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On Fridat Ben Shaoul released a statement claiming to have settled a law suit brought by his parents against him.
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It is not every day that someone is sued by his own parents. But that is exactly what happened to real estate developer Ben Shaoul.
Known as the Sledgehammer, the head of the Magnum Real Estate Group told The Real Deal that he has reached a settlement with his parents, Abraham and Minoo Shaoul, according to a press release from Friday. Ben Shaoul’s parents co owned a number of properties with him and they had accused the developer of misappropriating funds when he refinanced mortgages on those properties.
The law suit was initiated last year by Mr. Shaoul’s parents who claimed that he pocketed money from three buildings that they own together without their consent. In February they updated their complaint, asking for up to $50 million in damages.
The senior Shaouls allege that their son cheated them out of their shares in a building they co owned at 166 Elizabeth Street in Manhattan’s No Ho neighborhood. They also claim that he mortgaged another property at 63 Clinton Street on the Lower East Side which they co own, collecting $1.25 million for himself without informing them. Then there is the alleged $2 million that Ben Shaoul received from refinancing the building at 173 Ludlow Street which the three also own together.
But the senior Shaouls are not so sure that their legal battles with their son are over. An attorney representing the couple said that while a settlement is being negotiated between the parties, no final agreement has as of yet been reached.
This contradicts an e mail that Ben Shaoul sent The Real Deal real estate web site in which he said that he and his parents have, “put their differences behind them and reached an amicable resolution. Over the course of the last two years, they have reflected upon the source of the family discord, explored their respective positions and have agreed that legal action was ill-advised under the circumstances.”
However, Stephen Meister, who represents Abraham and Minoo Shaul, told the Real deal that there is “no binding agreement on anything. I would like to amicably settle it, but the truth is it’s not amicably settled yet because we haven’t reached an agreement. There are still open terms and the parties are negotiating.”
Ben Shaoul has consistently denied all of his parents’ allegations against him.
Founded in 1997, Magnum Real Estate Group is a Manhattan based real estate management and development firm. Its most recent project is a 1, 892 square foot townhouse development in the Williamsburg neighborhood of Brooklyn.
Ben Shaoul is the president of magnum, which he co founded together with his parents. He started in real estate management as an intern when hew was nineteen years old.
