White & Case secures dismissal for J&F in multibillion-dollar adversary action in a US federal bankruptcy court proceeding

Global law firm White & Case LLP has achieved a significant victory for J&F Investimentos S.A. (currently J&F S.A.), one of the largest business groups in Brazil, in a multibillion-dollar adversary action, in connection with a chapter 15 proceeding in the US Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Florida in which J&F was named a co-defendant.

The court dismissed with prejudice all seven claims asserted by the plaintiff, all but two of which arose exclusively under Brazilian law and sought to rescind three share transfers that occurred in Brazil more than a decade ago. In its decision, the Court found that there were ample grounds for dismissal of the adversary proceeding, citing the lack of meaningful connection to the United States. With respect to J&F and the other Brazilian co-defendants, the Court concluded that personal jurisdiction was likely lacking due to insufficient connection to the United States and the fact that the conduct at issue originated in Brazil.

The Court concluded that "the procedural obstacles are too great and the due process concerns too significant" to retain the case, noting that the plaintiff’s allegations "have very little to do with the United States and nothing at all to do with assets located or persons domiciled within the territorial United States . . . or subject to US bankruptcy law." The Court had previously dismissed the action without prejudice and granted leave to amend. The team successfully secured dismissal of the claims without subjecting the defendants to jurisdictional discovery.

The White & Case team was led by partners Laura Garr (New York) and Jason Zakia (Chicago), and included associates Hannelore Sklar and Renata Rogers de Castilho (both in New York).

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