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Jane Doe, a minor, v. John Doe. Represented the plaintiff Jane, who was multiply raped at gunpoint in a local park. Jane and John were classmates. In a civil suit, Jane filed suit against John claiming that evidence discovered after the rape indicated that he had set her up to be sexually assaulted by his friends. Jane also claimed that John's family had used its wealth and resources to arrange for John to leave the country and avoid suit before expiration of the statute of limitations. After extensive pre-trial litigation and motions, John was located and served with the complaint. His numerous motions to dismiss the litigation were denied. Jane obtained a substantial, confidential settlement shortly after discovery in the case began and John understood that he faced tremendous liability for his role in her rape.
Kara "M," individually, and on behalf of her minor son, "Nico" v. District of Columbia et al. Along with my partner, Peter Grenier, represented family of a 12 year old boy who was sexually assaulted at an overnight Summer camp owned and operated by the District of Columbia. Suit was filed in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia against the District and others alleging civil rights violations (42 U.S.C. sec. 1983) and other common law claims. Extensive discovery established that numerous children at this camp were left unsupervised for extended periods of time, and that other campers had been sexually assaulted. The facts and circumstances of this case were the subject of a lead article in The Legal Times. The family accepted a substantial financial settlement, and a trust was established to provide for the client's future support.
Jacqueline "R," individually, and on behalf of her minor son, "Ronnie" v. District of Columbia et al. Represent the family of an 11 year old boy who was sexually assaulted at an overnight Summer camp owned and operated by the District of Columbia. The case was tried before a jury in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia and resulted in a verdict in favor of our client in the amount of $550,000. The District attempted to overturn the jury verdict in post-trial motions, which were vigorously defended. We prevailed and the Court denied the District's motions and affirmed the verdict. The District paid the entire judgment, plus costs and interest. A trust was then established for the benefit of the client which should take care of his future support and needs. Published accounts of this case and the trial are available in the May 30, 2005 and June 4, 2005 editions of the Washington Post.
In re Ms. Jane Doe. Ms. Doe was a freshman student at a local university when she went to a dorm room with three members of a varsity athletic team to socialize. Ms. Doe became extremely intoxicated, and at least two of her companions removed her clothing and engaged in inappriate sexual contact with her. As a result of her intoxication, Ms. Doe's memory of the incident was impaired, raising issues of proof and credibility given that the young men denied, among other things, taking advantage of her. Nonethless, with our assistance and her parents' support, she was determined to bring disciplinary claims against her assailants under the school's code of conduct. The hearing was extremely contested, but resulted in signficant disciplinary action being taken by the school against the assailants. Ms. Doe felt extremely empowered and vindicated by the proceedings and result.
Client v. John Doe. Represented young man who sustained a compound fracture and other significant injuries in an automobile accident caused by a negligent driver. The case was settled pre-litigation for the maximum amount of available insurance.
Mr. L.
v. B. Associates, Inc. Represented
a homeowner against an architectural firm
alleging that the firm was negligent in
supervising the construction and payments
to the general c ontractor for a substantial
renovation of a historic Georgetown home.
After a six day jury trial, jury entered
a verdict in favor of the homeowner in the
amount of $160,000.
Brown
v. Client Corporation ("CC") et al. Represented
the defendant CC, a non-profit housing
services and community advocate organization
involved in assisting low and moderate income
families with access to credit nationwide.
Suit was filed against CC on several legal
theories in a verified complaint containing
some 217 paragraphs of allegations.
The motion to dismiss the complaint filed
on CC's behalf was granted before the
initial scheduling conference for the case.
Plaintiff's subsequent motions to reconsider
the order of dismissal in favor of CC
were denied.
Client Corporation
("CC") v. Dyer. Represented
the plaintiff CC, a prominent business
in the field of association management.
CC alleged that one of its officers
and directors, Dyer, had engaged in secret
negotiations with a CC client
for the purpose of obtaining his own contract
with the client. As a result, the
client broke its contract with CC and
transferred its business to a competing
company secretly established by Dyer.
