Charles J. Pesant

A Chubb unit urged a California federal court to rule that it needn't pay a software company CEO and his wife millions of dollars for living expenses related to a 2017 water damage claim, saying the couple made misrepresentations regarding the habitability of their Beverly Hills estate. In its proposed findings of fact and conclusions of law filed Tuesday, Federal Insurance Co. said Unicom founder, president and CEO Corry S. Hong and his wife, Christine H. Hong, are not entitled to coverage for extra living expenses while their home's HVAC chiller system undergoes additional repair. The insurer said the Hongs' claim for declaratory relief relates to coverage for future additional living expenses/extra living expenses, or ALE/ELE, that was demanded in a June 2021 proof of loss, and subsequently denied that December in a letter, though they are now seeking a larger amount of money. In the letter, Federal said, it denied the Hongs' claim for $288,410 in previously incurred hotel expenses, as well as $1.8 million in future expenses that had not yet been incurred, due to material misrepresentations in their demand for ALE/ELE relating to hotel stays in April 2021. Federal asserted that the Hongs' ability to challenge that denial is barred by the policy's one-year suit limitation provision. Moreover, because the Hongs "misrepresented material facts in connection with their additional living expense claim to Federal … there is no coverage under the Federal policy for plaintiffs' entire loss, including but not limited to any present or future ALE/ELE claim," the insurer said. The coverage dispute stems from a claim for water damage that the Hongs made in November 2017, after they discovered a leak originating from the property's underground HVAC chiller system. The Hongs later submitted three additional water damage claims for the property's subterranean garage, changing room and west wing. According to court filings, Federal ultimately paid approximately $3 million for the damage and for several stays at the Beverly Hills Hotel while the chiller system was inoperable. In December 2024, the insurer denied the Hongs' claim for relocation expenses that they expected to incur during the second phase of repairs on the chiller system, saying the claim had been "expressly denied" in the December 2021 letter. The couple filed the present action in California state court shortly after. The suit, which was removed to federal court, alleged that Federal's denial constituted a breach of the policy and the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing. The Hongs also asserted that the property will be uninhabitable for up to two years while the chiller system is repaired, and that the insurer must pay for the family to relocate to a comparable home. In an in-chambers order issued Oct. 7, U.S. District Judge R. Gary Klausner partially granted Federal's bid for summary judgment. The judge found that the Hongs' breach of contract claim was barred by the policy's one-year suit limitation provision and that their bad faith claim failed, but allowed the declaratory judgment claim to proceed to trial. The Hongs asserted in their own proposed findings of fact and conclusions of law, also filed Tuesday, that the December 2021 denial letter was not legally sufficient to notify the couple that Federal was terminating their rights to request ALE/ELE in the future. "In denying Federal's motion for summary judgment, this court ruled the letter was ambiguous, which means, as a matter of law, it was not clear and explicit and thus was not a valid notice for this purpose," the Hongs said. Because the property will be uninhabitable during the repairs, the Hongs said Federal must pay for comparable housing "to maintain the household's usual standard of living," which is estimated to be $600,000 per month for approximately two years while work is completed, plus a $600,000 security deposit. The insurer must also pay a minimum of $1.1 million to remove, store and return all furniture and furnishings, the Hongs said. Federal, however, asserted in its filing that the repair work will not render the home uninhabitable, that the estimated period of time to restore the property is unreasonable, and that the $600,000 per month ALE/ELE claim is inflated. Representatives of the parties did not immediately respond to requests for comment Thursday. Unicom and the Hongs are represented by Glen L. Kulik and Christiana Kim of Kulik Gottesman Siegel & Ware LLP. Federal is represented by Jerome P. Doctors, Eric D. Freed, Charles J. Jesuit Jr. and Stephen S. Kempa of Cozen O'Connor. The case is Unicom International Inc. et al. v. Federal Insurance Co. et al., case number 2:25-cv-00664, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.

