Special Counsel Megan Reilly secured a significant win for a pro bono client, a survivor of domestic violence whose abuser has continued to harass her through litigation.
The plaintiff is our client’s former partner, who subjected her to physical, emotional, and psychological abuse. They were domestic partners from approximately 2003 to 2021 and have two children, who were 14 and 17 when the action was filed. In 2021, our client obtained an order of protection prohibiting the plaintiff from contacting her and an order of sole legal and primary physical custody of her minor children, which he has attempted to violate several times.
Unable to see or speak directly to our client and with no parenting time with the children, the plaintiff filed this action. He alleged that she breached an agreement that the two would purchase a home using a joint investment account and that, if they did not purchase the home, the money he transferred into the joint account would be returned to him in full.
Megan moved to dismiss on two grounds: the complaint does not plead a valid, enforceable contract, and it fails to meet basic pleading requirements. The New York Supreme Court ordered a total dismissal of the claims, ending the case against our client.