News

Litigation Practice Group’s 2016 Successes

January 23, 2017

The members of Prince Lobel’s Litigation Group are honored to offer effective services to the firm’s clients in a broad range of actions.  Our lawyers work tirelessly to obtain successful results.  We would like to recognize the efforts of the Litigation Group by highlighting some of our clients’ victories in 2016.

Hugh Gorman and Jeff Pyle successfully challenged the administration of the state’s affirmative marketing program on behalf of a certified woman-owned construction company.  State officials had violated Massachusetts regulations by setting aside a portion of every state construction contract to benefit a specific ethnic group without evidence that persons within the group had suffered from discrimination in the construction industry.  Hugh and Jeff obtained a preliminary injunction halting this practice, which had resulted in businesses owned by a single ethnic group receiving between 40 and 60 percent of all Minority Business Enterprise construction contract awards in previous years.  In recognition of the opportunities the injunction ruling will create for legitimate women- and minority-owned construction firms, Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly named Hugh and Jeff as Massachusetts “Lawyers of the Year” for 2016.

John Lawler and Heather Gamache received an outstanding result following a two-week jury trial in the United States District Court.  The plaintiff, a 33-year-old mother of three children, alleged that she sustained a catastrophic brain injury as a result of being struck by an umbrella that came out of its stand while she dined at an outdoor restaurant.  The plaintiff claimed that she was unable to work after the incident, resulting in a permanent loss of income to support her family. Her children subsequently filed loss of consortium claims. The plaintiffs presented testimony from eight experts, including two brain injury experts, a vocational consultant, and an economist. The jury found that the restaurant was negligent but awarded only nominal damages.

The Superior Court allowed a motion to dismiss filed by Dan Tighe and Tom Sutcliffe in a class action brought against our insurance company client. The suit challenged the manner in which the insurance carrier handles automobile claims in Massachusetts.

Bill Burke obtained a defense verdict on behalf of our client in a Superior Court motor vehicle case in which the plaintiff claimed our client was at fault in a truck-auto accident that allegedly had resulted in the plaintiff’s wholly debilitating and disabling chronic regional pain syndrome.

Bill Worth and Tom Sutcliffe prevailed on the eve of trial on behalf of our client, a non-profit health care system, when the Superior Court granted their summary judgment motion, resulting in dismissal of the plaintiff’s claims.  The plaintiff had alleged that our client had breached a contract to purchase the plaintiff’s product, engaged in unfair and deceptive trade practices, and wrongfully disparaged the product.

Bill Rogers and Julie Heinzelman secured a dismissal of medical negligence claims brought in Superior Court against a psychiatrist alleged to have improperly prescribed Lithium to a pregnant teenage mother, resulting in the birth of a child with Down syndrome, cardiac abnormalities, and permanent disabilities.

Andrew Baldwin was awarded a defense verdict in a lender liability case arising from a mortgage dispute on behalf of a financial services client in a federal jury trial in the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut.

The Massachusetts Appeals Court affirmed a summary judgment secured by Heather Gamache in favor of a prominent horse farm and equestrian school against negligence claims brought by a former student who fell off a horse during a riding lesson.

Hugh Gorman obtained summary judgment in the Superior Court on behalf of a general contractor client, resulting in the dismissal of $5,000,000 in construction defect claims relating to a building envelope and roofing system at a luxury condominium development.

Andrew Baldwin and Bill Worth prevailed on a motion to dismiss filed on behalf of our client, a telecommunications provider, in a United States District Court suit brought under Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act and state accessibility laws. The plaintiff claimed that the location of utility poles on public sidewalks throughout the City of Taunton violated the Act.

The Superior Court granted summary judgment to an attending physician represented by Bill Rogers and Julie Heinzelman in a medical negligence case brought in Superior Court against an attending physician for failure to diagnose and treat cauda equina syndrome, a spinal compression injury that had resulted in serious medical complications for the plaintiff.

If you have any questions or would like to learn more about how we can address any of your litigation concerns, please contact Practice Group Co-chairs  Bill Worth (wworth@princelobel.com) or Dan Tighe (dtighe@princelobel.com) or by phoning either at 617-456-8000.

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