CC filed a claim against the client
before the American Arbitration Association
and was awarded all of its lost income from
the contract. CC filed a civil
suit against Dyer, and the jury entered
a substantial six figure verdict against
Dyer for compensatory and punitive damages. CC prevailed in two separate appeals
filed by Dyer to overturn the jury's verdict.
OTC v. Clients. Represented
numerous defendants, all of whom had been
partners of a law firm that was sued by
its landlord for an alleged breach of its
commercial lease agreement. The suit
sought hundreds of thousands of dollars
from these defendants. Prior to trial,
the defendants' motion for summary
judgment was granted, thereby dismissing
the landlord's claim. The trial court's
order was successfully defended on appeal,
although a portion of the landlord's claim
was reinstated. That claim, however,
was dismissed by the trial court as a result
of another motion filed on behalf of defendants.
No further appeal was filed.
Client
v. John and Jane Does. Represented
a home buyer in suit against the seller,
real estate brokers, and brokerage firm
alleging fraud and other misrepresentations
for failing to disclose severe flooding
problems with the property at the time of
sale. Defendants' motions to dismiss
the litigation were denied, and the Client
accepted a substantial settlement from all
defendants prior to trial.
Estate
of Deceased College Student v. Phi Sigma Kappa, et
al. Represented the family of college student, who died following an evening of
initiation at a "Bid Night" sponsored by
a chapter of a national fraternity. Discovery
in the case uncovered internal documents
of the fraternity demonstrating that the
fraternity's risk-management programs were
not unilaterally working to prevent injuries
or death from the misuse of alcohol during
fraternity events, and that senior members
of the fraternity had long-ago recommended
that the fraternity go "dry" to prevent
additional incidents of injury or death.
Those recommendations were not adopted by
the national fraternity. The national
fraternity's motion to dismiss the claims
against it were denied. Subsequently,
the family accepted a settlement from the
fraternity and numerous of its members that
included economic and non-economic terms. CNN featured this case in a story focusing on the dangers of college hazing (excerpts of the video appear elsewhere on this site).
Ms. Jane Doe v. Former Boyfriend. Represented Jane Doe in civil proceedings against her former boyfriend who brutally raped and tortured her after learning that she had been in a relationship with another man. Defendant was criminally prosecuted and sentenced to jail for his actions. Civil claims were brought against the defendant in the Circuit Court for Anne Arundel County, Maryland while he remained incarcerated. Defendant filed frivolous counterclaims against Ms. Doe alleging that she had inflicted extreme emotional distress on him by engaging in sexual relations with another without telling him. A substantial six-figure settlement was reached on behalf of Ms. Doe, which also protected her from any future contact with defendant upon his release from jail.
College Client v. Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. Represented Client against the fraternity in a case alleging that the defendant violently hazed him by, among other things, beating him, whipping him, and holding a heat lamp to his face to darken his skin because he was not deemed "black enough" to gain admission to the fraternity. After several days of trial, the jury entered a verdict of $375,000, compensating Client for his injuries and awarding him punitive damages against the fraternity.
Mrs. "B" v. John Doe. (Worcester County) Represented Mrs. "B" as trial counsel after she was secretly videotaped while using a private bathroom in the defendant's condominium where Mrs. "B" and her husband were vacationing. The defendant obtained (and later watched) approximately 12 minutes of videotape of Mrs. "B" as she engaged in acts of personal hygiene. Suit was filed alleging a number of civil claims, including a claim under Maryland Criminal Law Code § 3-902, which prohibits videotape surveillance of others with a prurient interest and creates a civil cause of action for victims. Despite numerous mediations and attempts to settle the matter, the defendant refused to offer a fair settlement. Defendant justified his position, in substantial part, on the grounds that the case was pending in a conservative, small town on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, and that no jury in that jurisdiction would award (or ever had awarded) significant damages for this type of misconduct. Mrs. "B" was advised to reject defendant's settlement offer and proceed to trial. The case went to trial in January, 2005 and lasted less than two days. The jury found in favor of Mrs. "B" on all counts of her complaint, awarding her $101,250 in compensatory and $200,000 in punitive damages, for a total verdict of $301,250. The verdicts were paid within thirty days. Mrs. "B's" post-trial motion seeking reimbursement of her attorney's fees and costs is pending before the Court. ABC 20/20 featured the case and verdict in a November 17, 2006 story focusing on illegal video voyeurism. A transcript of the closing argument in this case is posted on the "Video" page on this site.
