Inspired Capital, LLC v. Howell
The Third DCA affirmed summary judgment against a derivative plaintiff whose only damages models—lost profits and lost business value—rested on speculative expert projections, and whose out-of-pocket/reliance theory was foreclosed by undisputed facts showing the $500,000 had been spent before defendants learned of the venture. The court held the plaintiff was bound by its interrogatory responses and that leave to amend after summary judgment is not a 'do-over.' But it reversed to the extent judgment eliminated claims for which nominal damages could still be awarded upon a finding of breach.
Key facts
- Inspired Capital, LLC sued defendants Howell for breach of contract and breach of fiduciary duty, seeking damages for a $500,000 investment in a venture.
- Plaintiff's damages models at summary judgment relied exclusively on expert projections of lost profits and lost business value, both acknowledged to be speculative; plaintiff had also asserted an out-of-pocket damages theory but undisputed facts showed the $500,000 was spent before defendants learned of the venture.
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Why it matters
The opinion gives defense counsel a clean statement that a plaintiff cannot recharacterize its damages theory at the summary judgment stage or cure it by belated amendment, and that interrogatory responses lock in the… — full analysis with a trial
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