Oct 16

4 min

Paul, Weiss is advising General Atlantic in its all-cash take-private acquisition of European Wax Center, Inc., a leading franchisor and operator of out-of-home body waxing services in the United States. Under the agreement, General Atlantic, which initially invested in European Wax Center in 2018 and owns 42% of its common stock, will acquire all outstanding shares of Class A common stock that it doesn’t already own. European Wax Center shareholders will receive $5.80 per share in cash for an implied equity value of approximately $330 million. The transaction, announced on February 10, is expected to close in mid-2026, subject to customary closing conditions. The Paul, Weiss team is led by corporate partners Matthew Abbott and Cullen Sinclair, and includes partners Suhan Shim, Charles Pesant, Chris Cummings, Conrad van Loggerenberg and David Sobel, and counsel Bathiya Sheriffdeen and Matthew Burton; tax partner Lindsay Parks; executive compensation partner Jarrett Hoffman; antitrust partner Ross Ferguson and counsel Todd Hahn; and litigation partners Andre Bouchard and Andrew Gordon, and counsel Audrey Paquet.

Feb 10

1 min

A Florida state court judge Wednesday paused his order compelling a Russian businessman with alleged financial ties to Donald Trump's Truth Social platform to respond to a subpoena in the lawsuit over taking the company public, saying the act of producing documents could constitute irreparable harm. During a hearing in Sarasota County, Florida, court, Circuit Judge Hunter W. Carroll denied Anton Postolnikov's motion to reconsider a prior ruling to produce documents related to the merger of the special purpose acquisition company and Trump Media & Technology Group Corp., but granted him a stay until Nov. 23 to allow a state appellate court to rule on the order. Postolnikov, who isn't a party to the case, was ordered by Judge Carroll on Sept. 24 to produce documents and communications related to several defendants in the lawsuit. Postolnikov challenged the order on the grounds that it would violate his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination, saying he successfully asserted that right in a federal criminal investigation related to insider trading. Postolnikov hasn't been charged with a crime. "I do not believe that there's a problem for Mr. Postolnikov as to the irreparable harm," Judge Carroll said. "If the court is wrong and the Fifth Amendment does apply to the act of producing these documents, at least those that I said had to be produced, then that itself would constitute irreparable harm. So, he has met that." Trump Media brought the Sarasota County lawsuit in February 2024, claiming the merger with special purpose acquisition company Digital World Acquisition Corp. was delayed and incurred unnecessary costs after Digital World's then-CEO Patrick Orlando tried to enrich himself by threatening to block the process though his company Arc Global Investments II LLC. Other defendants in the lawsuit include investors Andrew Litinsky, Wesley Moss and United Atlantic Ventures LLC. In a motion, Postolnikov asked Judge Carroll to reconsider or stay the order, saying any materials he produces could be acquired by the government in its insider trading investigation related to DWAC after he already invoked his Fifth Amendment rights. An FBI search warrant affidavit filed in December 2023 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island said Postolnikov was a DWAC investor and liquidated most of his holdings in October 2021, receiving more than $22 million in profit. Postolnikov said in his motion that he intends