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Month: October, 2015
Bryan Sullivan and Stephen Ma Speak on Crowdfunding at Digital Hollywood 2015
Category: Events | Thursday, October 29th, 2015 | Comments Off on Bryan Sullivan and Stephen Ma Speak on Crowdfunding at Digital Hollywood 2015
Bryan Sullivan and Stephen Ma appeared as panelists on “Crowdfunding Update: Exploring Innovation in the Crowdfunding Film-TV-Start-Up Process” at this year’s Digital Hollywood on October 19, 2015.
Further details and a video of the panel can be found here.
Early Sullivan Wright Gizer & McRae Named One of California’s “Top Boutique” Law Firms
Category: Awards, News, Press | Monday, October 26th, 2015 | Comments Off on Early Sullivan Wright Gizer & McRae Named One of California’s “Top Boutique” Law Firms
Early Sullivan Wright Gizer & McRae has been selected by California’s leading legal publication, The Daily Journal, as one of California’s “Top Boutique” law firms. Click on “Download PDF” to see the complete article.
Early Sullivan Obtains Summary Judgment on Behalf of Secured Lenders
Category: News, Results | Wednesday, October 21st, 2015 | Comments Off on Early Sullivan Obtains Summary Judgment on Behalf of Secured Lenders
In Wolkowitz v. Fidelity Mortgage Lenders, et al., a bankruptcy trustee for a recording studio filed adversary proceeding against certain secured lenders, arguing that the $1.5 million deed of trust securing their debt was invalid because the loan was not approved by a supermajority of the debtor’s principals. The Firm obtained summary judgment on behalf of the secured lenders and against the bankruptcy trustee, after arguing that the subject provision of the written partnership agreement was not enforceable against the secured lenders.
Bank’s severance deal requires IT workers to be on call for two years – Computerworld
Category: Press | Tuesday, October 20th, 2015 | Comments Off on Bank’s severance deal requires IT workers to be on call for two years – Computerworld
Bryan Sullivan was recently quoted in Patrick Thibodeau’s Computerworld article “Bank’s severance deal requires IT workers to be on call for two years.” In the piece, Bryan discusses cooperation agreements in connection to SunTrust’s unusual severance agreement, which requires laid-off IT employees to remain available to provide help if needed, including in-person assistance, without receiving compensation.
The full article can be found here.
Veterans’ suit against military contractor remains alive – Los Angeles Daily Journal
Category: Press | Wednesday, October 14th, 2015 | Comments Off on Veterans’ suit against military contractor remains alive – Los Angeles Daily Journal
Veterans’ suit against military contractor remains alive
Plaintiffs claim their employer required them to work months with no days off
By Gautham Thomas, Los Angeles Daily Journal
A labor dispute in the small but lucrative world of private military contracting alleging grueling working conditions in Iraq received class certification in Nevada federal court, surviving a motion to dismiss.
The plaintiffs, mostly military veterans who worked as armed guards in Iraq for a private military contractor, say their employer required them to work for months with no days off, in breach of contract. Compensating for breach of contract and the extra labor could cost the contractor as much as $232 million before punitive damages. Risinger v. SOC LLC et al., 12-CV63 (Nev. Dist. Ct., filed Jan. 13, 2012).
U.S. District Judge Miranda M. Du dismissed summary judgment motions from both sides along with granting class certification. In an order that was at times sharply worded, Du called arguments by contractor SOC LLC denying promissory fraud “incredible.”
“[Plaintiff] Risinger and other guards were required to work seven days a week for months on end due to intentional and preventable understaffing as a matter of practice, not because of the unpredictability of battle,” Du wrote in the Sept. 30 order.
SOC supplied armed guards to the Department of Defense for sites in Iraq in a contract that limited duty to 16-hour days and 72-hour work weeks. But SOC “bid to the man” for the contracts, submitting cost estimates that accounted only for the minimum number of guards required to staff the sites and leaving no room for additional personnel to account for days off or vacation time.
SOC argued that although it bid to the man it did not “staff to the man,” bringing in additional personnel during the period in question to account for rotation.
Attorneys at Littler Mendelson PC, which represents SOC and its parent company Day & Zimmerman in the suit, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
“The representative plaintiff worked four months without a day off,” said plaintiff’s counsel Devin McRae, partner at Early Sullivan Wright Gizer & McCrae LLP. “That’s a representative example of what was happening to these guys – they’re ex-soldiers, they’re going to perform.”
“We think the defendant took advantage of that, and it’s our position that they knew full well they weren’t going to able to meet the conditions of the contract and give these guys a day off.”
The contract claims stemming from the plaintiff’s work record remain after Du dismissed other aspects from the suit, including a claim under Iraqi labor law.
Data from USAspending.gov shows that SOC received at least $1 billion in contract payments between 2009 and 2015, mostly from the Department of Defense for guard services and the operation of ammunition facilities.
Though SOC’s employment agreements are vague as to the specific work hours per day and per week expected from its guards, the company misrepresented the required duty in recruitment discussions, argued McRae and co-counsel Scott E. Gizer, also a partner at Early Sullivan.
Du agreed, ruling that a reasonable jury could find SOC liable for its alleged misrepresentations and breach of contract.
The private military contracting industry is massive, with almost $170 billion spent on contractors by the Department of Defense in Iraq and Afghanistan between 2002 and 2011, according to a report by a bipartisan congressional commission.
Previous labor suits against private military contractors, including several against one-time industry heavyweight Blackwater, now known as Academi, have not always survived to trial.
One such suit against Blackwater – then called Xe Services LLC – alleging denial of benefits due to misclassification as independent contractors, was forced into arbitration based on the independent contractor agreements. Mercadante v. Xe Services, 11cv1044 (D.D.C., filed Jan. 15, 2015).
Another, by two Blackwater snipers who brought a False Claims Act suit in federal court in Virginia, was dismissed in district court but is scheduled to be heard by the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Oct. 29. US ex rel Beauchamp v. Academi, 15-1148 (4th Cir., filed Feb. 11, 2015).
Stephen Ma Quoted in Bloomberg on Bill Gross Wrongful Termination Suit
Category: News, Press, Uncategorized | Tuesday, October 13th, 2015 | Comments Off on Stephen Ma Quoted in Bloomberg on Bill Gross Wrongful Termination Suit
Partner Stephen Ma was quoted in Edvard Pettersson’s Bloomberg article “Bill Gross’s Big Swing at Pimco Seen Hinging on Contract Issue,” which discussed the famed bond investor’s wrongful termination lawsuit against the firm he co-founded, Pacific Investment Management Co. (PIMCO). According to Stephen, it is highly unusual for someone at Gross’s level to lack a written contract, and that his breach-of-contract claim will depend on how the profit-sharing agreement is interpreted under California law.
“This was a very public power struggle and now Pimco will have a chance to tell their side of the story,” Stephen said. “This could become a high-profile slug fest.
Bryan Sullivan Quoted in Yahoo! Celebrity Article on Selena Gomez
Category: News | Monday, October 12th, 2015 | Comments Off on Bryan Sullivan Quoted in Yahoo! Celebrity Article on Selena Gomez
Bryan Sullivan was quoted in Joal Ryan’s Yahoo! article “Selena Gomez Chemotherapy-Rehab Story: Answering the Unanswered Questions.” In the piece, Bryan explains several reasons for why many celebrities choose not to file defamation lawsuits against media outlets.
The full article can be found here.