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

RICO: Personal Injury (Depression, Loss of Love and Affection) ≠ Injury to Business or Property — While Inability to Fulfill Employment Contract or Pursue Valuable Employment Opportunities as a Result of a RICO Violation Constitute Injury to Business or Property, Inability to Work Due to Emotional Trauma from RICO Violation Perpetrated on Another Is an Inactionable, Derivative Injury Too Remote from the RICO Violation — Statute of Limitations/Injury Discovery Rule — SOL Accrues When Plaintiff Knows Or Should Know of His or Her Injury, Regardless of Whether Plaintiff Knows the Injury Is Part of a Pattern of Racketeering — Separate Accrual Rule: New Cause of Action Accrues for Each New, Independent Injury, Even If RICO Violation Occurred > 4 Years Earlier — Private Citizens Cannot Compel a Criminal Prosecution Because They Lack a Cognizable Interest in the Prosecution of Another

Douglas v. Kalanta, 2024 U.S. App. LEXIS 10054, 2024 WL 1795160 (9th Cir. April 25, 2024) (unpublished) MEMORANDUM* *1 Plaintiffs Richard William Douglas, Jr., and Christine Anne Hurtt filed a complaint on October 18, 2021, alleging that defendants …
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Rule 11 Sanctions — Within District Court’s Discretion to Deny on Grounds That Imposing Sanctions Would Lead to a Continuation of Litigation Instead of Its Termination and That The Prospect of Recovering Significant Monetary Sanctions Was “Theoretical, Ephemeral and Perhaps Futile” — Neither Adverse Rulings Nor “Unsupported, Irrational, Or Highly Tenuous Speculation” Form a Basis for Recusal (Good Quotes)

Zia Shaikh v. Germadnig, 2024 U.S. App. LEXIS 13738 (3d Cir. June 6, 2024) (unpublished): OPINION* PER CURIAM *1 In July 2013, Zia Shaikh filed for divorce from his wife. In many lawsuits since, he has sued numerous person…
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(1) Inherent Power Must Arise From the Litigation before the Sanctioning Court — Abuse of Discretion to Use It to Sanction Other Conduct — (2) Additional [Criminal] Due Process Protections Required for Punitive Sanctions — (3) Although Movant Bears Burden Of Establishing Right To Intervene, Rule 24 Is To Be Liberally Construed

McClenny Moseley & Assocs., P.L.L.C. v. Equal Access Just. Fund, L.P., 2024 U.S. App. LEXIS 13995 (5th Cir. June 7, 2024) (unpublished): DANA M. DOUGLAS, Circuit Judge:* *   This opinion is not designated for publication. See 5TH…
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Civil RICO Claim Survives Defendant’s Death (fn 24) (issue conceded) — Meaning of “Abuse of Discretion” (First Circuit) — Court Has Discretion to Decline to Substitute a New Party for a Deceased Party — Who Qualifies As A Deceased Party’s Successor or Representative — Arguments Forfeited Below Considered for Plain Error Only on Appeal — 4 Prongs of Plain Error — The 90-Day Substitution Period in Rule 25(a) Begins Upon Service of the Suggestion of Death — Default Judgment Is a Drastic Measure And Should Be Employed Only in an Extreme Situation

Universitas Education, LLC v. Granderson, 98 F.4th 357 (1st Cir. 2024): When Plaintiff Appellee Universitas Education, LLC (“Universitas”) first initiated this lawsuit against Jack E. Robinson, III (“Robinson”) in 2015, it sought damages against him for (among many other things)…
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(1) FRAP 38 Sanctions: “Woebegone Contests To Arbitrators’ Awards Are Sanctionable. Anything Less Makes A Mockery Of Arbitration’s Promise To Expedite And Cut The Costs Of Resolving Disputes” (Good Quote) — (2) Arbitration: New York Law and AAA Rules Allow Awards of Attorney’s Fees as Sanctions Even If the Contract Provides That Each Party Is to Bear Its Own Fees

Am. Zurich Ins. Co. v. Sun Holdings, Inc., 2024 U.S. App. LEXIS 13303 (7th Cir. June 3, 2024): Sun Holdings purchased a workers’-compensation policy from American Zurich Insurance. The policy made American Zurich responsible for paying all approved claims in…
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(1) RICO: Causation Requires Direct Relation Between Injury and Conduct — May Properly Be Assessed at Pleading Stage — “Civil RICO Is An Unusually Potent Weapon And For That Reason Courts Strive To Flush Out Frivolous Rico Allegations At An Early Stage Of The Litigation” (Good Quote) — (2) Denial of Leave to Amend Usually Reviewed for Abuse of Discretion But De Novo Review Applies If Denial Based on a Legal Interpretation, Such as Futility

*1 Upon due consideration, it is hereby ORDERED, ADJUDGED, and DECREED that the judgment of the district court is AFFIRMED. Plaintiffs Jonathan and Esther Zuhovitzky challenge the district court’s dismissal, pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure …
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Rule 37 Sanction of Dismissal — Sixth Circuit Factors — Factors Applied More Stringently When Fault Lies with Counsel Rather Than Party — Bad Faith/Willfulness/Fault Satisfied by Delay or Contumacious Conduct — Failure to Comply with Discovery Requests or Court Order Versus Merely Dilatory Conduct — Time, Money and Effort to Obtain Legally-Required Cooperation = Prejudice — Dismissal May Be First and Only Sanction

D & R Servs., LLC v. Mesa Underwriters Specialty Ins. Co., 2024 WL 2830660 (6th Cir. June 4, 2024): *1 D & R Services, LLC and DD & KD Services, LLC1 brought this action against their insurer, Mesa Underwriters…
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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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