to appeal the order to Florida's Second District Court of Appeal for certiorari relief, saying the order departed "from the essential requirements of the law." Mark R. Zimmerman of Zimmerman & Zimmerman, representing Postolnikov, argued at the hearing that the act of producing documents could be considered "testimonial" and trigger his client's Fifth Amendment rights. Producing the records could lead to further escalation of demands for information from the federal government and cause irreparable harm, Zimmerman added. "The act of production may have some testimonial qualities sufficient to trigger Fifth Amendment protection when the production explicitly or implicitly conveys some statement of fact," Zimmerman said. "Specifically, an act of production could qualify as testimonial, conceding the existence, possession or control and authenticity of the docs intended to incriminate the producing party." Whitney C. Cloud of DLA Piper, representing Trump Media, said Postolnikov can't show irreparable harm, arguing that the order departed from the essential requirements of the law. Cloud referenced an exception to the Fifth Amendment privilege known as the forgone conclusion doctrine, or when producing documents reveals information that the government already knows. She added that Postolnikov hasn't denied there are communications between him and Orlando, and has already produced evidence those communications occurred. "We don't have to wonder," Cloud said. "We know that there were communications between and Mr. Orlando and Mr. Postolnikov." Judge Carroll said if the Second District Court of Appeal doesn't extend the stay any further, Postolnikov would be required to produce documents by Nov. 24. He encouraged Postolnikov not to delay filing his appeal in order to give the appellate court enough time for a ruling. Cloud said Postolnikov's records would be critical to upcoming depositions before the Nov. 21 deadline for the close of fact discovery in the case. Judge Carroll said he would consider reopening discovery. "If he has to produce documents and there's no further stay by the Second District and those documents shed light that fundamentally changes the world, then we can talk about reopening targeted discovery," Judge Carroll said. "But I think this is the only way that I, given the rights Mr. Postolnikov has, given the Second District's time, I think this is where it really needs to go." Trump Media is represented by Christopher G. Oprison, Tal Aburos, Caryn G. Schechtman, Eric Forni, Ronald N. Brown III, Josh Halpern, Whitney C. Cloud, Charles J. Hamilton and Steven M. Rosato of DLA Piper, Steven D. Hutton, Przemyslaw L. Dominko and Tyler B. Stall of Hutton Dominko & Stall PLLC, and Samuel J. Salario Jr., Jason B. Gonzalez and Mathew D. Gutierrez of Lawson Huck Gonzalez PLLC. ARC Global Investments II is represented by Morgan R. Bentley of Bentley Goodrich Kison and Christopher King, Andrew Vitali III and Kevin P. Jacobs of Homer Bonner Jacobs Ortiz. Orlando is represented by Adam L. Schwartz, Jeanah Park and Andrew T. Figueroa of Vedder Price PC. United Atlantic Ventures, Wesley Moss and Andrew Litinsky are represented by Benjamin A. Butzin-Dozier and Christopher J. Clark of Clark Smith Villazor LLP, and Todd R. Legon and William F. Rhodes of Legon Fodiman PA. Postolnikov is represented by Douglas R. Jensen of Sher Tremonte LLP and Mark R. Zimmerman of Zimmerman & Zimmerman. The case is Trump Media & Technology Group Corp. et al. v. Arc Global Investments II LLC et al., case number 2024-CA-001061-NC, in the Twelfth Judicial Circuit Court of the State of Florida.

