After fraud allegations, a Chapter 11 filing, and the sale of all assets to another company, the dispute over a Washington, D.C., coffee chain ended with a lawsuit’s dismissal and a confidential settlement.
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A Compass Coffee co-founder’s lawsuit alleging that he was defrauded by his two business partners has been dismissed following a settlement, ending a nearly two-year legal fight over one of Washington, D.C.’s most prominent coffee chains.
Terms of the deal between Harrison Suarez and father-and-son Robert and Michael Haft were not disclosed, according to the Washington Business Journal, which first reported the settlement.
Lawyers for both sides filed a stipulation of voluntary dismissal in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on October 8, stating that Suarez’s claims had been resolved. Each side agreed to bear its own costs and attorneys’ fees from the litigation.
Suarez and the Hafts have yet to respond to media requests for comments.
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Suarez sued Compass Coffee and the Hafts in January 2025, alleging that they concealed ownership arrangements and deprived him of the value of the coffee chain he helped build. He alleged that the Hafts spent years “deceiving him into believing” he was an equal partner in Compass Coffee.
Suarez sought damages stemming from what he alleged was a years-long scheme to dilute his ownership interest and push him out of the company. The lawsuit also alleged misuse of a portion of the approximately $10.5 million Compass received through Covid-era relief programs.
The Hafts denied wrongdoing and argued that the dispute was the result of a falling-out between former business partners, not a fraud scheme.