Judge Andrea Bouressa
The Business Court has once again sent a message to those wishing to transfer litigation from district court: make sure you nail down the amount in controversy first.
Runner Runner LLC v. BLPP Holdings, LLC, FM 900, LLC, Nikolay Frolov, Gregory L. Miller, Prous Family Traust, and Eduouard Prous (2026 Tex. Bus. 67; September 25, 2026) involved a suit for dissolution and accounting. Plaintiff filed suit in Dallas County district court. Defendant Miller removed the case to the Business Court, alleging that the amount in controversy exceeded $5 million. Miller characterized Plaintiff’s suit as a derivative action on behalf of FM 900 against Miller and the other defendants. Because Plaintiff was asking for a dissolution and accounting, Miller argued, the suit involved more than $5 million in ownership and operating assets. Plaintiff also pleaded that FM 900 owned and operated ranch property with an estimated market value of $5 million. Miller further argued that Plaintiff’s plea for “other damages,” including improper expenditures from FM 900 funds in violation of the company agreement, put the amount in controversy over the threshold. Plaintiff moved to remand.
In an opinion by Judge Bouressa, the court granted Plaintiff’s motion to remand. Plaintiff submitted evidence from its sole member and supporting documents “showing that the real property at issue is encumbered, with an indebtedness of approximately $1.74 million as of July 17, 2026.” As a result, the court observed, “the fair market value of the real property at issue as represented in the pleadings has been shown not to be a reliable measure of the value of the controversy.” Additionally, the “financial irregularities” listed in Plaintiff’s petition included improper fund transfers of less than $500,000, less $80,000 already returned following Plaintiff’s written demand. Putting two and two together, the value of Plaintiff’s claims fell well short of the jurisdictional threshold.
Miller couldn’t overcome Plaintiff’s showing with evidence sufficient to raise a fact issue (in fact, he didn’t really try to). The court sent the case back to Dallas County.
