therealdeal.com – The legal battle over SBE Entertainment Group’s acquisition of Morgans Hotel Group has kicked off – sort of.

On Friday, Morgans shareholder Jacquie Sinclair filed a lawsuit seeking class-action status against Morgans and its board of directors, as well as SBE, in relation to SBE’s proposed buyout of the struggling hotel operator.

The complaint, filed in New York State Supreme Court, seeks to block the buyout and claims it “is the product of a flawed process and deprives Morgans’ public stockholders of the ability to participate in the company’s long-term prospects.”