Commercial Litigation
Reid Collins is a trial firm built for battle. When well-resourced opponents and their Big Law defenders stand in the way of our clients and their day in court, we dismantle their defenses and drive our cases to verdict or settlement. Having won complex commercial litigations against some of the largest institutions in the world—spanning financial fraud to fiduciary breaches to contract disputes—we deploy creativity, legal know-how, and courtroom firepower to deliver real results.
Landmark Fraud Verdict Against Global Investment Bank
Following a three-week jury trial, and two years of protracted litigation, we won a $40 million fraud verdict for Claymore Holdings against global investment bank Credit Suisse. As we proved to the jury by clear and convincing evidence, Credit Suisse fraudulently induced our clients to invest in the 2007 refinancing of the Lake Las Vegas development by grossly inflating the value of the underlying collateral. The result was a Top 50 verdict in the United States, and the only jury verdict of its kind against a global investment bank. Following that trial, Credit Suisse confidentially settled a separate lawsuit we filed in New York on other loans alleging the same fraud. The appraisal firms involved in these loans chose not to face trial, and we obtained settlements of $21 million from CBRE and $13 million from Cushman & Wakefield.
Eve-of-Trial Settlement Against Public Company Officers
We obtained an eve-of-trial settlement for our client PNC Bank on claims totaling $63.6 million against three former officers of Nobilis Health Corporation, a publicly traded operator of specialty surgical hospitals and ambulatory surgical centers. Our lawsuit alleged that the Nobilis officers made negligent and fraudulent misrepresentations about the company’s financial statements to avoid a loan covenant default and to secure additional financing. Among the leverage we created, our team extracted damaging admissions during fact depositions and filed a formidable summary judgment motion that forced defendants to the settlement table.
Nine-Figure Verdict Against Insurance Companies
We won a $112.3 million judgment for our client JW Aluminum after a five-day jury trial in the U.S. District Court for the District of South Carolina. The defendant insurers denied coverage for fire damage at JWA’s massive aluminum manufacturing facility, arguing that replacement cost was unrecoverable and that more than $80 million in business interruption losses were too speculative. Our victory followed years of litigation, including an appeal we won in the Fourth Circuit.
No matter how big the defendant, and no matter how complex the subject matter, our team has the legal acumen and the trial skills to defeat our opponents. We measure our success in outcomes and recoveries, and we expect our clients to do the same.