Ryan Serhant notched a legal win in his quest for growth along the East Coast.
A judge last week dismissed a $10 million lawsuit against the celebrity broker and his eponymous brokerage over its expansion into Philadelphia, the Philadelphia Business Journal first reported.
Keller Williams Black Label and its parent company, the Condo Shop, sued Serhant and his four-year-old firm in April 2023, accusing them of attempting to “loot” the franchise by “plundering its clients, intellectual property, confidential information and personnel, while crippling its ability to operate,” according to the complaint.
In her decision, Judge Paula Patrick pushed back against the plaintiffs’ assertions and said the plaintiffs “have not provided evidence of what their damages are, or of a causal link between Defendants’ actions and any damages.”
Patrick dismissed the claims, which included, among others, breach of contract and misappropriation of trade secrets, with prejudice.
Black Label’s attorney Lewis Schlossberg told Inman they plan to appeal the decision.
The lawsuit was filed about a month after former managing partner Andrea Desy Edrei left Black Label to lead Serhant’s team in Pennsylvania, along with the firm’s former marketing director Michael Skokowski and marketing coordinator Kailey Bondiskey. Skokowski is the team’s head of operations and Bondiskey is the head of creative. The trio were also named as defendants in the lawsuit.
Black Label and Condo Shop initially sought to block the firm from continuing its operations in the state with a preliminary injunction, arguing the firm was using its proprietary materials to set up shop and had “sabotaged” its social media accounts.
But the judge rejected their bid, allowing the firm to move ahead with their business alongside the case.
A spokesperson for Serhant declined to comment on the lawsuit. An attorney for Edrei, Brondiskey and Skokowski told the Business Journal that the group could now “focus on what they do best — selling real estate.”
As the brokerage expanded into new territory, lawsuits followed, including cases filed in South Florida and Connecticut. The suits make similar claims against the firm, arguing it poached agents and stole trade secrets to plant its stake in the region.
Serhant launched its East Coast expansion last April and has since planted its flag in markets in eight states across the seaboard, including Georgia, New Jersey and the Carolinas, with 700 agents nationwide.
Its latest additions include a 10-person team in the Hudson Valley, the firm’s first foothold in the upstate enclave, and a seven-agent cohort in New Jersey, boosting its presence in the state alongside a Bergen County father-daughter duo.
Correction: This article has been updated to reflect Skokowski is the head of operations and Bondiskey the head of creative for the team, not the state.
— Sheridan Wall
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