Warehime v. Warehime

John Warehime (defendant), sole voting trustee of family trusts holding majority control of a family company, supported a governance amendment recommended by a company committee to stabilize leadership uncertainty caused by ongoing disputes with his siblings Michael and Sally (plaintiffs), even though the amendment would also incidentally extend the tenure of his elected board beyond the trusts' scheduled 1998 expiration; Michael and Sally sued to enjoin John from voting the trust shares for the amendment, alleging a breach of his duty of loyalty, and the Superior Court reversed the trial court's denial of an injunction, prompting John's appeal.