Case Background
The dispute began in January 2018 when Reuben Ezekiel and his business partner, Roman Diakwski, hired Miles Goldstein Real Estate, LLC to find investment properties for them to purchase. The lead seller in the Golden Beach area, Miles Goldstein, spent several months and years searching for real estate that fit their investment needs. On November 22, 2019, Goldstein discovered that a waterfront property located at 313 Center Island Drive had come onto the market. He immediately alerted Ezekiel about the address, size, and asking price via text message. Goldstein explained that the house was undervalued and represented an incredible investment option because it was the only waterfront home in the neighborhood listed under $3 million.
Before this alert, Ezekiel and Diakwski did not know that the property was available for purchase. Ezekiel expressed immediate interest and instructed Goldstein to submit an offer of $2.5 million under their individual names. Goldstein prepared the official paperwork via DocuSign, which both men signed electronically that afternoon. Goldstein then forwarded the signed contract and Diakwski’s identification to the listing agent, Fernanda De La Cruz.
Over the next few days, Goldstein consistently tracked the offer. On the morning of November 25, 2019, De La Cruz notified Goldstein that the seller found the initial price insulting. However, after further discussions, De La Cruz called Goldstein back to present an official counteroffer of $2,850,000. She privately disclosed that a "magic number" of $2.8 million would finalize the transaction. Goldstein immediately forwarded the counteroffer to Ezekiel and shared his professional opinion that a $2.8 million bid would secure the home. Ezekiel replied that he and Diakwski were no longer interested in the property and wanted to pass on the deal. Goldstein relied on this statement and formally notified De La Cruz that his clients withdrew from negotiations.
Less than two hours later, Ezekiel used his sister, Irene Ezekiel Ishay, a licensed real estate agent, to secretly bypass Goldstein. Ishay emailed De La Cruz a new contract signed by Ezekiel and Diakwski for the exact "magic number" of $2.8 million. The contract listed a nonexistent company named R&R GB Investment Group, LLC as the buyer and designated Ishay as the broker. The Defendants structured this arrangement to divert the standard three-percent broker commission away from Goldstein. At the final closing, the Defendants successfully directed the $84,000 commission back to Ezekiel and Diakwski as a financial credit, while Ishay received a $5,000 fee for her assistance in the plan. R&R GB Investment Group, LLC did not legally exist when the initial paperwork was signed; the business partners only filed its formal articles of organization months later, on January 28, 2020.
Cause
The Plaintiff suffered financial losses directly because the Defendants executed a deceptive scheme to hide a property acquisition. The primary causes of action included breach of contract, fraud, civil conspiracy, and tortious interference with a business relationship.
Injury
The actions of the Defendants deprived Goldstein of his rightful real estate commission after his professional knowledge and direct negotiations successfully brought the buyer and seller together.
Damages Sought
Goldstein requested full compensatory damages for the unpaid commission, interest, legal fees, Court costs, and punitive damages for intentional fraud and conspiracy.
Key Arguments and Proceedings
The lawsuit proceeded through multiple rounds of pleadings, culminating in a trial before a jury in Miami-Dade County.
Legal Representation
Plaintiff(s): Miles Goldstein Real Estate, LLC.
· Counsel for Plaintiff(s): Josef Timlichman
Defendant(s): Reuben Ezekiel, Roman Diakwski, R&R GB Investment Group, LLC, and Irene Ezekiel Ishay.
· Counsel for Defendant(s): Alan G. Kipnis, Esq., | Andrew J. Ingber
Key Arguments or Remarks by Counsel
Claims
The Plaintiff argued that Goldstein served as the procuring cause for the real estate transaction. Goldstein’s legal counsel emphasized that the agent identified the property, educated the buyers on its investment value, drafted the initial paperwork, and extracted the vital target price from the listing broker. The Plaintiff asserted that Ezekiel fabricated an excuse to pull out of the deal solely to cut Goldstein out of the transaction. By routing the purchase through a nonexistent entity and using a family member as a sham broker, the Defendants pocketed the commission as a credit to lower their overall purchase costs.
Defense
The Defendants denied all allegations of wrongdoing, breach of contract, and fraud. Their defense counsel maintained that all actions taken during the transaction were entirely legal, lawful, and ethical. The defense argued that Goldstein was fully aware that the initial offer was prepared only to facilitate the deal while the buyers intended to form a separate entity at a later date. They also asserted that Ishay acted as a legitimate broker and remained available to assist throughout the transaction as needed, even though she was away on a pre-planned vacation immediately after the contract execution.
Jury Verdict
Following the extensive multi-day trial, the jury reached a unanimous decision and returned a verdict completely in favor of the Plaintiff, Miles Goldstein Real Estate, LLC, on all counts submitted. The final verdict form, signed and dated by the jury foreperson on May 14, 2026, established substantial financial liabilities for the Defendants across multiple claims of fraud, tortious interference, and civil conspiracy.
Under the first claim for fraud in the inducement, the jury found that the Plaintiff successfully proved its case against Defendant Reuben Ezekiel by the greater weight of the evidence. For this count, the jury determined that the total amount of compensatory damages due to Miles Goldstein Real Estate equaled $500,000 for unpaid real estate commissions. The jury also decided that clear and convincing evidence justified an award of punitive damages for this fraudulent conduct, assessing a penalty against Reuben Ezekiel in the amount of $1 million.
The jury similarly ruled that the Plaintiff fully proved its claim against Defendant Reuben Ezekiel for tortious interference with a business and contractual relationship. The jury calculated the compensatory damages resulting from Ezekiel's intentional interference to be an additional $500,000 for unpaid real estate commissions, while leaving the section for lost profits blank. They further concluded that the evidence justified an award of punitive damages against Ezekiel for this specific interference count, setting that additional penalty at $1 million.
Regarding the claim for civil conspiracy to defraud, the jury found that the Plaintiff successfully proved its case against Defendant R&R GB Investment Group, LLC, Defendant Reuben Ezekiel, and Defendant Irene Ezekiel Ishay. In separating the financial obligations among the co-conspirators, the jury held the corporate entity, R&R GB Investment Group, LLC, liable for $500,000 in unpaid commissions, $100,000 in lost profits, and $4 million in reputation damages, alongside a $5 million punitive damage penalty. Under this same conspiracy count, the jury ordered Reuben Ezekiel to personally pay $500,000 for unpaid commissions, $100,000 for lost profits, and $4 million for reputation damages, while adding an individual punitive damage penalty of $2 million. The jury did not assess any compensatory or punitive damages against Irene Ezekiel Ishay under this specific count, crossing out those sections on the form.
Finally, the jury concluded that Miles Goldstein Real Estate legally proved its claim for civil conspiracy to interfere with a business relationship against all three Defendants. For their roles in this interference conspiracy, the jury itemized identical compensatory damages against both R&R GB Investment Group, LLC and Reuben Ezekiel individually, ordering each to pay $500,000 for unpaid commissions, $100,000 for lost profits, and $4 million for reputation damages. The jury also issued heavy punitive penalties under this count, assessing $5 million against R&R GB Investment Group, LLC and $2 million against Reuben Ezekiel. For her part in the interference conspiracy, the jury found Irene Ezekiel Ishay liable and ordered her to pay a compensatory sum of $250,000 for unpaid real estate commissions, though they refrained from issuing any lost profits, reputation damages, or punitive penalties against her on this final count.
In total, the raw figures handwritten across the verdict form accumulate to $19,850,000 in compensatory damages and $25,000,000 in punitive damages, bringing the combined raw total of the written form to $45,650,000.
Court documents