In re Ms. Doe. Ms. Doe was a freshman when she went to a dorm room with an acquaintance to socialize. Ms. Doe became extremely intoxicated and incapacitated, and her companion had sexual intercourse with her. The following day, Ms. Doe reported the incident to local police and an investigation began. The students lived in the same dormitory building, and Ms. Doe asked the University to remove her alleged attacker from the dormitory since she regularly encountered him after the incident while going to and from her room and classes. The University did not remove the student, claiming that it would wait until the outcome of the criminal investigation or that it would assist her in moving. We intervened on behalf of the student, initiated student disciplinary proceedings, and demanded that the alleged attacker be removed from our client's dormitory based upon Title IX. Immediately thereafter, the University arranged to have the student's housing switched to another location on campus. A settlement resulted of the disciplinary proceedings resulted in numerous changes in housing, class schedules, and other circumstances designed to allow Ms. Doe to continue attending the university without any contact with or by her alleged attacker, regardless of whether the state ever criminally prosecutes him for his actions.
Client
v. W. Homeowners Associaton. Represented Mr. and Mrs. Client in a
case arising out of a severe crush injury
and below-knee amputation suffered by Mr.
Client while he was volunteering at a clean
up project sponsored by his neighborhood
association. Mr. Stark sustained these injuries
when another volunteer lost control of a
Skid Steer Loader and dropped its steel
bucket onto Mr. Client. The firm retained
three nationally-recognized experts to support
Clients' position that the operator of
the vehicle acted negligently. The
case settled in mediation for the maximum
amount of available insurance coverage.
Client v. PEPCO. Represented Client in a suit against
PEPCO after Client received a deep
gash across her face from defendant's guy
wires. The guy wires lacked the protective
covering required under the National Electric
Code. Client accepted a substantial
settlement prior to trial.
Clients v. Apartment Complex.
Represented Client and her four children
against their landlord following their unlawful
eviction from their home. The family
lost all of their belongings as a result
of the eviction since their belongings had
been put on the street while they were gone.
After realizing the family had been wrongfully
evicted, the landlord refused to allow them
back into the apartment unless they agreed
to waive any legal claims. Suit was
filed, and the family agreed to a substantial
settlement prior to trial.
Condominium Association Client v. Leisureworld et al. Senior citizen residents of this condominium association filed suit alleging that portions of the association's land were taken as a result of the defendants' development of a neighboring condominium building. Residents of the association alleged that their properties had lost value and important "green space," and that critical access to their homes was being threatened by the development scheme. Settlement was reached compensating the association and guaranteeing that access by its members to their homes would not be obstructed.
Estate
of Deceased College Student v. Alpha Tau Omega Fraternity. Represented the family of a freshman
at Old Dominion University who aspirated
on his vomit and died following the fraternity's
Big Brother/Little Brother initiation night.
At the beginning of that evening, four fraternity
pledges sought to satisfy the requirements
for obtaining membership. By the end
of that evening, all four had lost consciousness
from alcohol intoxication. Client died
later that morning, and another pledge was
rushed to the hospital in critical condition.
Discovery in the case uncovered the local
chapter's "Top 100" list of fraternity memories,
and 11 of the top 12 memories involved drinking
or puking from alcohol. The family
accepted a substantial financial settlement
prior to trial, which also included non-monetary
terms designed to forever change the chapter,
its alcohol policies, and prevent similar
tragedy. The Washington
Post featured this incident in an article
focusing on the prevalence of these types
of fatalities in college.
Client v. Band, Landlord, and Numerous Defendants.
