Breach of Fiduciary Duties Claims
A fiduciary is a person who has a relationship of trust to another. This can be because that individuals works for a corporation, is a broker or some other kind of agent, is supposed to act for the benefit of another, or other if other circumstances are present. Breach of fiduciary duties claims are somewhat different than other causes of action that can be asserted in a lawsuit, and parties should be aware of a few matters when making such claims.
Elements of Breach of Fiduciary Duties Claims
In many jurisdictions, such as New York, the elements of breach of fiduciary duties claims are simple. First, the person trying to make a case must show that a fiduciary duty was owed to another. This could be because of the relationship between the parties and the duty of trust that was inherent with how the parties interacted with one another. The next element that must be proved is misconduct by the fiduciary. The misconduct of the defendant will vary depending on the fiduciary relationship, but typically includes conflicts of interest, failure to abide by the duty of confidentiality, failure to keep everyone apprised of the acts for which the fiduciary is operating and other matters. The last element that must be typically proved when stating breach of fiduciary duties claims is damages. This is usually monetary damages, and damages can also include reputational injury, future damages, and other matters. An experienced lawyer should know how to draft papers to satisfy these requirements.
Heightened Pleading
Another important consideration when making breach of fiduciary duties claims is that there may be a requirement to state your claims with more detail than usual, also called heightened pleading. Normally when parties make allegations in litigation, they just need to convey a short and plain statement of the facts that gives the defendants a fair chance to be put on notice about what the case is about. Of course, parties do not always know all of the facts of a matter when they start litigation, so it makes sense that they do not need to go into more detail at the beginning of a lawsuit.
However, courts sometimes require parties to plead certain claims with more particularity. For instance, if a party alleges fraud, they ordinarily need to plead such allegations with more particularity, and usually need to state the dates, names, and other information surrounding the claims. This is an extension of the saying that extraordinary claims require extraordinary proof, and since fraud is a serious cause of action, courts require more facts about the matter. Along similar lines, courts oftentimes require parties to plead breach of fiduciary duty claims with more particularity than usual. As a result, if parties wish to make such claims, they need to investigate the facts to make sure that a cause of action is not dismissed because it did not include enough facts about the situation involved in the matter.
Statute of Limitations
The time within which breach of fiduciary duties claims need to be filed varies depending on the jurisdiction in which claims are made. Some jurisdictions do not explicitly include a statute of limitation for breach of fiduciary duties causes of action. As a result, courts often look to the allegations involved in breach of fiduciary duties claims to decide upon a statute of limitation. For instance, if the breach of fiduciary duties claims sound like fraud, a court may decide to use the fraud statute of limitation for the claims. However, if the breach of fiduciary duties claims are based on a contract, courts may apply the breach of contract statute of limitation to the claims. An experienced lawyer should have a good sense of the statute of limitation that will apply to a party’s breach of fiduciary duties claims in a given matter.
Related Causes of Action
A critical thing to keep in mind when making breach of fiduciary duties claims is that other causes of action should also be considered when bring such a case to court. The facts that underly breach of fiduciary duties claims may also support a finding for other types of causes of action. For instance, someone liable for breaching fiduciary duties may also be found liable for negligence if the elements of this cause of action can be proved by a plaintiff in litigation. In addition, if a contract is the basis for a breach of fiduciary duty claim, then breach of contract may also be alleged in a lawsuit. Parties that sign contracts may owe a duty of good faith and fair dealing, and this duty can also form the basis for claims.
It is important to consider multiple causes of action so that parties have multiple grounds for relief against a party. As explained above, causes of action for breach of fiduciary duty need to be pled with particularity or else they may be dismissed. As a result, considering multiple causes of action gives litigants the best chance possible at receiving a recovery.
The Rothman Law Firm has substantial experience recovering money for breach of fiduciary duties claims and other caused of action in litigation. If you are looking for an experienced New York and New Jersey attorney to handle your breach of fiduciary claims lawsuit or other legal issue, please feel free to contact us to request a free consultation.