CONTACT US
Share: Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on LinkedIn I recommend visiting cushmanwakefield.com to read:%0A%0A {0} %0A%0A {1}
wine glasses (image) Restaurant glasses (image)

Stories

The Palms Restaurants

A dispute between members of the families owning the Palm focused on improper transactions concerning the use of intellectual property (IP).
 

01 The Opportunity

A dispute between members of the families owning the Palm focused on improper transactions concerning the use of intellectual property (IP). First opened in 1929 by John Ganzi and Pio Bozzi, the restaurant started expanding in the ‘70’s under the direction of two members of a later generation – Bruce Bozzi Sr. and Walter Ganzi Jr. – and now operates approximately 25 restaurants throughout the U.S.

 

The Plaintiffs told the court that Bozzi Sr. and Ganzi Jr. caused Just One More Restaurant Corporation (JOMR), the entity that the families own together, to license the Palm IP at a below market rate. Each new restaurant paid a flat fee of $6,000 per year instead of a royalty calculated as a percentage of sales, which effectively cut the Minority Shareholder family members out of their rightful share of profits.

 

How do you determine a reasonable royalty rate? How much should be paid to license a well-known, 90-year-old business name and its trade dress (the signature look and feel of the product)? What is the proper structure for the payment of a licensing fee?

02 The Solution

The DALS team of Pamela O’Neill and David Benick prepared an expert report and delivered testimony that led to a groundbreaking ruling issued in the Supreme Court of the State of New York regarding the appropriate valuation method to calculate lost royalties.

Pam and David supported their reasonable royalty rate opinion for use of the Palm IP by examining a variety of qualitative factors and evaluating market evidence from the acquisitions of comparable premium steakhouse companies.

The Cushman & Wakefield team was able to present the analysis skillfully and persuasively. The Judge cited Pam as an “experienced valuation authority” and relied entirely on her analysis and testimony and declined to rely on the testimony and opinions of the valuation experts put forth by the Defendants. The Court found Pam’s testimony credible, her analysis of comparable steakhouse restaurants valid, and her assumptions and conclusions supported.

03 The Results

Based on the team’s findings, the judge awarded more than $116 million in lost royalties, rent and interest to our clients.

This result demonstrates the value of collaboration and our multi-disciplinary approach, which is the foundation of the DALS practice. The group has become a true litigation support practice with broad reach and capabilities in business valuation and damages extending beyond real estate related issues.

As the legal case law evolves in how best to assess damages when the appropriate royalty rate is in question, our team has helped set a legal precedent for matters involving disputes concerning intellectual property.

MEET THE TEAM

GWS_Leadership_NOELLE-PERKINS.jpg
Noelle Perkins

Executive Vice President, Chief Legal Officer & Corporate Secretary


Download VCard

victor, deboer, oakland, ca, executive director
Victor DeBoer

Executive Director
Oakland, United States


Download VCard

FEATURED STORIES

Cushman & Wakefield’s Perth Office Fit-Out 1.jpg
Cushman & Wakefield’s Perth Office • Office
Learn More
AXA XL Sydney - INTERMAIN_28_123pitt_010.jpg
AXA XL • Banking & Finance services
Learn More
Torre-Llacuna_webcard.jpg
Torre Llacuna • Real Estate
Cushman & Wakefield guided Principal through a complete repositioning strategy focused on creating a future-proof building.
Learn more
Torre-Llacuna_webcard.jpg
Torre Llacuna • Real Estate
Cushman & Wakefield guided Principal through a complete repositioning strategy focused on creating a future-proof building.
Learn more
Kauri CAB
Kauri CAB Group • Retail & Shopping Centre
Groundbreaking: The outdated Forum Troisdorf shopping centre near Bonn will become a leisure and event location with a completely new concept. 
Read the Success Story
Software company
Hamburg Software Firm • Information Technology
The new office of a growing technology company in Hamburg was required to be bright, inviting and spacious. For the property search, planning and design of the office space, the company relied entirely on our many years of expertise in project management and interior design. 
Read the Success Story

FEATURED SERVICES

Integrated Facilities Management (IFM)
Transforming Facility Management with flexible, scalable solutions
Learn More
Portfolio Intelligence
Our Total Workplace experts will help you create a foundational strategy that positions you for what’s next to meet your business goals.
Learn More
Integrated Portfolio Management (IPM)
Look to our Integrated Portfolio Management team to take a holistic approach to creating portfolio solutions for your business.
Learn More
Capital Markets

We make more deals by accessing more investors, creating more connections and providing exclusive, local insights. We relentlessly make opportunities for our clients. Every day. All over the world.

Learn More
Project & Development Services
Aligning with client culture and goals to shape the built environment together.
Learn More
Valuation & Advisory - Self Storage
Take your Self Storage assets to the next level with Cushman & Wakefield’s Self Storage industry experts as your real estate partner.
Learn More
Asset Services
Managing office, retail or industrial property to reduce costs, mitigate risk, and enhance value—while providing superior tenant service.
Learn More
Corporate Capital Markets
Real Estate Strategy, Financial Structuring & Transaction Services for Corporations, Institutions & Organizations
Learn More
National Industrial Advisory Group
An interconnected team that maximizes the value of your industrial investment opportunities.
Learn More
Student Housing
The Student Housing Capital Markets Team is part of Cushman & Wakefield’s national Multifamily Advisory Group, which has unparalleled experience in advising and marketing investment properties to, and for, developers, private owner/operators, REITs, advisory firms and institutions across the country.
Learn More
Agency Leasing
Driving optimized leasing investments.
Learn More
Facilities Services
We are raising the value of facility services by creating safe and exceptional experiences for our clients, their occupants and our employees.
Learn More

CAN'T FIND WHAT YOU'RE LOOKING FOR?

Get in touch with one of our professionals.

With your permission we and our partners would like to use cookies in order to access and record information and process personal data, such as unique identifiers and standard information sent by a device to ensure our website performs as expected, to develop and improve our products, and for advertising and insight purposes.

Alternatively click on More Options and select your preferences before providing or refusing consent. Some processing of your personal data may not require your consent, but you have a right to object to such processing.

You can change your preferences at any time by returning to this site or clicking on  Cookies

More Options
Agree and Close
These cookies ensure that our website performs as expected,for example website traffic load is balanced across our servers to prevent our website from crashing during particularly high usage.
These cookies allow our website to remember choices you make (such as your user name, language or the region you are in) and provide enhanced features. These cookies do not gather any information about you that could be used for advertising or remember where you have been on the internet.
These cookies allow us to work with our marketing partners to understand which ads or links you have clicked on before arriving on our website or to help us make our advertising more relevant to you.
Agree All
Reject All
SAVE SETTINGS