Represent Client who sustained a traumatic
brain injury and other extensive injuries
when he and four others were pushed out
of a third-story window at a music concert
at "Solar Haus" in Blacksburg,
Virginia. For some 20 or so years, Solar
Haus had been holding crowded, commercial
concerts despite the fact that it was built
and zoned exclusively for residential use
and lacked a public hall permit. During
the concert, which was held on the third
floor of the apartment, part of the audience
was encouraged to mosh by the band, and
this continued without control by the concert's
sponsors. The group of moshers stumbled
into Client and four or so other attendees
who were standing away from the moshing
at the back of the room. Client fell
back against a mattress that was apparently
covering a window so that noise from the
concerts did not disturb neighboring residential
properties. The window frame broke away,
and Client and four others fell three stories
onto concrete. One person died from
the fall. The client suffered a traumatic brain injury and numerous other physical injuries. Suit was filed
in the Circuit Court for Montgomery County,
Virginia. Substantial financial settlements were obtained for the client from all defendants.
John Doe, a Minor v. Undentified Military Academy et al.. Represent family in civil claims resulting from numerous sexual assaults of a minor student by a superior cadet. The cadet was able to gain access to the student's dorm room by virtue of the authority conveyed upon him through the private military academy's chain of command. The cadet is incarcerated as a result of the incident. Suit has been filed and is pending.
Two
Jane Does v. Unidentified National Sorority,
et al. Represented the families of
two young women who were given third-degree
burns by their sorority sisters during a
hazing ritual. The ritual included
disturbing simulations involving sexual
content. ABC 20/20 featured this incident
in a report dealing with the purported increase
of violent hazing in sororities. The
families accepted a substantial financial
settlement prior to trial (from the sorority
and individual perpetrators), which also
included the imposition of numerous non-monetary
sanctions designed to change the initiation
practices and prevent future injuries.
Estate of Deceased College Student v. Numerous Defendants. Represented the family of
a college student who died following an evening
of initiation by the Knights of College
Leadership at Ferris State University (Big
Rapids, Michigan). CBS 48 Hours portrayed
this incident in a story dealing with fraternity
initiations and drinking deaths. The fraternity
pledges were directed to play a drinking
game involving the "wheel of torture." Client lost consciousness, and was carried to an
upstairs bedroom and left unattended, despite
the fact that fraternity brothers knew that
he was helpless and needed to be monitored.
Client died of alcohol poisoning, and is
survived by his parents, sister and nephew.
The family obtained a substantial
financial settlement
Retained to represent family of Matthew Carrington who died during a local fraternity initiation at California State University at Chico. Suit was filed in May, 2005. The case has been settled with significant financial settlements from many of the defendants. This case has been portrayed in numerous national stories concerning the dangers of hazing, and the client’s surviving mother was successful in causing passage of landmark anti-hazing legislation in California.
Client v. Sigma Chi Fraternity et al.
With Jim Kitchens, Esq. of Jackson, Mississippi,
represented a young man who sustained a traumatic
brain injury during a fraternity pledge
event and party. Suit was filed
in the Circuit Court of the First Judicial
District of Hinds County, Mississippi. Extensive discovery could not uncover who caused the young man's injuries at the event where underaged drinking was rampant, as it appeared that numerous fraternity members were unwilling to tell the truth. The case was eventually settled for an undisclosed amount.
Client v. SMF High School, et al. Represented
a freshman high school student
who was hazed by older, stronger wrestlers
in the school's locker room. On numerous
occasions Client was forcibly held down and
prodded on the rectum with a broomstick
the perpetrators named "Pedro." These
incidents prompted students to humiliate
the plaintiff in the school hallways with
taunts that he "liked it up the butt," or
that he was gay. ABC 20/20 featured
this incident in a report on the increase
in violent hazing in high schools.
The family accepted a substantial confidential
settlement on behalf of his client from
the individual perpetrators and the school,
and obtained concessions from the school
designed to implement important changes
in its codes of conduct to prevent future
harm to students.
