Private Equity Firms Seek $750 Million in Lawsuit Against Morgan Stanley for Alleged Fraud

Posted on October 13th, 2023 at 11:51 AM

From the desk of Jim Eccleston at Eccleston Law 

Private equity firms Certares Management LLC and Knighthead Capital Management LLC have filed a lawsuit against Morgan Stanley, seeking at least $750 million in damages.

The firms allege that Morgan Stanley fraudulently restructured a deal related to their investment in a credit agreement for a luxury high-speed rail line developed by Brightline Holdings, a company backed by Fortress Investment Group. Brightline Holdings is also named as a defendant in the lawsuit, according to AdvisorHub.

The firms allege that Morgan Stanley misrepresented and concealed certain terms of the deal, which were crucial for ratifying a preferred-share issue by a subsidiary of Brightline.

According to the firms, this preferred-share issue should have triggered the prepayment make-whole provisions of the deal. They are seeking an order that mandates Brightline to prepay the loan and make the required make-whole payments. Certares also claims it faced retaliation from Morgan Stanley for objecting to the bank's actions. The suit states that Morgan Stanley declined to participate in another unrelated financing deal with Certares last month, citing the ongoing dispute with Brightline.

 

Eccleston Law LLC represents investors and financial advisors nationwide in securities, employment, transition, regulatory, and disciplinary matters.

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