Coldwell Banker Will NOT Stand for Natural Disasters and Independent Brokerages
Lawsuit seeks fees from former New Orleans franchise
Coldwell Banker Real Estate Corp. is suing a former New Orleans franchise to collect
$818,500 the company claims it is owed for past dues and future fees. The former
franchise cancelled its relationship with Coldwell Banker after Hurricane Katrina flooded
its offices and now operates as Danette O'Neal Realtors Inc.
Danette O'Neal, a longtime New Orleans real estate broker who had signed the franchise
agreements with Coldwell Banker in 2004, is fighting back with public criticism of the
lawsuit.
"I understand business, but all of America knows of our plight in New Orleans. The
actions that they have taken threaten not only my business, but my home, personal
possessions and the future of my children," O'Neal stated in a news announcement this
month that was published at several Web sites. "I just want to rebuild my company. I am still trying to restore my company … but instead I must fight Coldwell Banker's threat to take away my legacy to collect 10 years of potential income."
O'Neal -- a prominent African-American businesswoman who was appointed by Louisiana's governor in January 2005 to serve as a commissioner for the Louisiana Housing Finance Agency and leads that group's Single-Family Committee -- has reached out to the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and the National Black Chamber of Commerce, among other groups and individuals, about the lawsuit.
A spokesman for Coldwell Banker Real Estate Corp. said the lawsuit is focused on O'Neal's misuse of the Coldwell Banker corporate trademarks after she severed ties with the corporation.
Trademarks - Drama - Realtor Ethics - Politics JUST a tiny few of the things that get in the way of actually working for and Protecting the Real Estate Consumer.
