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

Joseph Hage Aaronson

While Rule 11 Doesn’t Apply to Appellate Proceedings (Unless It Has Been Incorporated in Local Appellate Rules), Rule 11 Caselaw Is Looked to for Guidance in Interpreting Applicable Sanctions Powers on Appeal

Int’l Union of Operating Eng’rs v. NLRB, 109 F.4th 905 (7th Cir. 2024): Opinion In early 2018, employees represented by the International Union of Operating Engineers, Local 150, went on strike at two quarries. During that strike, the mining company…
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Rule 37(b)(2)(A) Sanctions for Altering Expert’s 26(a)(2)(B) Report — Without the Expert’s Knowledge or Approval — by Converting It from PDF to Word, Changing Headings and Other Formatting, and Omitting a Page of Relevant Text and Appendices, Even Though Expert Testified That The Overall Substance of the Report Was Unchanged — Rule 37(b)(2)(A) Sanctions May Be Reversed If Failure to Comply with Discovery Order Was Due to Misunderstanding or Inability to Comply

Weissman v. Cheokas, 2024 U.S. App. LEXIS 21339 (11th Cir. Aug. 23, 2024): PER CURIAM: Plaintiff-Appellant Donald Andersen served as counsel for Plaintiffs Mark Weissman and Weatherly Aviation Company, Inc. (collectively, Plaintiffs) in a suit against Defendant-Appellee Michael Cheokas seeking…
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Spoliation: Fed. R. Civ. P. 37(e) Imposes a Higher Standard — Intent — Than Fourth Circuit Law Previously Applied to Spoliation of Electronically-Stored Information (And Still Does As to Non-ESI) — Willfulness vs. Intent

Doe v. Charlotte Mecklenburg Bd. of Educ., 2024 U.S. App. LEXIS 18645 (4th Cir. July 29, 2024) (unpublished): PER CURIAM: *1 Affirmed by unpublished per curiam opinion. Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit. In 2015, a school…
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Inherent Power and § 1927 Sanctions: Removal of counsel from case, referral for disciplinary action, and award of fees and costs for assaulting opposing counsel at deposition — Failure to request hearing waive any right to a hearing — Notice and opportunity to be heard required before sua sponte sanctions imposed, whether under Rule 11, the inherent power of the court or § 1927 — Notice may come from court or opposing counsel — Order imposing sanctions cannot provide notice of sanctions — Nature of bad faith requirement for inherent power sanctions: bad faith to obstruct the judicial process or bring about violation of a court order — Sanctions proceeding need not defer (Younger abstention) to disciplinary proceeding involving the same conduct — Sanctions proceeding doesn’t threaten to interfere with disciplinary proceeding — Why District Court is accorded significant deference in matters concerning attorney’s fees

Vega v. Chi. Bd. of Educ., 2024 U.S. App. LEXIS 18614 (7th Cir. July 29, 2024): *1 Caryn Shaw, an attorney for the Plaintiffs in this case, allegedly assaulted opposing counsel Lisa Dreishmire after a heated deposition at the Chicago …
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Rule 11 Sanctions — Even If Court Invites Sanctions Motion, Safe Harbor Must Be Complied With — If Safe Harbor Is Not Provided, Court May Not Proceed Sua Sponte without Affording the Due Process Required by Rule 11(c)(3): Issuing a Show Cause Order Why Conduct Specifically Described In The Order Has Not Violated — The Show Cause Order Need Not Be A Separate Order — Appellee’s Request That Appellate Court Consider Alternate Ground of Inherent Power Sanctions Fails Due to Lack of Notice That Inherent Power Sanctions, and Therefore Bad Faith, Were At Issue

Kennard Law P.C. v. United Airlines, Inc., 2024 U.S. App. LEXIS 19962 (5th Cir. Aug. 8, 2024) (unpublished): PER CURIAM:* *1 After granting summary judgment for the defendant employer in an employment discrimination lawsuit, the district court sanctioned the…
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FRAP 38 Sanctions: An Appeal That Has “Some Arguable Basis” Either in Law or Fact—A Low Bar—Is Not Frivolous — “Simply Quibbl[ing]”/Raising Factual Disputes Insufficient to Obtain Sanctions — Sixth Circuit Usually Imposes FRAP 38 Sanctions Only If An Improper Purpose Underlies the Appeal — Simply Seeking Sanctions Below (Unsuccessfully) And On Appeal Is Not Per Se Violative of § 1927

Wershe v. City of Detroit, 2024 U.S. App. LEXIS 20145 (6th Cir. Aug. 8, 2024) (unpublished): ORDER *1 Plaintiff Richard Wershe, Jr., sued the City of Detroit and various former state and federal law enforcement officials on July 20, 2021,…
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RICO: “The RICO Statute Is A Very Powerful, But Tricky, Tool” (Good Quote) — The Seven Elements of a RICO Claim, Before Even Reaching Injury and Causation — “Courts Must Flush Out Frivolous RICO Completes At An Early Stage Of The Litigation” (Good Quote) — 9(b) Obligations for Fraud-Based RICO Claims — The 3 Features of the Structure Requirement for the Enterprise Element — Factors Analyzed in Determining Whether Association-in-Fact Enterprise Pled — Hub-and-Spoke Structure ≠ Enterprise —Merely Taking Directions Insufficient for §1962(c) Liability —Operation and Management Test = Low Hurdle —Commission of Predicate Acts by Enterprise Insufficient — RICO Persons Must Commit the Acts —2-Year Minimum for Closed-End Continuity in Second Circuit — Horizontal and Vertical Relatedness: Requirements

Keyu Long v. Shunhuang Zhuang, 2024 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 141434 (E.D.N.Y. Aug. 8, 2024) REPORT AND RECOMMENDATION TARYN A. MERKL, United States Magistrate Judge: Keyu Long, named personally and derivatively on behalf of J Navi De Fund One LLC,…
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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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