New York Attorneys JHA handles range the gamut of complex financial and commercial litigation and arbitration, including securities, RICO, corporate and contract disputes, credit default swaps, derivatives, and class, mass, and derivative actions. The firm also represents law firms in major disputes.

Commercial Litigation and Arbitration

New York Attorneys JHA handles range the gamut of complex financial and commercial litigation and arbitration, including securities, RICO, corporate and contract disputes, credit default swaps, derivatives, and class, mass, and derivative actions. The firm also represents law firms in major disputes.
Commercial Litigation and Arbitration

August 7, 2023

Rule 11 — Improper Purpose — Even If Paper Filed Not Only to Vindicate Rights But Also for Some Other Purpose, Sanctions Inappropriate Unless the Other Purpose Is Undertaken in Bad Faith and Is So Excessive As to Eliminate A Proper Purpose

Columbia Gas Transmission, LLC v. Haas, 2023 U.S. App. LEXIS 19300 (4th Cir. July 27, 2023) (unpublis ...
Columbia Gas Transmission, LLC v. Haas, 2023 U.S. App. LEXIS 19300 (4th Cir. July 27, 2023) (unpublished) PER CURIAM: *1 Affirmed by unpublished per curiam opinion. Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit. In 2017, Columbia Gas Transmission…
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Sanctions: § 1927 Authorizes Only Fees Incurred “Because of” Sanctionable Conduct, Not Fees Merely Related to It — Where Responsive Brief Fails to Make Necessary Disclosure Necessitating Reply, All Costs Associated with Reply Are Awardable, Not Merely Portions Specifically Prompted by Improper Non-Disclosure — Party Appealing § 1927 Sanctions Bears Burden of Showing Error in Fee — Setting Fees Is A Matter of Rough Justice and Should Not Result in Second Major Litigation — Where Time Records Excusably Imprecise Due to Unawareness of Misconduct, Rough Estimate of Fees Allocable to Misconduct Suffices — Fees Reimbursed by Insurance Still “Incurred” Within, And Awardable under § 1927 — Law of The Case Doctrine Inapplicable, Even If Same Issue Involved, Where Different Legally Relevant Factors Are Under Consideration Or Facts Are Different

Chung v. Lamb, 73 F.4th 824 (10th Cir. 2023): After a prior remand to the district court, we review the propriety of that court’s revised award of attorney fees under
Chung v. Lamb, 73 F.4th 824 (10th Cir. 2023): After a prior remand to the district court, we review the propriety of that court’s revised award of attorney fees under 28 U.S.C. § 1927, which permits monetary sanction when…
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Spoliation Sanctions: Rule 37(e)(2)’s Intent-To-Deprive Standard Is The Same Bad Faith Standard Historically Applied In Pre- Rule 37 Spoliation Cases And Still Applied In Cases Of Non-Electronic Spoliation — Prejudice To The Defendant Need Not Be Shown Under Rule 37(b)(2) — Even Though Litigation Hold Issued, Bad Faith Reasonable Inferred From Failing To (i) Back Up Text Messages, (ii) Educate Recipients About Litigation Hold, (iii) Collect Cell Phone Data For 7 Months, And (iv) Suspend Policy Of Wiping Data — No Affirmative Act Is Required To Sustain A Finding Of Bad Faith Based On Circumstantial Evidence, Either Under Rule 37(e) Or Bad Faith Case Law

Skanska United States Civil Se. Inc. v. Bagelheads, Inc., 2023 U.S. App. LEXIS 19942 (11th Cir. Aug. ...
Skanska United States Civil Se. Inc. v. Bagelheads, Inc., 2023 U.S. App. LEXIS 19942 (11th Cir. Aug. 2, 2023): *1 Hurricane Sally hit Pensacola Bay with a vengeance in September 2020, and 28 barges moored in the Bay were not…
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Recent Articles

RICO: Indirect Injury Unrecoverable — Indirect Purchaser Rule Imported from Antitrust

Rule 11 Sanctions: (1) Improper Purpose of Harassment Reasonably Determined Based on Past Tactics (25 Lawsuits, 14 Ethics Complaints, and 150 FOIA Requests) As Well As Present Behavior — (2) Hearings Are Not Only Not Required to Satisfy Due Process But, If The Record Is Otherwise Adequate, Are Affirmatively Discouraged

RICO and Probate Exception to Federal Jurisdiction: Federal Jurisdiction over RICO Claim Not Barred by Probate Exception Even If the Federal Judgment May Be Binding on the Probate Proceedings (Or Vice Versa) — Calculating Damages Based on Diminution of Value of Estate ≠ Administration of the Estate — Doesn’t Matter If RICO Misconduct Includes Defendants’ Actions with Respect to The Estate

RICO: No Causation Where Harm Flowed Several Steps After the Fraudulent Acts — RICO Causation Same As Antitrust Causation

Sanctions vs. Automatic Stay: Imposition of Sanctions (Here, Inherent Power Sanctions) Is Subject to the Police Power Exception to the Automatic Stay in Bankruptcy

The Word “Include” May Be A Word of Limitation As Opposed to a Word of Enlargement, Depending on the Context

RICO — Pleading Conspiracy — Plaintiffs Must Plausibly Allege That the Defendants Knowingly Joined the RICO Conspiracy — Sparse Allegations of Knowledge of Fraud Due to Participation in a Commercial Transaction Insufficient to State RICO Conspiracy Claim Where Allegations Not Inconsistent with Ordinary Commercial Behavior — While Knowledge May Be Pled “Generally” under Rule 9(b), It Cannot Be Alleged Conclusorily and Must Satisfy the Twiqbal Plausibility Standard

Depositions: Improper to Object to Form to Straightforward Questions (Not Compound, Vague, Leading or Speculative) — Lack of Foundation Objection Improper in 30(b)(6) Deposition — Improper to “Educate” Witness During Breaks of 30(b)(6) Deposition Through Witness Calls to Knowledgeable Corporate Colleagues — Magistrate Judge May Impose Financial Sanctions

Spoliation/Sanctions: “A Party Does Not Spoliate Evidence When, Without Notice Of The Evidence’s Potential Relevance, It Destroys The Evidence According To Its Policy Or In The Normal Course Of Its Business” (Good Quote)

RICO: Fraud on Government Entities Causing Plaintiffs to Pay More for Inmate Calls Actionable on Bridge v. Phoenix Bond Analysis — Fact That Governments Had Separate Injuries As Part of the Scheme (from Reduced Commissions) Irrelevant — Plaintiffs’ Injuries Not Derivative of Governments’ — The Fraud on the Governments Was Not Too Distinct From Plaintiffs’ Injuries But Rather Necessary to Injure Plaintiffs — No Risk of Duplicative Recoveries and No Plaintiff Better Situated to Sue for Plaintiffs’ Injuries

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New York Attorneys JHA handles range the gamut of complex financial and commercial litigation and arbitration, including securities, RICO, corporate and contract disputes, credit default swaps, derivatives, and class, mass, and derivative actions. The firm also represents law firms in major disputes.
New York Attorneys JHA handles range the gamut of complex financial and commercial litigation and arbitration, including securities, RICO, corporate and contract disputes, credit default swaps, derivatives, and class, mass, and derivative actions. The firm also represents law firms in major disputes.

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