Levi v. Finesod

878 F. Supp. 9, 1995 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 2280, 1995 WL 94705
CourtDistrict Court, S.D. New York
DecidedFebruary 22, 1995
Docket92 Civ. 9361 (KTD)
StatusPublished

This text of 878 F. Supp. 9 (Levi v. Finesod) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, S.D. New York primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Levi v. Finesod, 878 F. Supp. 9, 1995 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 2280, 1995 WL 94705 (S.D.N.Y. 1995).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM & ORDER

KEVIN THOMAS DUFFY, District Judge:

Plaintiff Roberta Boxer Levi initiated the present diversity action on December 28, 1992. On April 1, 1993, Defendants Herman Finesod, Jackie Fine Arts, Inc. (“Jackie”), Art Masters International (“AMI”), and Second Edition Fine Arts (“Second Edition”) moved for summary judgment pursuant to Rule 56 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. By a memorandum and order dated December 17, 1993, I denied that motion in its entirety. Plaintiff now moves for summary judgment on the issue of liability in favor of Plaintiff and against Defendants.1 By a separate notice of motion, Plaintiff also moves for an order pursuant to Rule 37(b) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure precluding Defendants from offering any evidence or making any defenses or counterclaims against Plaintiff; granting summary judgment against Defendants on the issue of damages, and that it be taken as established that Plaintiffs damages amount to $18,531,-400. Plaintiff additionally requests that Defendants be held in contempt of court, and also be required to pay Plaintiffs attorney’s fees and costs.

For the following reasons, Plaintiffs motion on the issue of liability is granted, while the issue of damages will be referred to Magistrate Judge Buchwald for an inquest. Questions of attorney’s fees and costs will abide the determination of the inquest. The remaining motions are denied.

[11]*11I.

The facts of this case have been set forth at length in my December 17,1993 memorandum and order denying Defendants’ motion for summary judgment. See Levi v. Fine-sod, 1993 WL 535191, at *1 (S.D.N.Y. December 17, 1993). As those same facts form the basis of the present motions, they are restated in part below.

Marina Picasso is the granddaughter and one of the heirs of the reknowned artist Pablo Picasso. In the late 1970’s, Plaintiff introduced some of the Defendants to Marina’s art dealer, who introduced them to Marina’s attorney, who in turn introduced them to Marina Picasso herself.

Paraselenes S.A. is a company in which Marina Picasso maintains an ownership interest. On December 6, 1979, Paraselenes S.A. entered into an agreement with AMI (the “Initial Agreement”) which granted to AMI the rights to reproduction masters of certain Picasso works. Pablo Picasso’s other heirs did not consent to the Initial Agreement, and commenced lawsuits in the United States and France challenging its validity. On October 26, 1980, the heirs agreed to the acquisition of the reproduction masters by AMI, pursuant to a settlement agreement (the “Settlement Agreement”).

On May 20, 1981, Finesod and Jackie entered into an agreement to pay Levi for her services, effective as of January 1, 1979 (the “Agreement”). The Agreement specifically acknowledges that the reproduction masters were acquired as a result of Levi’s services. The Agreement also requires Levi to pay 8% of the legal fees incurred in defending the lawsuits brought by the other heirs over the Initial Agreement. The amount Levi owed for these legal fees could be deducted from Levi’s commissions under the Agreement.

In addition to these findings, I also expressly recognized that, in further opposition to Defendants’ motion, Levi “provided much evidence tending to show that the terms of the contractual arrangements establish that her obligation was to introduce the Moving Defendants to Marina Picasso’s representatives. Indeed, Levi has put forth so much evidence on this issue that it appears that the wrong party has moved for summary judgment.” Finesod, 1993 WL 535191, at *3 (S.D.N.Y. December 17, 1993). I assessed the evidence set forth by Levi as follows:

First, § 1.01 of the Agreement provides that the Moving Defendants “have heretofore and/or may hereafter acquire ownership and/or options to acquire the reproduction or other rights in and to Masters owned by the Picasso Estate” as a result Levi’s introduction of the Moving Defendants to the estate of Pablo Picasso and to Marina Picasso’s representatives.
Second, through § 2.01 of the Agreement, the Moving Defendants again acknowledge that they have acquired and may acquire the rights to the reproduction masters as a result of Levi’s services. Specifically, § 2.01 provides:
Finesod, Jackie, and AMI agree that any and all Picasso Masters heretofore and hereafter acquired by Finesod, Jackie, AMI or any other Entity during the term hereof will have been acquired as a result of the services of [Levi].
Finally, § 3.08 required Levi to pay for part of the legal fees incurred in defending the lawsuits brought by the other Picasso heirs. In fact, the Moving Defendants were permitted to deduct Levi’s share of the legal fees from her commissions. These provisions indicate that the Moving Defendants believed that Levi had performed her obligation, which was to introduce them to the representatives of Marina Picasso. Moreover, these provisions also indicate that the Moving Defendants intended to pay her for her services.
Most importantly, the Moving Defendants agreed to these provisions in the Agreement after the lawsuits initiated by the Picasso heirs were already settled. Thus, these provisions were entered into at a time when all the facts of the alleged non-performance were known to the Moving Defendants. Such a chronology shows that when the Moving Defendants entered into the Agreement they did not then believe that Levi had failed to meet her contractual obligations. Thus, this chronology indicates that Levi’s role was to [12]*12introduce them to the representatives of Marina Picasso and not every Picasso heir.
In addition, Levi also points out that for twelve years, the Moving Defendants performed their obligations and paid Levi approximately $267,000 in commissions. By paying her these commissions, the Moving, Defendants, at least tacitly, conceded that Levi satisfied her contractual obligation, i.e. to introduce them to Marina Picasso’s representatives.

Finesod, 1993 WL 535191, at *3-A (S.D.N.Y. December 17, 1993).

II.

DISCUSSION

Summary judgment is appropriate only where the moving party demonstrates that there exists no genuine issue of material fact, and that the moving party is entitled to summary judgment as a matter of law. See Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(c); Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 250, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 2511, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986). In determining whether a genuine issue of material fact exists, the evidence must be construed and all inferences drawn in favor of the non-moving party. Cable Science Corp. v. Rochdale Village, Inc., 920 F.2d 147, 151 (2d Cir.1990); Williams v. Smith, 781 F.2d 319

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc.
477 U.S. 242 (Supreme Court, 1986)
Cable Science Corporation v. Rochdale Village, Inc.
920 F.2d 147 (Second Circuit, 1990)
Rodgers v. Roulette Records, Inc.
677 F. Supp. 731 (S.D. New York, 1988)
Leasing Service Corp. v. Graham
646 F. Supp. 1410 (S.D. New York, 1986)
Dodds v. Cigna Securities, Inc.
12 F.3d 346 (Second Circuit, 1993)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
878 F. Supp. 9, 1995 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 2280, 1995 WL 94705, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/levi-v-finesod-nysd-1995.