Settlement Stock Mischaracterization Leads to Breach Claim
On 4/23/25, in Nazaryan v. Femtometrix, the California Court of Appeal addressed a dispute over the tax characterization of settlement stock. The plaintiff alleged that the defendants breached the settlement agreement by issuing 1099-MISC forms treating the stock as non-employee compensation, contrary to the agreement's terms. The court found that the plaintiff sufficiently stated claims for breach of contract and violation of Internal Revenue Code section 7434.