what to whom. Basically he was told that the stock would make him a millionnaire, so he wants a few million. Besides that, lost opportunity. The defendant had a position at an investment firm where he could have made millions. He gave up that position based on representations made by John Bordynuk. A few more million. As is stated in the claim, misprepresentation means not only that the defendant lied (withholding information that he knew), but that he OUGHT to have known, as the CEO of a publicly-traded company. That is the current legal precedent. That is a powerful statement. Key evidence here is anything written. In the absence of that, it is extremely unpredictable and based on courtroom performance and credibility.
So, to summarize, the defendent wants all moneys owed to him in the form of expenses, proper severance pay, etc (Count 2). The defendant wants his full contract term paid because the contract was breached (Count 2), which is 240k, plus anything owing to him on the stock at current market prices. Lastly, the defendant claims Negligent Misrepresentation. That could be millions.
IMO COunt 2 is easy to prove and JBI would at least offer this as a settlement. Count 1 is more difficult, but JBI would likely offer a portion of that. Count 3 could break jBII and tie them up for years. I would doubt that JBI would offer a settlement unless the defendant drove them to the courthouse steps. Total grandstanding. Potentially, by the time it is finished there will be no money left. BUT, JB is being held personally liable. So, this could conceivably bankrupt him. This is personal. I think at this point in time, JBI does not even have enough money to pay this settlement.
I have no idea whether or not the defendant has a case. It is reliant on what was said behind closed doors and who testifies to what and how well they do. Can JB pull his sales stuff in a courtroom? Was there any misrepresentation?
Anyway, this is not a few months salary... anything but. This is a missile aimed at JBI. The defendant could either refuse to settle to prove a point, or will settle for something that will hurt JBI financially. Lastly, the defendant appears out to go after JB the man. ouch!! Key dynamics are; how far is the defendant prepared to go? and is JB willing to go through a jury trial? I would guess that the defendant may settle for something in the low 6 figures.. Count 2 and partial/ all of Count 1.
This lawsuit could be indeed worth millions. And it is not just against JBI, it is PERSONAL against JB. That is really powerful. Most CEOs run for the hills when it becomes personal. That is crossing a legal line that has only been crossed in the last decade (personal liability by a CEO). He is really going after him.
If we were talking about a few months salary, that would be Unjust Dismissal (asking for more Severance). This case is not that. It is not even mentioned.
Count 1 - Breach of Contract. Implies that the 2-year contract has been breached, essentially that even if there was a 60-day out clause, it was not exercised for a good reason with fiduciary responsibility and as such the contract (for the plaintiff to be employed as a VP of M&A) was not honored. The wording of the out clause would not matter. According to the plaintiff, he got given different assignment and a Termination Letter. The new assignment was nowhere near what was promised. It could be argued by the defendant that in carrying on, the plaintiff basically accepted the new assignment. Basic alleged facts are that he got shafted and given a relatively meaningless role, then abruptly fired. So, if the contract was breached he would be owed the full 120k/ year for 2 years... plus any outstanding stock options or stocks he received as part of his employment package. Based on the 100000 shares. Based on current stock prices... which is not much. So that is 240k.
Count 2 - Equitable Accounting. Legal term for he did not get paid... straightforward. All he has to do is to produce accurate records of his compensation.. and likewise the defendant JBI. Good for expenses, severance, stock payments.
Count 3 - Negligent Misrepresentation. This is a catch-all term to basically say "JB lied to me". This is where the big $$ are. Boils down to who said what to whom. Basically he was told that the stock would make him a millionnaire, so he wants a few million. Besides that, lost opportunity. The defendant had a position at an investment firm where he could have made millions. He gave up that position based on representations made by John Bordynuk. A few more million. As is stated in the claim, misprepresentation means not only that the defendant lied (withholding information that he knew), but that he OUGHT to have known, as the CEO of a publicly-traded company. That is the current legal precedent. That is a powerful statement. Key evidence here is anything written. In the absence of that, it is extremely unpredictable and based on courtroom performance and credibility.
So, to summarize, the defendent wants all moneys owed to him in the form of expenses, proper severance pay, etc (Count 2). The defendant wants his full contract term paid because the contract was breached (Count 2), which is 240k, plus anything owing to him on the stock at current market prices. Lastly, the defendant claims Negligent Misrepresentation. That could be millions.
IMO COunt 2 is easy to prove and JBI would at least offer this as a settlement. Count 1 is more difficult, but JBI would likely offer a portion of that. Count 3 could break jBII and tie them up for years. I would doubt that JBI would offer a settlement unless the defendant drove them to the courthouse steps. Total grandstanding. Potentially, by the time it is finished there will be no money left. BUT, JB is being held personally liable. So, this could conceivably bankrupt him. This is personal. I think at this point in time, JBI does not even have enough money to pay this settlement.
I have no idea whether or not the defendant has a case. It is reliant on what was said behind closed doors and who testifies to what and how well they do. Can JB pull his sales stuff in a courtroom? Was there any misrepresentation?
Anyway, this is not a few months salary... anything but. This is a missile aimed at JBI. The defendant could either refuse to settle to prove a point, or will settle for something that will hurt JBI financially. Lastly, the defendant appears out to go after JB the man. ouch!! Key dynamics are; how far is the defendant prepared to go? and is JB willing to go through a jury trial? I would guess that the defendant may settle for something in the low 6 figures.. Count 2 and partial/ all of Count 1.
