Why Many (If Not Most) Business Fraud Claims Are Dismissed By New York’s Courts July 23, 2009

Yesterday, both the Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg reported that former news anchor Dan Rather’s breach of contract, wrongful termination and fraud lawsuit against his former employer, CBS, has been revived – at least for the time being. Predictably, Mr. Rather was upbeat upon learning that the New York county judge had granted his attorneys leave to amend, or re-plead, his allegations that CBS had somehow been guilty of fraud in reaching their decision to fire him.

If the reported cases on fraud are used as a barometer, his optimism should be short-lived.

Simply put, as noted in our article “How to Prove a Successful Business Fraud Claim,” the specificity with which the fraud allegations must be made – broad-based, general or blunderbuss claims will not suffice – combined with the plaintiff’s significantly heightened burden of proof on a fraud claim, i.e., the assertions must be proved through “clear and convincing evidence,” makes it most likely that his claims (at least insofar as the fraud aspect is concerned) will be dismissed.

Jonathan Cooper is a New York Business Litigation and New York Commercial Litigation Lawyer with a focus on New York breach of contract and New York business fraud claims before the Nassau, Queens, Brooklyn, Bronx, Westchester and Suffolk County courts of New York State. For more information, feel free to contact his Long Island office at 516-791-5700.

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