Settlement Valid Despite Alleged Duress, Inability to Escape

A former company president failed to convince a federal court that a settlement agreement was invalid, despite his claim that he was under duress and unable to escape a mediation.

HeartcoR Solutions LLC sued its former president, Harold Strandquist, alleging breach of fiduciary duty and fraudulent misrepresentations, the US District Court for the Northern District of Illinois said. After the settlement agreement was reached and the term sheet signed by both parties, Strandquist got cold feet.

HeartcoR, which provides ECG recording and other services, was responsible for drafting the final agreement, but Strandquist refused to sign it, claiming that it was a tentative term sheet and he was under duress when it was mediated. The “entire building was locked down” and he was unable to leave, he claimed.

• None of the language in the term sheet is tentative, the opinion by Judge Iain D. Johnston said
• Strandquist knew that the term sheet included final terms of the agreement and that it didn’t include “hedging or non-committal language explaining that it was an agreement-to-agree or a starting point for future negotiations,” Johnston said
• “Strandquist’s argument that he signed the agreement under duress does not hold water,” because he failed to explain how the negotiations overcame his free will, Johnston said
• HeartcoR was also awarded attorneys’ fees and costs for successfully having the agreement enforced

Lichten & Liss-Riordan PC and Siegel & Dolan Ltd represented HeartcoR. Strandquist represented himself.

The case is HeartcoR Solutions LLC v. Strandquist, N.D. Ill., No. 3:21-cv-50433, 6/5/23.