Top-producing agent and longtime Douglas Elliman veteran Holly Parker has withdrawn her lawsuit against the brokerage, according to the New York County Clerk court filing.
Parker filed the suit back in April after Elliman demanded $1.5 million in clawbacks, including bonuses, assistant pay, advertising costs and StreetEasy fees. In return, Parker sought to void the clawback demand and recoup roughly $385,000 in damages and legal costs.
In May, Elliman requested to move the dispute into an arbitration, and in June, provided all agreements that govern the parties’ dispute. Parker withdrew the lawsuit, or discontinued it, without prejudice.
The legal dispute erupted following Parker’s February move to Compass after more than two decades with Elliman. At the time, Parker reportedly had 16 pending deals on the table. Under her 2020 independent contractor agreement (ICA), Parker was entitled to a 40 percent commission split on those deals, payable within 30 days of closing, the lawsuit states. That deadline came and went, and Parker claimed the firm still owed her nearly $193,000 after 10 of those deals closed.
Parker argued that side agreements she signed at Elliman should override her original contract. According to Parker, these agreements increased her commission split to 70 percent and included up to $205,000 in reimbursements and a performance bonus.
The lawsuit also stated, “As a matter of professional courtesy, Parker discussed her intentions to leave Elliman long before she effectuated the termination. Elliman never cited to Parker any clawback rights it believed it maintained and instead indicated to Parker that she would be paid for all pending transactions that closed within 90 days following her departure.”
Both Parker’s legal team and Douglas Elliman representatives declined to comment on the matter.
The dropped lawsuit follows a major leadership shakeup for Elliman, where Michael S. Liebowitz, the firm’s board director, took the reins as president and CEO after Howard Lorber announced his retirement.
A number of high-profile agents have also stepped away in recent months, including: Former head of Douglas Elliman’s Western Region operations Stephen Kotler and his son, Max Kotler who joined the Corcoran Group; Tinka Ellington and her team who left for Compass; and a group of six Aspen, Colorado-based Elliman agents who also signed on with Compass.
