Douglas Elliman Wins $2.25 Millon Lawsuit, With $2.5 Million In Punitive Damages, Against William Raveis Real Estate

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Jun 21, 2017, 16:39 ET

NEW YORK, June 21, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Douglas Elliman Real Estate ("Elliman") announced that yesterday, a jury in New York Supreme Court, Westchester County, returned a $2.25 million verdict, along with an additional $2.5 million in punitive damages, in its favor and against William Raveis Real Estate ("Raveis") and Lisa P. Theiss ("Theiss") in a lawsuit Elliman commenced against Raveis and Theiss, who until 2015 had been managing Elliman's Armonk branch office. After a four-week trial, the jury found that Raveis and Theiss schemed, in early 2015 while Theiss was still Elliman's manager, to unlawfully move a dozen sales agents, including Elliman's four top producers in Armonk, en masse to Raveis's newly opened branch office across the street. The jury found Theiss and Raveis liable for breach of fiduciary duty (Theiss), aiding and abetting breach of fiduciary duty (Raveis), and tortious interference with business relations (both defendants).

"I am extremely pleased that the jury saw fit to rectify the egregious and outrageous actions of William Raveis Real Estate," said Howard M. Lorber, Chairman of Douglas Elliman Realty, LLC. "Such deception does not serve our industry and it is my hope that today's verdict will help deter others from similar practices."

Mark W. Lerner, head of Kasowitz Benson Torres LLP's Employment Litigation Group, said, "This verdict confirms what Elliman had claimed from the outset, that Raveis and Theiss had unlawfully schemed together in an attempt to harm Elliman in Westchester. We are pleased that the jury agreed that their acts were illegal and improper." The Elliman trial team included Kasowitz partners Mark W. Lerner and Jessica T. Rosenberg, assisted by associate Melissa Barahona.

About Douglas Elliman Real Estate
Established in 1911, Douglas Elliman Real Estate is the largest brokerage in the New York Metropolitan area and the fourth largest residential real estate company nationwide. With more than 6,500 agents, the company operates approximately 90 offices in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, New Jersey, Long Island, the Hamptons & North Fork, Westchester, Greenwich, South Florida, Colorado and Beverly Hills. Moreover, Douglas Elliman has a strategic global alliance with London-based Knight Frank Residential for business in the worldwide luxury markets spanning 59 countries and six continents. The company also controls a portfolio of real estate services including Douglas Elliman Development Marketing; Manhattan's largest residential property manager, Douglas Elliman Property Management with over 250 buildings; and DE Commercial. For more information on Douglas Elliman as well as expert commentary on emerging trends in the real estate industry, please visit www.elliman.com.