Plaintiff Not Required to Plead Elements of Alter Ego Liability With Particularity

On February 16, 2016, the First Department issued a decision in 2406-12 Amsterdam Associates LLC v. Alianza LLC, 2016 NY Slip Op 01110, holding that a plaintiff was not required to plead the elements of alter ego liability with particularity, explaining:

Plaintiff was not required to plead the elements of alter ego liability with the particularity required by CPLR 3016(b), but only to plead in a non-conclusory manner. The complaint, together with plaintiff's affidavits in opposition to defendants' motion, sufficiently alleges that defendant Alianza Dominicana transferred all of its assets to a newly formed entity, defendant Alianza LLC, which was 90% owned by Alianza Dominicana and had no employees and no function but to hold those assets away from creditors and, in particular, plaintiff. These and other allegations establish the alter ego theory sufficiently to sustain contract claims against Alianza LLC, although, as the motion court noted, alter ego is a theory of recovery, not an independent cause of action.

(Internal citations omitted).