Free Newsletter
No Contract to Complete Stock Sale
An investment company could not sue Freddie Mac and the Federal Housing Finance Agency for breach of contract for refusing to complete a 2008 proposed deal to buy Freddie Mac’s $3 billion portfolio of Low Income Housing Tax Credits for $3.4 billion, after the U.S. Treasury Department refused to approve the sale; the 4th Circuit […]
Data Center Loses Fraud Suit Against Seller
Although a data center purchased by plaintiff lost its largest client, Amazon, 13 months after the sale, plaintiff’s suit against defendant seller alleging multiple counts of fraud and breach of contract fails after a three-week trial in Fairfax Circuit Court. Plaintiff Lynnwood Tech Holdings LLC is wholly owned and managed by ByteGrid Holdings LLC. Plaintiff […]
Whistleblowers Get Bigger Cut of VFATA Win
In this whistleblower case under the Virginia Fraud Against Taxpayers Act, in which the commonwealth chose not to intervene, the Relators’ share of the $1.25 settlement for defendants’ fraudulent conduct is 28 percent of the entire proceeds, not the net proceeds after reimbursement of the federal government; the Fairfax Circuit Court grants the qui tam […]
Appeal Bond Ordered in TV Signal Piracy Case
In this litigation arising out of the unauthorized distribution of DIRECTV satellite programming to viewers at Massanutten Resort that resulted in a $2.3 million judgment against defendants Randy Coley and East Coast Cablevision LLC, a Harrisonburg U.S. District Court grants DIRECTV’s motion for a $75,000 appeal bond under Fed. R. App. P. 7, to include […]
Dentist’s Antitrust Claims Against DMAS Dismissed
Plaintiff dentist who, under a contract with defendant Virginia Department of Medical Assistance Services, allegedly was treating 75 percent of eligible Medicaid patients in the Roanoke Valley, has not stated any antitrust claims against DMAS or additional dentists for dental practice groups in the wake of DMAS’ termination of plaintiff’s contract in favor of other […]
Contractor Could Not Bypass Claim Exhaustion
A contractor that missed a deadline in constructing a wastewater treatment system could not proceed directly to federal court when the city began assessing liquidated damages for the missed deadline, but was obliged to exhaust agency administrative procedures; the 4th Circuit upholds the district court’s dismissal for lack of subject matter jurisdiction. Appellant Balfour Beatty […]
Exec’s Family Wins $23M for Investment Fraud
A divided 4th Circuit panel upholds a jury award of $23 million against an investment company that breached an agreement to lend money for the acquisition, maintenance, and certain investments relating to life insurance policies obtained for an executive and his wife. Investment trusts In this appeal, we consider breach of contract claims brought by Fleur […]
No Jury for FCA Successor Liability Claim
In this ongoing False Claims Act litigation over a bid-rigging scheme conjured up by shipping businesses to defraud the U.S. on contracts for moving military personnel around the globe, the Alexandria U.S. District Court strikes the relator’s jury demand with respect to his claim for successor liability against GovLog, and the case will be tried […]
No FCA Claims Against Individual Contractor Execs
Plaintiff, a former deputy program manager and chief of security in Kabul, Afghanistan for defendant government contractor, cannot sue individual employees of defendant corporation for retaliation under the False Claims Act; the FCA, both before and after the 2009 amendment, does not permit a plaintiff to sue individual employees of the corporate employee for retaliation. […]
Company Owner Can Sue for Fraudulent Inducement
Plaintiff small business, founded by a former service technician for defendant Pitney Bowes Inc., can sue PBI for fraudulent inducement regarding a dealer agreement the parties had for plaintiff to service PBI products, that defendant allegedly used to damage plaintiff’s business; however, the Alexandria U.S. District Court dismisses plaintiff’s claim under the Connecticut Unfair Trade [&helli[...]
Buyer Alleging Fraud Can Try Damages Claim
A plaintiff who sued for fraud alleging he discovered after purchasing two franchise restaurants that the sellers had provided inflated monthly sales figures that included an owner allegedly ringing up phony sales can take his case to a jury; the 4th Circuit said the buyer’s use of the capitalization rate to calculate damages is “wholly […]
First-to-File Rule No Bar to FCA Claim
A former physical therapy assistant can pursue his False Claims Act claim that he was fired in retaliation for complaining about overbilling at a care facility, even though the district court correctly dismissed his other FCA claims as barred by the first-to-file rule; because the district court failed to state any authority for dismissing plaintiff’s […]
Verdicts & Settlements
- Plaintiff injured in crash with oncoming vehicle — $235,000 settlement
- Driver killed in rear-end collision with tractor-trailer — $1.5M settlement
- Man died from pancreatic cancer after delayed response — $1.8M settlement
- Worker fell off roof, rendering him a paraplegic — $1.25M settlement
- Driver sustained permanent hearing loss after traffic collision — $240,000 settlement
- Plaintiff suffered concussion in rear-end collision — $81,000 verdict
- Builder misrepresented home status to buyers — $675,000 verdict
- Low potassium led to cardiac arrest, death of patient — $1M settlement
- Excessive propofol caused death in dialysis patient — $850,000 settlement
- Pedestrian struck in crosswalk in hit-and-run incident — $300,000 settlement
- Navy veteran killed in collision with box truck — $1.85M arbitration award
- Motorcyclist ejected from bike in collision with SUV — $1.5M settlement
Opinion Digests
- Company owner dodges breach of contract suit
- Employee’s own allegations doom minimum wage claim
- Federal government defeats former employee’s claims
- Principal wasn’t entitled to exclusively remote work
- USPTO properly redacted info in responsive documents
- Untimely lawsuit allowed to proceed
- Engineering consultant dismissed from suit
- Rule 60 motion was filed too late
- Nonprofit directors immune from ex-employees’ claims
- City, employees immune from whistleblower claims
- Experts excluded in condemnation damages suit
- Judgment entered against company for horse’s death
