Hired on the eve of trial, we succeeded in getting all fraud and racketeering charges dismissed against an international franchisor and its CEO. A nationally known Washington DC attorney, who is a crusader for franchisees, targeted our client, a leader in its particular segment of an industry. The case was litigated for a number of years during which Plaintiffs pursued Civil RICO (racketeering) and fraud claims against the franchisor. The allegations involved the franchisor’s sales practices used in persuading individuals to buy a retail store franchise. Not only were the Plaintiffs seeking a multi-million dollar award, the Federal Trade Commission was monitoring the case regarding the sales practices allegations.
Our firm was hired to take over the case and conduct the trial. In a mere six weeks, we developed a strategy for the trial and briefed all of the complex legal issues under federal RICO and Georgia law. We conducted a two-week trial in federal court in which we took apart the Plaintiff’s case and their experts and obtained a verdict completely absolving our clients — the CEO and the entire company — of all liability. The jury found no evidence of fraud or racketeering, and the complaint was dismissed.
Evan S. Schwartz
Founder of Schwartz, Conroy & Hack
833-824-5350
[email protected]
