Business Litigation & Commercial Representation
Illustrative cases
FINRA-Broker Claim
Cantor Fitzgerald & Co. v. Pritchard, 107 A.D.3d 476, 967 N.Y.S. 2d 336 (1st Dept. 2013)
O’Rourke & Associates successfully represented a senior executive in a breach of contact arbitration filed with FINRA against his employer. After a year-long arbitration, O’Rourke & Associates obtained an arbitration award of $1,237,841, which included over $300,000 in attorneys’ fees. Cantor Fitzgerald appealed the FINRA award to the Supreme Court, New York County, which overturned the award of attorneys’ fees, but confirmed the remainder of the award. On Pritchard’s appeal, New York’s Appellate Division, First Department reversed the Supreme Court decision in its entirety, reinstating and confirming the entire FINRA award in Pritchard’s favor.
Partnership Claim
Roberts v. TriPlanet Partners, LLC et al., 3:12-cv-1222 (JAM) (United States District Court, D. Conn.)
Federal Court $8 million judgment. We obtained and collected a Judgment in excess of $8,000,000 for a partner in a financial consulting firm whose partners terminated him and sought to deprive him of his share of profits. The Judgment was obtained in the District Court of Connecticut, which was successfully defended in the United States Court of Appeal for the Second Circuit.
Non-competition Claim
Danka Office Imagining, Co. v. Catalano, 3:01-CV-1952 (AVC)(United States District Court, D. Conn.)
O’Rourke & Associates successfully represented an industry leading document imaging company bringing a federal action in the United States District Court alleging breach of an employment agreement and violation of restrictive covenants against an employee who took a new job with a competitor. After an evidentiary record was created, defendants agreed to a stipulated judgment that incorporated a permanent injunction, achieving substantially all of the objectives of the client.
Contract Litigation
Keefe v. Norwalk Cove Marina, Inc., 57 Conn. App. 601, 749 A.2d 1219 (2000).
O’Rourke & Associates represented the plaintiff in a trial in the Connecticut Superior Court concerning a contract dispute with the defendant over the purchase of a $2 million dollar Italian yacht by plaintiff. After the favorable trial verdict for plaintiff, the defendant filed an appeal with the Connecticut Appellate Court, and, in turn, plaintiff filed a cross-appeal. O’Rourke & Associates prosecuted the cross-appeal, asking the Appellate Court to increase the size of the judgment that was obtained at the trial court level. The Connecticut Appellate Court rejected the defendant’s appeal, and affirmed O’Rourke & Associates’ appellate arguments, doubling the total judgment for plaintiff to $200,000.
Business Ownership Claim
Morris v. Hall’s Magazine Reports, Inc., 2005 WL 2501047 (Conn. Super. Sept. 20, 2005)
O’Rourke & Associates successfully defended the defendants in a week-long federal jury trial where it was alleged that the defendants had violated United States copyright law, and otherwise violated various commercial non-compete agreements. Plaintiff’s appeal to the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit was ultimately withdrawn as part of a settlement. Several years later, O’Rourke & Associates, on behalf of its clients, successfully sued Hall’s in Connecticut Superior Court to recover attorneys’ fees incurred in defending the federal court action.
Breach of Fiduciary Duty
Ryan v. Smith, 3:99-CV-284 (DJS) (United States District Court, D. Conn.)
O’Rourke & Associates concluded a three-year representation of several individual and corporate defendants arising from an adversarial proceeding brought in the Bankruptcy Court for the District of Connecticut. The case involved a multi-count Complaint alleging fraud and breach of fiduciary duty against former officers and directors. In addition, we filed counterclaims alleging fraud and malfeasance against the plaintiffs.
In representing its clients in the Ryan v. Smith matter, O’Rourke & Associates matched its resources against several institutional law firms that had been retained by the Trustee in Bankruptcy, as well as the Unsecured Creditors Committee and Debtor in Possession. This litigation involved conducting direct and cross examination on preliminary pre-trial hearings, drafting and arguing a number of substantive motions, conducting many depositions and ultimately negotiating a favorable settlement on the eve of trial with the intervention of the presiding United States District Court Judge.
Divorce
Thompson v. Thompson, Connecticut Superior Court
O’Rourke & Associates represented husband in complex divorce action involving complex financial matters involving millions of dollars. After a twenty-day trial, we obtained a favorable decision from the court.
Construction Litigation
Zabel v. Thomas Abbotts General Contracting, LLC, 2013 WL 6926132 (Conn. Super. Dec. 12, 2013)
Representing plaintiff home owners in a dispute with their contractor for converting tens of thousands in funds paid to the contractor who then refused to complete work on the home, O’Rourke & Associates successfully obtained a judgment, after a hearing in damages, in the amount of $360,931.25, including compensatory damages and punitive damages, all of which were trebled under Connecticut’s Unfair Trade Practices Act (“CUTPA”).
Real Estate Dispute
Feinstein v. Keenan, 2013 WL 5969137 (Conn. Super. Oct. 17, 2013)
Sellers of home, represented by O’Rourke & Associates, were sued for over $2 million by buyers of home for alleged breach of contract and fraud. O’Rourke & Associates successfully defended the Sellers in the litigation. O’Rourke & Associates also secured an award of $177,000 for its clients as the “prevailing party” in the litigation.
Commercial Representation
We recently represented several senior executives and professionals in negotiating a variety of complex agreements, including: (i) the terms of an Employment Agreement and Stock Agreement for the Chief Executive Officer of a pharmaceutical start-up, (ii) the terms of the Employment Agreement for a client joining a Hedge Fund, and (iii) the terms of a Separation Agreement for a departing senior executive from a large investment firm.