Jane Doe v. Undisclosed Defendants. With Ohio counsel, retained by family to represent it following sexual assault of young woman at college by classmate(s).
Estate of Deceased College Student v. Omega Psi Phi Fraternity et al.
Represented the family of college student, who died following an evening
of initiation by the Rho Psi Chapter of Omega
Psi Phi Fraternity at Tennessee State University.
Client was a minister to youth in his community.
He was also an honorably discharged Navy
veteran who had been awarded the National
Medal of Honor. Client's surviving parents obtained a substantial
confidential financial settlement.
Client v. Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity et al. With Mary Alice McLarty, Esq. of
Dallas, Texas, represented a young man who
sustained severe injuries when he beaten, compelled to drink gallons of water, and lapsed into a coma. The incident was highly-publicized as it involved allegations of severe, illegal hazing
at Southern Methodist University.
Suit was filed iin the District
Court of Dallas County, Texas. The deposition of a senior official for the National Fraternity revealed numerous prior allegations of hazing, and little, if any, committment by the fraternity to supervise its chapters and prevent hazing. The case was settled after our client agreed to accept substantial confidential financial settlements from numerous defendants following mediation.
Estates of Numerous Deceased College Students v. Tau Kappa Epsilon
Fraternity, et al. Represent the
families of five young students who were
killed on the side of the road near a fraternity
party sponsored by the Pi Eta Chapter of
Tau Kappa Epsilon at Texas A&M University.
The fraternity is located next to a 5 lane,
unlit 65 m.p.h. highway, and it closed the
gates to its parking lot and reserved those
safe spaces as a "perk" for its own members.
Others were directed to park on the highway
shoulder, despite the fact that the police
had warned the fraternity that this was
unsafe and that it had to do something about
this practice. Discovery demonstrated that
the fraternity engaged in numerous violations
of its own risk-management rules, and that
it considered "safe and adequate" parking
at this location a "basic safety consideration."
Yet, it had a long-standing practice
of directing its invited guests to park
on the highway shoulder - in harm's way.
Despite this and other compelling evidence,
the trial court dismissed the action (without
issuing a written opinion) and the families'
appeals all the way to the Texas Supreme
Court were denied, reflecting how justice
can still be denied even in the most compelling
of circumstances. Legal briefs identifying
the facts and circumstances underlying this
tragedy (and telling the whole story) are
available upon request. One substantial
financial settlement was obtained on behalf
of one family under its uninsured motorist
policy.
Estate of Deceased College Student v. Pi Kappa Alpha House
Corporation, et al. Retained by the
family of deceased college student to assist their
local counsel, Marquis & Aurbach of
Las Vegas, Nevada, in civil litigation arising
out of the drowning death of Albert during
a fraternity pledge event at the University
of Nevada, Reno. Depositions of the National Fraternity's representatives were taken, which exposed serious flaws in the Fraternity's risk-management, alcohol and hazing policies. In particular, this Fraternity, like most others, believed that it was acceptable to charter local chapters yet disavow any duties or responsiblities for establishing or overseeing policies that protect students and initiates from alcohol misuse and hazing (prevalent misconduct in fraternities across the country). Thus, the National Fraternity filed a Motion for Summary Judgment seeking to avoid any liability for the death of the Client. The National Fraternity had successfully evaded liability in a similar case arising in Kansas (we were not legal counsel in that case), and it tried the same thing in this case hoping that the same type of arguments that worked in Kansas would work again. The Nevada court rejected the Fraternity's Motion. Shortly thereafter, the family received substantial pre-trial financial settlements from numerous defendants, including the National Fraternity.
