CONTINENTAL CASUALTY COMPANY v. PRICEWATERHOUSECOOPERS LLP (2008)

Judgments, Supreme Court, New York County (Karla Moskowitz, J.), entered January 7, 2008, dismissing the actions pursuant to an order, same court and Justice, entered November 9, 2007, which granted defendant's motion for summary judgment, unanimously affirmed, with costs.   Appeal from above order unanimously dismissed, without costs, as subsumed in the consolidated appeal from the judgments.

Even if plaintiff limited partners' claims of fraudulent inducement are sufficient, as a legal matter, to support a direct claim against the partnership's auditor (see e.g. Kaufmann v. Delafield, 224 App.Div. 29, 229 N.Y.S. 545 [1928] ), they failed to submit evidence to raise an issue of fact in opposition to defendant's prima facie showing that the damages claimed all emanated from losses that took place after the initial investment, did not affect plaintiffs differently from other limited partners, and were therefore derivative (see generally Abrams v. Donati, 66 N.Y.2d 951, 498 N.Y.S.2d 782, 489 N.E.2d 751 [1985];  see also Gentile v. Rossette, 906 A.2d 91, 99 [Del.2006] [claims of corporate overpayment] ).

In view of the foregoing, it is unnecessary to address appellants' other contentions.