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FORUM SELECTION CLAUSE APPLIES TO NONSIGNATORY ATTORNEY BASED UPON ATTORNEY’S RELATIONSHIP WITH THE PARTIES, PARTIES’ FAILURE TO CAREFULLY READ THE AGREEMENTS BLAMED ON ATTORNEY’S FRAUDULENT ASSURANCES, FRAUD, FRAUD IN THE INDUCEMENT, BREACH OF FIDUCIARY DUTY AND BREACH OF CONTRACT ALLEGATIONS AGAINST ATTORNEY STATED CAUSES OF ACTION (FIRST DEPT).

The First Department determined the defendants’ counterclaims against their attorney, David, stated causes of action for fraud, fraud in the inducement, breach of fiduciary duty and breach of contract. Defendants alleged that David’s assurances led defendants to sign joint venture agreements to their detriment without carefully reading them. The court noted that, although David was not a signatory to the agreements, the forum selection clauses applied to him because of his relationship with the defendants, as expressed in an email:

The allegations of the complaint state a cause of action for fraudulent inducement … . The well settled principle relied on by David that a party claiming fraudulent inducement cannot be said to have justifiably relied on a representation negated by the plain terms of the contract they signed does not apply here, since his alleged assurances and fraud were the very cause of defendants’ failure to review the documents carefully. As it was reasonable for defendants to rely on the advice of counsel, we also reject David’s arguments premised on the plain language of the agreements that defendants admit they did not read carefully.

Defendants’ allegations describing their attorney-client relationship with David state a cause of action for breach of fiduciary duty. For example, they allege that he served as their attorney for years, both before and during the instant transaction, negotiating unrelated contracts and handling unrelated lawsuits and trusts and estates matters.

While in support of the fraudulent inducement claim defendants allege that the agreements were “brought about by fraud,” because, inter alia, David held himself out as their attorney and caused them to sign unfavorable agreements that he drafted, in contrast, in support of the fraud claim defendants focus on events following the execution of the agreements, namely, David’s “scheme to manufacture a bogus default” of the loan so as to seize valuable collateral without paying for it. These allegations state a cause of action for fraud … . Suttongate Holdings Ltd. v Laconm Mgt. N.V., 2018 NY Slip Op 02424, First Dept 4-10-18

​FRAUD (FORUM SELECTION CLAUSE APPLIES TO NONSIGNATORY ATTORNEY BASED UPON ATTORNEY’S RELATIONSHIP WITH THE PARTIES, PARTIES’ FAILURE TO CAREFULLY READ THE AGREEMENTS BLAMED ON ATTORNEY’S FRAUDULENT ASSURANCES, FRAUD, FRAUD IN THE INDUCEMENT, BREACH OF FIDUCIARY DUTY AND BREACH OF CONTRACT ALLEGATIONS AGAINST ATTORNEY STATED CAUSES OF ACTION (FIRST DEPT))/CONTRACT LAW (FORUM SELECTION CLAUSE APPLIES TO NONSIGNATORY ATTORNEY BASED UPON ATTORNEY’S RELATIONSHIP WITH THE PARTIES, PARTIES’ FAILURE TO CAREFULLY READ THE AGREEMENTS BLAMED ON ATTORNEY’S FRAUDULENT ASSURANCES, FRAUD, FRAUD IN THE INDUCEMENT, BREACH OF FIDUCIARY DUTY AND BREACH OF CONTRACT ALLEGATIONS AGAINST ATTORNEY STATED CAUSES OF ACTION (FIRST DEPT))/FORUM SELECTION CLAUSE (FORUM SELECTION CLAUSE APPLIES TO NONSIGNATORY ATTORNEY BASED UPON ATTORNEY’S RELATIONSHIP WITH THE PARTIES, PARTIES’ FAILURE TO CAREFULLY READ THE AGREEMENTS BLAMED ON ATTORNEY’S FRAUDULENT ASSURANCES, FRAUD, FRAUD IN THE INDUCEMENT, BREACH OF FIDUCIARY DUTY AND BREACH OF CONTRACT ALLEGATIONS AGAINST ATTORNEY STATED CAUSES OF ACTION (FIRST DEPT))/ATTORNEYS  (FORUM SELECTION CLAUSE APPLIES TO NONSIGNATORY ATTORNEY BASED UPON ATTORNEY’S RELATIONSHIP WITH THE PARTIES, PARTIES’ FAILURE TO CAREFULLY READ THE AGREEMENTS BLAMED ON ATTORNEY’S FRAUDULENT ASSURANCES, FRAUD, FRAUD IN THE INDUCEMENT, BREACH OF FIDUCIARY DUTY AND BREACH OF CONTRACT ALLEGATIONS AGAINST ATTORNEY STATED CAUSES OF ACTION (FIRST DEPT))/FIDUCIARY DUTY, BREACH OF (ATTORNEYS, FORUM SELECTION CLAUSE APPLIES TO NONSIGNATORY ATTORNEY BASED UPON ATTORNEY’S RELATIONSHIP WITH THE PARTIES, PARTIES’ FAILURE TO CAREFULLY READ THE AGREEMENTS BLAMED ON ATTORNEY’S FRAUDULENT ASSURANCES, FRAUD, FRAUD IN THE INDUCEMENT, BREACH OF FIDUCIARY DUTY AND BREACH OF CONTRACT ALLEGATIONS AGAINST ATTORNEY STATED CAUSES OF ACTION (FIRST DEPT))

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