Memoryten, Inc. v. Silicon Mountain Holdings

92 F. Supp. 3d 176, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 31970, 2015 WL 1176172
CourtDistrict Court, S.D. New York
DecidedMarch 16, 2015
DocketNo. 14 Civ. 635(KPF)
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 92 F. Supp. 3d 176 (Memoryten, Inc. v. Silicon Mountain Holdings) 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
Memoryten, Inc. v. Silicon Mountain Holdings, 92 F. Supp. 3d 176, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 31970, 2015 WL 1176172 (S.D.N.Y. 2015).

Opinion

OPINION AND ORDER

KATHERINE POLK FAILLA, District Judge.

Plaintiff MemoryTen, Inc. (“MemoryTen”) brought this action against Defendants Silicon Mountain Holdings, Inc. (“Silicon”), Silicon Mountain Memory (“SMM”), WayTech, LLC (“WayTech”), and the LV Defendants (defined infra). After proceeding for several years in the United States District Court for the District of Colorado, the case was transferred to this District. Plaintiff alleges breach of contract, unfair competition, and unjust enrichment — under theories of direct liability, alter-ego liability, and agency liability — and seeks damages and declaratory and injunctive relief. The LV Defendants move for summary judgment on all claims, and WayTech moves to dismiss the Complaint for failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted. For the reasons set forth in this Opinion, both motions are granted.

BACKGROUND1

A. Factual Background

1. The Parties

This ease arises from a series of transactions involving Silicon, a Colorado corporation that is involved in the sale of computer memory products. In 2007, Silicon acquired all outstanding and issued stock of a predecessor corporation, SMM, and its subsidiary, VCI Systems, Inc. (LV Def. 56.1 ¶ 14). As part of this transaction, Silicon also acquired the outstanding debt of SMM to certain of the LV Defendants; thereafter, it entered into a separate agreement with the LV Defendants that is described in more detail below. (Id.).

The LV Defendants are a group of five companies that operate in tandem. (Compl. ¶ 9). The four investment companies beneath this umbrella are Lauras Master Fund, Ltd., a Cayman Islands corporation (id. at ¶ 5); Lauras Capital Man[180]*180agement, LLC, a private investment adviser incorporated in Delaware that provides investment management for Lauras Master Fund (id. at ¶ 6); Valens Capital Management, LLC, a private investment adviser incorporated in Delaware (id. at ¶ 7); and Valens Investment Advisers, L.P., a limited partnership organized under the laws of Delaware (id. at ¶ 8). LV Administrative Services, Inc. is a Delaware corporation that acts as the administrative and collateral agent to the other four companies. (Id. at ¶ 4). All five companies are engaged in the same business, have the same ownership and management, and operate out of the same New York office. (Id. at ¶ 9).

Defendant WayTech is a Missouri limited liability company “in the business of selling computer equipment, software, and parts.” (Compl. ¶ 14). In 2011, WayTech purchased Silicon from the LV Defendants.

Plaintiff MemoryTen, a California corporation, “is a manufacturer, distributor and reseller of various computer components/modules, both domestically and internationally.” (Compl. ¶ 3).

2. The LV Defendants’ Loans to Silicon

On September 25, 2006, SMM entered into a “Security and Purchase Agreement” (Regan Deck Ex. 2), by which a subset of the LV Defendants agreed to loan up to $8.5 million to SMM. (LV Def. 56.1 ¶ 14(a)). The Security and Purchase Agreement, among its other terms, granted the LV Defendants a first priority lien upon all of the assets of SMM. (Security and Purchase Agreement § 6(a)).

On August 28, 2007, Silicon acquired all issued and outstanding stock of SMM. (LV Def. 56.1 ¶ 14(b)). In connection with this transaction, Silicon entered into a Master Security Agreement, Joinder Agreement, and Guaranty (collectively, with the Security and Purchase Agreement, the “Loan Documents”) with the LV Defendants. (Id.). The Master Security Agreement (Regan Decl. Ex. 3), which is governed by New York law (id. at ¶ 10), similarly granted the LV Defendants a first priority lien and security interest in all of the assets of Silicon (id. at ¶ 1). The Master Security Agreement provided that Silicon would “not, without the Purchasers’ prior written consent, sell, exchange, lease or otherwise dispose of any Collateral” (id. at ¶ 3(g)), and that it would as well “keep its Collateral free and clear of all ... encumbrances of any kind and nature,” except for certain limited (and not relevant) exceptions (id. at ¶ 3(e)). It further provided that, in an Event of Default, the LV Defendants would have the remedies available to a secured party under the Uniform Commercial Code (the “UCC”) in effect in New York (id. at ¶ 5).2 As part of these transactions, the LV Defendants also gained substantial common stock (though never exceeding 9.99% of Silicon’s total outstanding stock (Regan Deck ¶ 8)), along with warrants to obtain additional common stock that were not exercised (LV Def. 56.1 Response ¶ 1).

3. The Subscription Agreement

Beginning in or around 2007, Silicon began purchasing products for resale from MemoryTen. (PI. 56.1 ¶ 6). Silicon initially incurred an unpaid balance of $89,284, in satisfaction of which it gave MemoryTen 89,284 shares of common stock. (Id.). [181]*181Through 2008, Silicon continued to purchase products from MemoryTen, incurring by August 2008 an unpaid balance of $500,000. (Id. at ¶ 8). Silicon and Memo-ryTen entered into discussions over how to settle this debt, eventually arriving at the Subscription Agreement (Olsen Decl. Ex. A), which was signed on August 12, 2008.3

The Subscription Agreement provided MemoryTen with two primary benefits. First, MemoryTen received $500,000 worth of common stock. (Subscription Agreement ¶¶ 1.1, 1.2, 2.1).4 Second — and more significantly for the purposes of this litigation — the Subscription Agreement provided MemoryTen a first option and right to acquire Silicon’s Memory Component Distribution Business (the “Distribution Business”) under certain circumstances. (Id, at ¶¶ 8.1-8.4).

Under Paragraph 8.1, “[s]ubject to the rights of’ the LV Defendants under the Loan Documents, MemoryTen would have “the first option and right to acquire all of the shares in [Silicon] from [Silicon] at a price mutually agreed upon by the parties by the process outlined in Paragraph 8.4.” (Subscription Agreement ¶ 8.1). These rights would be triggered if Silicon entered into a “Corporate Transaction” (defined as an acquisition, sale, or transfer of Silicon or substantially all of its assets), for an amount less than $6 million, pursuant to the approval of Silicon’s Board of Directors and stockholders holding at least 50% of its voting stock. (Id.). Paragraph 8.1 further provided that the LV Defendants would not “unreasonably withhold consent or approval, and [would] not unreasonably withhold any related waiver, under the [Loan] Documents.” (Id.).

Under Paragraph 8.2, again “[s]ubject to the rights of’ the LV Defendants under the Loan Documents, MemoryTen would have the first option and right to acquire the Distribution Business if Silicon were to offer it for sale. (Subscription Agreement ¶ 8.2). The sale would take place “at a price mutually agreed upon by the parties hereto by the process outlined in Paragraph 8.4,” and again the LV Defendants would not “unreasonably withhold consent or approval, and [would] not unreasonably withhold any related waiver, under the [Loan] Documents.” (Id.).

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Bluebook (online)
92 F. Supp. 3d 176, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 31970, 2015 WL 1176172, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/memoryten-inc-v-silicon-mountain-holdings-nysd-2015.