Meridian Capital Group broker Adam Hess is suing his former firm, Brooklyn-based TerraCRG, claiming the company tried to cheat him out of the full value of the ownership stake he sold upon exit.
Hess filed the lawsuit in the state Supreme Court this week, Crain’s New York Business reports. He argues he is owed $1M for the ownership units he bought in the company in 2017 and 2018.
The litigation is a counterclaim to a suit Terra filed against Hess last year, in which it alleges the broker stole information from the company. Hess jumped to Meridian, where he is now a senior managing director, last year, along with two other brokers.
"I had to file this litigation and counterclaims in the related case to unwind my partnership with Terra in a fair way and to get paid substantial commissions owed to me and my team," Hess told Crain's. "Hopefully Terra will come to the table and pay what they owe."
In his counterclaim, Hess said he and his team are owed $500K in commissions. Additionally, he argues that when he left, Terra offered to buy the 100,000 ownership units Hess owns — but only offered half of the nearly $976K he says he is owed.
