Empire State Building owners sued over REIT plan

Empire State Realty Trust, which controls the Empire State Building, has been sued over its plan to become a real estate investment trust, Bloomberg News reported.

Today, investor Leon Meyers filed suit in New York State Supreme Court, accusing the entity, in which he has an equity interest, of breach of fiduciary duty.

According to the complaint, the suit alleges that Empire State Realty Trust and Malkin Holdings “fail to provide the participants with material information sufficient to allow them to make informed decisions,” about the deal, and that “defendants failed to consider reasonable alternatives to the proposed transaction.”

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Last month the realty trust announced its plan to raise as much as $1 billion in an initial public offering and become a REIT.

Two partnerships, led by Peter Malkin and his son Anthony Malkin, own the 102-story tower in conjunction with the estate of Leona Helmsley. [Bloomberg]