Pryor Cashman client Bremen House Inc, German News Company and its principals, Berrin Tekiner, Gonca Chelsea and Billur Akipek secured a sweeping victory after a three-week trial before Justice Anar Patel in the Commercial Division in Supreme Court, New York County.

The Tekiner family's companies own and manage residential and commercial properties across New York, Texas, Utah, North Carolina, Florida, and California. After inheriting the business in 1994, Berrin Tekiner successfully managed the business for more than 30 years. In 2014, Berrin selected her daughter, Gonca Chelsea, who had worked for the company since 2005, to succeed her as President and CEO, while Berrin was named Chairwoman of the Board.

As the value of the business grew, the family engaged in sophisticated estate planning to minimize the tax burden on her three daughters upon their eventual inheritance of the business. Pursuant to that plan, Berrin formed three grantor trusts, one for each daughter, and transferred nearly all of her ownership interest in the business to the trusts through a series of stock purchase agreements funded by promissory notes payable to Berrin and secured by shares in the business.

In 2020, one of Berrin's daughters, Yasemin Tekiner who was subsequently joined in the action by Zeynep Tekiner, commenced a derivative action against Berrin, Gonca, and Billur Akipek, a longtime company officer and trustee of the daughters' trusts, asserting broad claims of breach of fiduciary duty, corporate waste, and self-dealing. Their suit challenged virtually every facet of the family's business and estate plan. The plaintiffs sought, among other things, the removal of company leadership, the ouster of trust fiduciaries, and more than $127 million in damages. The plaintiffs also opposed Berrin's efforts to enforce defaults under the notes held by Yasemin's and Zeynep's trusts.

In pursuit of their claims, the plaintiffs employed "scorched-earth" litigation tactics, resulting in 97 motions across more than 3,000 docket entries.

On September 14, 2026, the Court decisively ruled in the defendants' favor, dismissing every one of the plaintiffs' causes of action and vindicating the defendants' management of the business and conduct as trust fiduciaries. Critically, the Court found that the plaintiffs had consented to, participated in, and benefited from the very conduct they challenged, thereby barring their claims. Moreover, the Court found that the plaintiffs were fully aware of the risks associated with the estate plan at the time of its formation and declared that Berrin is entitled to exercise her remedies under the notes.

This complete trial victory for the Tekiner defendants is the product of years of tenacious advocacy by Pryor Cashman and the team's unwavering belief in its clients.

Pryor Cashman's team included partners Todd E. Soloway, Bryan Mohler, Rachel Shaw, and Meghan Hill, as well as associates Clare Tilton, Lawrence Keating, and Shelby Amato.

A copy of the Court’s Decision After Trial can be found below.