Oct 1

4 min

A Russian businessman tied to the former CEO of the entity that merged with Donald Trump's Truth Social urged a Florida state court judge to reconsider an order compelling him to produce records in a lawsuit over taking the company public, saying it violates his Fifth Amendment rights. In a motion filed Friday in Sarasota County, Florida, state court, Anton Postolnikov urged Judge Hunter W. Carroll to reconsider an order compelling him to comply with a subpoena request to produce documents and communications related to Trump Media & Technology Group Corp., its investors and Patrick Orlando, the former CEO of Digital World Acquisition Corp., the special purpose acquisition company that merged with Trump's company to take it public. Postolnikov, who has not been charged with a crime, stated in his motion that the ruling conflicts with his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination that he invoked in a federal criminal investigation over insider trading, and that Judge Carroll should stay the order because he intends to file a petition for review by a state appellate court. "As discussed at length in his Opposition to the Motion to Compel, the DOJ is conducting a criminal investigation of potential insider trading in the shares of DWAC, and that investigation has already led to the convictions of three other individuals," Postolnikov's motion stated. "Mr. Postolnikov himself has received a Grand Jury subpoena and SEC subpoena, as to which he successfully asserted his Fifth Amendment rights. To the extent those rights are now overcome by the plaintiffs in this civil litigation, any materials produced would be reachable by criminal investigators through issuance of a Grand Jury subpoena." TMTG brought the Sarasota County lawsuit in February 2024, alleging Orlando and his company, Arc Global Investments II LLC, threatened to block the merger as a way to enrich themselves at the eleventh hour. TMTG says Orlando's actions resulted in lengthy delays in the merger process and imposed massive costs. The lawsuit lists defendants that include investors Adam Litinsky, Wesley Moss and United Atlantic Ventures LLC. On Wednesday, Judge Carroll granted TMTG's motion to compel Postolnikov to produce all documents and communications regarding Orlando, Moss, Litinsky, DWAC, UAV and others. In addition, the judge ordered Postolnikov to produce "letters of intent, memorandums of understanding, and any other agreements or contracts between or among" several entities, including DWAC, Arc II and UAV. In December 2023, an FBI affidavit for a search warrant application filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island listed Postolnikov as a Russian citizen living in Miami who knows Orlando and was an investor in DWAC. The affidavit added that Postolnikov liquidated most of his DWAC holdings in October 2021 and received more than a $22 million profit. The affidavit was filed in the criminal case of Bruce Garelick, a Florida securities trader who received a 28-month sentence in November 2024 after a New York federal jury convicted him of illegally profiting from his stake in DWAC and tipping off others in connection to a Trump Media insider trading scheme. Jonathan Bach, Garelick's lawyer, blamed Marc Wachter, an insurance salesman who had testified in the trial under an immunity agreement, for providing tips on the pending plans to take Truth Social public. Bach said Postolnikov was among those Wachter tipped off. TMTG owns Truth Social, Trump's media concern, and while the president's name came up frequently at Garelick's trial, Trump has no significant ties to the case. In his motion, Postolnikov said he received subpoenas from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and a grand jury, but successfully asserted his Fifth Amendment rights. Any materials he would be required to produce as a result of Judge Carroll's order could be acquired by criminal investigators. "Indeed, without a stay of the Order, Mr. Postolnikov faces an impossible choice between losing his Fifth Amendment rights and risking civil contempt for failure to comply with the Court's Order," Postolnikov said. Prior to Judge Carroll's ruling, TMTG opposed Postolnikov's objections, saying in a Sept. 5 filing he gave boilerplate responses to the subpoena and that the court should compel him to provide specific answers. During a meeting between the parties, TMTG stated in the filing that Postolnikov's counsel took the extraordinary position that merely sifting through documents "would itself constitute a testimonial act implicating Postolnikov's Fifth Amendment rights." "Postolnikov's wholesale assertion of the Fifth Amendment privilege is both procedurally and substantively improper and should be rejected," TMTG said. "Instead, the privilege must be asserted with specificity, demonstrating a 'real and substantial hazard of self-incrimination' for each individual request." A hearing for Postolnikov's motion to reconsider or stay is scheduled for Oct. 1 before Judge Carroll in Sarasota. Counsel representing the parties did not immediately respond to emailed requests for comment Monday. Trump Media is represented by Christopher G. Oprison, Tal Aburos, Caryn G. Schechtman, Eric Forni, Ronald N. Brown III, Josh Halpern, Whitney C. Cloud, Charles J. Hamilton and Steven M. Rosato of DLA Piper, Steven D. Hutton, Przemyslaw L. Dominko and Tyler B. Stall of Hutton Dominko & Stall PLLC and Samuel J. Salario Jr., Jason B. Gonzalez and Mathew D. Gutierrez of Lawson Huck Gonzalez PLLC. Postolnikov is represented by Douglas R. Jensen of Sher Tremonte LLP and Mark R. Zimmerman of Zimmerman and Zimmerman. ARC Global Investments II is represented by Morgan R. Bentley of Bentley Goodrich Kison, Christopher King, Andrew Vitali III and Kevin P. Jacobs of Homer Bonner Jacobs Ortiz. Orlando is represented by Adam L. Schwartz, Jeanah Park and Andrew T. Figueroa of Vedder Price PC. United Atlantic Ventures, Wesley Moss and Andrew Litinsky are represented by Benjamin A. Butzin-Dozier and Christopher J. Clark of Clark Smith Villazor LLP and Todd R. Legon and William F. Rhodes of Legon Fodiman & Sudduth PA. The case is Trump Media & Technology Group Corp. et al. v. ARC Global Investments II LLC et al., case number 2024 CA 001061, in the Twelfth Judicial Circuit Court of the State of Florida.

