Case Studies : Litigation

winning strategies, effective results

The Litigation team at Ball Janik LLP works closely with clients to understand their objectives and craft winning strategies. Our results speak for themselves.

    • Oregon Health & Science University Coverage Litigation and Broker Malpractice Litigation

    • Ball Janik LLP has represented Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU), the premier medical, research and teaching hospital in Oregon, on insurance-coverage and broker-malpractice cases.  James T. McDermott, Dwain M. Clifford and Kevin S. Mapes (litigation partners), and Aaron D. Goldstein (litigation associate) handled the cases for Ball Janik.

    • MAN AG v. Freightliner LLC – Fraudulent Transfer

    • On December 15, 2006, after a five week trial in state court in Portland, Ball Janik LLP obtained the largest jury verdict in the United States in 2006 and the largest punitive damages verdict in Oregon history.  Ball Janik partner Rick Stone was the lead trial lawyer in the record-breaking case.

    • Coastal Conservation Association – Reef Fish Litigation

    • Ball Janik LLP filed suit on behalf of the Coastal Conservation Association (CCA) against Gary Locke, in his official capacity as Secretary of the Unites States Department of Commerce, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the National Marine Fisheries  Service (NMFS) over the government’s implementation of an Individual Fishing Quota (IFQ) system for commercial fishing of grouper and other reef fish in the Gulf of Mexico at the expense of recreational anglers.

    • Concerned Unit Owners of the Inn of the Seventh Mountain (Central Oregon)

    • Ball Janik LLP successfully represented several prominent unit owners in a derivative action against the Inn of the Seventh Mountain Association of Unit Owners (AUO) and in connection with direct claims of minority shareholder oppression and breach of fiduciary duty, among others, against certain AUO directors.

    • Gulf of Mexico Red Snapper Litigation

    • Ball Janik LLP represented the Coastal Conservation Association in a challenge to Federal catch limits on red snapper in the Gulf of Mexico. The Federal District Court in Houston, Texas, issued an Opinion and Order on Summary Judgment in March 2007. The Court mandated that the Federal Government issue rules on the shrimp industry addressing red snapper mortality by December 2007. This was a significant victory for recreational anglers, who were bearing an unfair share of the regulations for restoring red snapper populations.

    • Guy Carpenter Professional-Malpractice Action

    • Ball Janik LLP successfully defended Guy Carpenter & Company, LLC (a reinsurance intermediary that is part of the family of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc.) in a case filed in the Idaho Federal District Court asserting several claims by an insurer that allegedly suffered over $55 million in damages stemming from our client’s placement and negotiation of reinsurance agreements.

    • Harder/Sunwest Management Inc. – Bankruptcy and SEC Litigation

    • We represented several secured lenders owed hundreds of millions of dollars in complex civil litigation spanning several bankruptcy cases and an SEC enforcement action. In this complex representation, Ball Janik LLP took the lead in coordinating the litigation efforts of several national and regional firms representing various banks and financial institutions. Ball Janik was also lead trial counsel in both the Bankruptcy Court and in the Federal District Court.

    • Hotel Modera Trademark Litigation

    • Ball Janik LLP successfully defended Posh Ventures LLC in a Federal Court trademark infringement action in connection with the Hotel Modera in Portland, Oregon.  This matter involved sophisticated issues of internet marketing, trademark laws in the electronic age, and significant expert analysis of the likelihood of confusion among the general public about the operation and marketing of the two competing businesses.

    • Marsh & McLennan Securities Fraud Litigation

    • Ball Janik LLP is defending Marsh & McLennan Cos., Inc. and Marsh Inc. in a lawsuit brought by the Oregon Public Employees Retirement System (OPERS) under Oregon’s new securities-fraud statute in the wake of the New York Attorney General’s investigation of Marsh, AIG, and many of the then largest insurers and brokers in the world. The trial court dismissed the entire $10 million case in June 2008. OPERS appealed and Ball Janik is continuing to represent Marsh as appellate counsel.

    • Posh Ventures LLC/Hotel Modera – Diminution in Value Litigation

    • We represented the owner of a high-end boutique hotel that acquired the property at a time when the property had two access points for vehicles, one off of a main thoroughfare. After a two week trial, the jury awarded our client $756,000 in reduced value as a result of the lost access.

    • Waterfront Pearl LP – Cost Overrun and Delay Litigation

    • Ball Janik LLP acted as lead counsel for Waterfront Pearl LP and its lender in an AAA arbitration seeking $6 million damages from MCA Architects PC. After multiple mediation sessions and direct negotiations, the case was settled on terms very favorable to the clients.