Estate of G.B, Jr v. Chi Psi Fraternity et al. Represent the family of deceased student, who died following an evening of hazing by a fraternity and its members at the University of Colorado in Boulder. Suit was filed on April 26, 2006 in the District Court, County of Boulder, Colorado. At the outset of this case, one defendant sought to evade liability for his misconduct based upon the State's Dram Shop Act, which expressly prohibits certain civil claims by victim against a social host where the injuries were caused by the victim's own voluntary consumption of alcohol. Per this defendant, the victim could not proceed with his civil claims because - according to this defendant - the victim's death was caused by his own voluntary drinking. The Court denied that Motion, ruling that the Dram Shop Act did not apply because, among other reasons: the defendant was not a "social host;" the consumption of alcohol was coerced in a reckless illegal hazing ritual; and, it is alleged that misconduct by the defendant following the victim's incapacity was a cause of his death. The case is now proceeding against all named defendants. View the trailer to the documentary "Haze" which deals with this case.
Estate of Deceased Math Teacher v. The Board of County Commissioners of the County of Jefferson, Colorado, et al. More widely-known as the "Columbine High School Massacre." My partner, Peter Grenier, successfully represented the family of a math teacher at Columbine, in a Federal Civil Rights action against numerous parties responsible for the death of this beloved teacher. Peter prevailed against the defendants' motions to dismiss the action (where others did not), and then obtained a large, confidential settlement on behalf of the family. Persons more interested in the compelling facts and legal theories of this case are encouraged to contact Peter and/or review the November 27, 2001 Memorandum Opinion and Order issued by Judge Lewis T. Babcock, Chief Judge of the United States Court for the District of Colorado.
Retained by family to investigate and represent it in claims against persons responsible for the death of their son in a hazing incident during the Spring of 2007 at Rider University.
Capitol
Hill Restoration Society ("CHRS" and North
Lincoln Park Neighborhood Association ("NLPNA"). For several years, two neighborhood
associations and dozens of residents near
the 1300 block of Constitution Avenue, N.E.
fought a legal and economic battle with
Trant Liquors. CHRS, NLPNA and the neighbors
claimed that Trant destroyed the peace,
order and quiet of their neighborhood by,
among other things, selling fortified alcohol
to visibly intoxicated patrons, by providing
drug paraphernalia to customers, and by
allowing its parking lot and immediate surrounds
to be used for drug dealing and other illegal
activities. Despite such allegations and
proof, the Alcoholic Beverage Control Board
for the District of Columbia renewed Trant's
license. Thereafter, Doug was engaged to
represent the citizens in appeals to the
District of Columbia Court of Appeals. Two
appeals to the Court of Appeals were successful.
Trant lost its license, closed, and the
property was converted to housing.
Logan
Circle Citizens' Association. Represented
the Association in its effort to cause revocation
of a license by held by F&W Market to
sell beer and wine. The Association claimed
that the establishment destroyed its peace,
order and quiet by harboring drug traffickers
within the establishment. Undercover police
officers testified to numerous drug purchases
inside the establishment in front of the
store's owners. After several days of hearings,
the District of Columbia Alcoholic Beverage
Control Board revoked F&W Market's license.
Dupont
Circle Citizens' Association. Represented
the Association in its attempt to renew its moratorium regarding ABC-licensed establishments and in several highly contested
neighborhood battles involving bars and
restaurants.
Efforts to reduce the negative impact of
these on residential properties, and in
renewing or extending the scope of an area-wide moratorium
on new licensed establishments, were successful.
Kalorama Citizens' Association. Represented
the Association in its effort to establish
a moratorium on the issuance of new alcoholic
beverage licenses in the popular Adams Morgan
area of the District of Columbia. The Association's
purpose in seeking the moratorium was to
stem the growth of restaurants and bars
in favor of creating opportunities for other
neighborhood businesses to develop and thrive.
The Association prevailed after several
days of contested hearings before the District
of Columbia Alcoholic Beverage Control Board.
Lamond-Riggs
Neighborhood Association ("LRNA").
Represented the Association in its efforts
to cause revocation of alcoholic beverage
licenses to a number of establishments following
an incident where a D.C. police officer
was gunned-down in his vehicle outside a
nightclub. The Association alleged that
these establishments contributed to the
drug-trade and violence in the neighborhood.
The Association was successful in its efforts
following numerous hearings before the Alcoholic
Beverage Control Board.
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