Bear Mountain Orchards, Inc. v. Mich-Kim, Inc., 09-2041

Wife in the Wife-Husband Owned Defunct Corporation Not Secondarily Liable Under the PACA

Bear Mountain Orchards, Inc. v. Mich-Kim, Inc., 09-2041, involved plaintiffs' suit against an officer of a now defunct wholesale produce dealer, claiming that the officer is individually liable to them under the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act (PACA) for money owed by the corporation.  In affirming the district court's holding that the individual was not secondarily liable, regardless of her title, to trust creditors, the court held that the officer is not individually liable for breaching the corporation's fiduciary duties to the PACA trust because she did not have the actual ability to control its trust assets.

Related Link:

• Read the Third Circuit's Full Decision in Bear Mountain Orchards, Inc. v. Mich-Kim, Inc., 09-2041