Noah's Ark Processors, LLC v. Value Meats, Inc. CA2/2

FACTS AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

I. Facts

A. Corporate history of Value Meats, Inc. Value Meats, Inc. (the company), was founded in 1969 by the Dickman family and was a flourishing business specializing in selling processed meats, under the name Charlie’s Pride, for almost 50 years. The directors of the company were Charles Dickman and his two sons, James Dickman and Robert Dickman.1 All of the company’s stock was also owned equally by these three men and their respective family trusts. James and Robert started working for the company in 1980, and later shared the role of CEO. They drew annual salaries from the company for their services as co- CEOs.

Because the owners of Value Meats all share the same surname, we use their first names to avoid confusion. We mean no disrespect.

2 In 2015, the company had between 125 and 145 employees, and it enjoyed a revenue of between $50 million and $70 million during the years 2015 and 2016. The company ran its manufacturing operations out of a building in Vernon, California owned by an LLC whose sole member was Charles’s family trust. The company fell on hard times and started experiencing a “cash shortfall” after it received…