Shareholder Matthew Hamermesh, associate Thomas Brown and paralegal Maria Hunter secured the dismissal of a legal malpractice lawsuit, which had been pending against AmLaw 200 law firm for over a decade.
The Hangley Aronchick team successfully defended Offit Kurman and its attorneys against claims stemming from a failed real estate development in Sussex County, Delaware. The project’s developer originally sought to recover $40 million from its former attorneys, which the company claimed to have lost due to an ill-fated bankruptcy petition in 2012.
On Oct. 10, Judge James C. Crumlish III of the Court of Common Pleas granted summary judgment for Offit Kurman, extinguishing all remaining claims against the firm. In a 32-page opinion, Judge Crumlish called the lawsuit “troubling” and said he found no evidence to support the plaintiffs’ “self-serving and unsubstantiated” allegations that any advice from Offit Kurman’s attorneys had caused their losses in the underlying bankruptcy proceedings.
In a statement, Offit Kurman’s General Counsel Russell Berger said, “the firm is extremely satisfied by the total and complete vindication that the judge’s order provides to Offit Kurman and the attorneys who were unmeritoriously accused of malpractice. The wheels of justice sometimes move slowly. But this decision shows that the process does work.”
Matthew Hamermesh, who chairs Hangley Aronchick’s bankruptcy practice, added that the firm was “pleased” with the judge’s finding that the plaintiffs had not suffered any damages as a result of alleged malpractice.
“But the judge’s decision also reflects that the evidence supporting the claim for legal negligence and any amount of damages was the slimmest thread that barely warranted a trial,” Matt said. “Judge Crumlish’s careful analysis shows plaintiffs’ claim never had any merit.”
Read Judge Crumlish’s full opinion here. The case was covered in The Legal Intelligencer. Read more here.
