R
yan Diepenbrock, co-founder of Austin-based developer StoryBuilt, is suing Stapleton Group, the firm running StoryBuilt's receivership. Diepenbrock claims Stapleton thwarted his attempts to recapitalize the company, mismanaged assets, and misrepresented intentions to investors and leadership. The suit marks the first public comments by a StoryBuilt co-founder since the company fell into receivership last summer.

    Diepenbrock alleges that Stapleton prioritized its own interests over those of shareholders, turning what was supposed to be a short turnaround into a years-long process. He claims Stapleton has maximized its fees at the expense of investors and has been grossly negligent in managing StoryBuilt's assets.

    The lawsuit states that Diepenbrock first connected with Stapleton at the advice of outside counsel when StoryBuilt was struggling financially due to dry financial markets and inflating construction costs. Stapleton Group initially expected to sell StoryBuilt's portfolio for up to $2 billion, but later determined it was worth far less and began selling off individual properties.

    Diepenbrock claims that in July 2023, he brought on Stapleton Group to help raise capital and finalize a recapitalization deal with Global Mutual Properties. However, once Stapleton was involved, Diepenbrock alleges that it pushed him out of the company and took control for itself. The suit details several instances where Stapleton allegedly acted in its own interests, including suggesting voluntary receivership and proposing itself as receiver.

    Diepenbrock also claims that Stapleton intentionally hid the Global Mutual deal from investors and cut off his access to StoryBuilt's email and IT systems after he resigned to set up a parallel company. He alleges that Stapleton mismanaged company assets while maximizing its own fees, citing a meeting where the receiver budgeted over 40% of investor contributions for "professional expenses."

    The suit is not the first time Stapleton has faced pushback over its receivership. Last October, Partners Group claimed it was blindsided by a news release announcing the sale of StoryBuilt properties without advance notice or opportunity to comment.