Caira

I.

INTRODUCTION

Laurens Offner (Laurens) appeals a judgment entered against him in three consolidated actions involving disputes between him and his three siblings, Robin Offner (Robin), Alexandra Offner Ponce De Leon (Alexandra), and Sylvia Offner Caira (Sylvia) (collectively Siblings), and the estate of his father, Dr. Franklin F. Offner (the Estate). The actions involved disputes over the ownership of a family company, Platypus Wear, Inc., and its subsidiary, P.W. Industries (Platypus), and Laurens’s alleged conversion of Platypus’s corporate assets for his personal use.

The trial court impaneled a jury in the consolidated actions. The jury rendered a special verdict finding that: (1) Laurens owned certain shares of Platypus’s common stock in dispute; (2) Sylvia owned 5,500 shares of Platypus’s preferred stock; and (3) Laurens had converted $588,535 worth of Platypus’s corporate assets for his personal use. The jury also found that Laurens had acted with malice, fraud, or oppression, and awarded punitive damages in the amount of $150,000.

The trial court determined that all of the actions were equitable claims and that the jury’s verdict was therefore merely…