A 2023 lawsuit that alleged Ryan Serhant’s brokerage and two of its real estate agents stole trade secrets and violated their contracts with their former employer was dismissed.
It marks another win for Serhant, as it continues expanding across the country. In November, a judge dismissed a $10 million lawsuit filed in 2023 against the celebrity broker and his brokerage over its expansion into Philadelphia.
That lawsuit was filed about the same time that Palm Beach Gardens-based Sutter & Nugent sued Serhant Florida, Matthew Moser and Nicholas Gonzalez.
The firm, led by President Talbot Sutter, said in a complaint submitted in May 2023 that it invested a “substantial amount of money” in setting up an office in Boca Raton where Moser and Gonzalez were based. Two months earlier, in March of that year, Moser and Gonzalez notified Sutter that they were leaving the brokerage. The brokerage alleged it tried to keep both agents, but once Sutter & Nugent found out the agents had been soliciting other agents and staff, it terminated agreements with both agents.
Court records show Sutter & Nugent voluntarily dismissed the lawsuit with prejudice, which means it can’t be retried in court. The motion, filed earlier this month, cites the parties’ settlement agreement, with each side covering its attorneys’ fees and costs.
Ryan Serhant, founder and CEO of New York-based Serhant, said he was “satisfied” with the outcome. He said the firms did not have a monetary settlement. Serhant, Moser and Gonzalez had denied the allegations outlined in the complaint. The agents’ attorney said two years ago that they didn’t have non-compete agreements, so they had the right to leave Sutter & Nugent.
“We stood by our position from the start,” Serhant said. “We’ve always maintained that our actions, in all of our business dealings, are in line with our values.”
Sutter & Nugent and its attorneys did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Serhant has been expanding in South Florida since opening up shop in the region in 2023. It recently opened an office in Naples. The firm is leading sales and marketing for a handful of condo projects, including Michael Stern’s Mercedes-Benz Places in Miami’s Brickell.
Ryan Serhant is said to be representing the buyer in what’s expected to be a record-setting deal in Palm Beach once it closes, though he has not confirmed his involvement. Billionaire beauty heir William Lauder is selling his 2.3-acre oceanfront assemblage, asking $177.8 million.
“Palm Beach is the greatest thing that’s been invented in real estate,” Serhant said last week, from Palm Beach.
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