L.L. Bean scion Linda Bean sued for alleged nonpayment of commission

A scion of the founder of L.L. Bean is facing a lawsuit over the alleged nonpayment of a commission of a building.

Linda Bean, the 82-year-old granddaughter of the founder of L.L. Bean, is being sued by prominent Maine commercial real estate firm The Boulos Co. for allegedly not paying a $228,000 commission on the sale of the 24,000-square-foot building at 35 Main Street in Freeport’s downtown shopping district, The Portland Press Herald reported.  

The building houses a Gap factory store and an American Eagle outlet and is situated near L.L. Bean Inc.’s retail campus and Linda Bean’s Maine Kitchen and Topside Tavern.

Bean and Boulos had a representation agreement in 2019 for the sale of that building and an adjacent building, 39 Main Street, which houses a Banana Republic store, the outlet reported, citing the complaint. 

The agreement stipulated that Bean would pay Boulos a 4% commission if the building was sold to Bean herself, a related entity, or the Freeport Historical Society. However, Boulos alleges that Bean, through her company “35 Main A & B, Freeport LLC,” purchased the property in December 2022 for $5.7 million but did not pay the commission.

Boulos argues that Bean has been unjustly enriched by benefiting from their work without fulfilling the payment obligation. The lawsuit was filed on June 1 in Cumberland County Superior Court. Public records confirm the purchase of the property by 35 Main A & B, Freeport LLC, although the specific sale price is undisclosed.

Many of the dispute’s details remain unclear — including the reasons behind Bean’s alleged sale of the property to a company under her control, the application of the commission to a purchase by the Freeport Historical Society, and the potential commission Boulos could have received if the property had been sold to another buyer. 

Attempts to reach Bean for comment were unsuccessful, according to the outlet, and Boulos declined to discuss the case, according to the Portland Press Herald.

The Boulos Co., headquartered in Portland, is known for brokering major commercial sales in Maine since its founding in 1975. It has represented significant properties, including 201 Federal Street, a forthcoming 18-story apartment building in Portland. 

The firm previously worked with Linda Bean in 2010 when she purchased a building on 88 Main St., which now houses her Maine Kitchen and Topside Tavern.

Linda Bean gained national attention in 2017 when her political contributions supporting former President Donald Trump’s election campaign exceeded the allowed limit, leading to a boycott of L.L. Bean Inc. She was an unsuccessful Republican candidate for Maine’s 1st Congressional District in the 1988 and 1992 elections.

— Ted Glanzer