Sep 29

5 min

A Florida state court judge Wednesday paused his order compelling a Russian businessman with alleged financial ties to Donald Trump's Truth Social platform to respond to a subpoena in the lawsuit over taking the company public, saying the act of producing documents could constitute irreparable harm. During a hearing in Sarasota County, Florida, court, Circuit Judge Hunter W. Carroll denied Anton Postolnikov's motion to reconsider a prior ruling to produce documents related to the merger of the special purpose acquisition company and Trump Media & Technology Group Corp., but granted him a stay until Nov. 23 to allow a state appellate court to rule on the order. Postolnikov, who isn't a party to the case, was ordered by Judge Carroll on Sept. 24 to produce documents and communications related to several defendants in the lawsuit. Postolnikov challenged the order on the grounds that it would violate his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination, saying he successfully asserted that right in a federal criminal investigation related to insider trading. Postolnikov hasn't been charged with a crime. "I do not believe that there's a problem for Mr. Postolnikov as to the irreparable harm," Judge Carroll said. "If the court is wrong and the Fifth Amendment does apply to the act of producing these documents, at least those that I said had to be produced, then that itself would constitute irreparable harm. So, he has met that." Trump Media brought the Sarasota County lawsuit in February 2024, claiming the merger with special purpose acquisition company Digital World Acquisition Corp. was delayed and incurred unnecessary costs after Digital World's then-CEO Patrick Orlando tried to enrich himself by threatening to block the process though his company Arc Global Investments II LLC. Other defendants in the lawsuit include investors Andrew Litinsky, Wesley Moss and United Atlantic Ventures LLC. In a motion, Postolnikov asked Judge Carroll to reconsider or stay the order, saying any materials he produces could be acquired by the government in its insider trading investigation related to DWAC after he already invoked his Fifth Amendment rights. An FBI search warrant affidavit filed in December 2023 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island said Postolnikov was a DWAC investor and liquidated most of his holdings in October 2021, receiving more than $22 million in profit. Postolnikov said in his motion that he intends to appeal the order to Florida's Second District Court of Appeal for certiorari relief, saying the order departed "from the essential requirements of the law." Mark R. Zimmerman of Zimmerman & Zimmerman, representing Postolnikov, argued at the hearing that the act of producing documents could be considered "testimonial" and trigger his client's Fifth Amendment rights. Producing the records could lead to further escalation of demands for information from the federal government and cause irreparable harm, Zimmerman added. "The act of production may have some testimonial qualities sufficient to trigger Fifth Amendment protection when the production explicitly or implicitly conveys some statement of fact," Zimmerman said. "Specifically, an act of production could qualify as testimonial, conceding the existence, possession or control and authenticity of the docs intended to incriminate the producing party." Whitney C. Cloud of DLA Piper, representing Trump Media, said Postolnikov can't show irreparable harm, arguing that the order departed from the essential requirements of the law. Cloud referenced an exception to the Fifth Amendment privilege known as the forgone conclusion doctrine, or when producing documents reveals information that the government already knows. She added that Postolnikov hasn't denied there are communications between him and Orlando, and has already produced evidence those communications occurred. "We don't have to wonder," Cloud said. "We know that there were communications between and Mr. Orlando and Mr. Postolnikov." Judge Carroll said if the Second District Court of Appeal doesn't extend the stay any further, Postolnikov would be required to produce documents by Nov. 24. He encouraged Postolnikov not to delay filing his appeal in order to give the appellate court enough time for a ruling. Cloud said Postolnikov's records would be critical to upcoming depositions before the Nov. 21 deadline for the close of fact discovery in the case. Judge Carroll said he would consider reopening discovery. "If he has to produce documents and there's no further stay by the Second District and those documents shed light that fundamentally changes the world, then we can talk about reopening targeted discovery," Judge Carroll said. "But I think this is the only way that I, given the rights Mr. Postolnikov has, given the Second District's time, I think this is where it really needs to go." Trump Media is represented by Christopher G. Oprison, Tal Aburos, Caryn G. Schechtman, Eric Forni, Ronald N. Brown III, Josh Halpern, Whitney C. Cloud, Charles J. Hamilton and Steven M. Rosato of DLA Piper, Steven D. Hutton, Przemyslaw L. Dominko and Tyler B. Stall of Hutton Dominko & Stall PLLC, and Samuel J. Salario Jr., Jason B. Gonzalez and Mathew D. Gutierrez of Lawson Huck Gonzalez PLLC. ARC Global Investments II is represented by Morgan R. Bentley of Bentley Goodrich Kison and Christopher King, Andrew Vitali III and Kevin P. Jacobs of Homer Bonner Jacobs Ortiz. Orlando is represented by Adam L. Schwartz, Jeanah Park and Andrew T. Figueroa of Vedder Price PC. United Atlantic Ventures, Wesley Moss and Andrew Litinsky are represented by Benjamin A. Butzin-Dozier and Christopher J. Clark of Clark Smith Villazor LLP, and Todd R. Legon and William F. Rhodes of Legon Fodiman PA. Postolnikov is represented by Douglas R. Jensen of Sher Tremonte LLP and Mark R. Zimmerman of Zimmerman & Zimmerman. The case is Trump Media & Technology Group Corp. et al. v. Arc Global Investments II LLC et al., case number 2024-CA-001061-NC, in the Twelfth Judicial Circuit Court of the State of Florida.

Oct 1

4 min