Weintraub Tobin Secures $20.4 Million Jury Verdict in Orange County Superior Court
Published: April 4, 2017
Newport Beach, CA–Late last week, Weintraub Tobin Chediak Coleman Grodin shareholders Gary A. Waldron and Sherry S. Bragg, obtained a $20.4 million dollar jury verdict in favor of client Todd Kurtin. After a decade-long legal battle, including several stops at the Fourth District Court of Appeal, Kurtin prevailed against his former business partner and real estate developer Bruce Elieff. The lawsuit – Todd Kurtin v. Bruce Elieff et al. Case No. 30-2007-00100307 – stemmed from a breach of contract arising from a 2005 settlement agreement between the parties.
Under the 2005 settlement agreement, Elieff paid approximately $26 million to Kurtin, but failed to pay the remaining sums owed, of approximately $22 million. After filing suit, Kurtin prevailed at the first jury trial in 2010, receiving a Judgment in excess of $24 million. However, a partial new trial was ordered by now-retired Orange County Judge Nancy W. Stock to address damages, only. The Fourth District Court of Appeal confirmed the liability findings against Elieff, but upheld the trial court’s new trial ruling, and the case was sent back to the trial court for a re-determination of damages.
On March 30, after a three-week jury trial presided over by Superior Court Judge Glenda Sanders, jurors awarded $20.4 million to Kurtin for one claim of breach of contract. The verdict was a huge relief to Kurtin according to Weintraub’s Bragg:
“Mr. Kurtin is pleased with the verdict. The jury was required to sift through weeks of testimony and detailed financial information in order to calculate the damages owed to Mr. Kurtin. Thankfully, they got it right. It is unfortunate that our client had to endure a decade of litigation to get to this point. We anticipate the pre-judgment interest in this matter will substantially increase the total judgment to more than $40 million.”
About Weintraub Tobin
With offices in Los Angeles, Newport Beach, Sacramento, San Diego and San Francisco the Weintraub Tobin Chediak Coleman Grodin Law Corporation combines its shared vision and pledges to be an innovative provider of sophisticated legal services to dynamic businesses and business owners, as well as non-profits and individuals with litigation and business needs. The firm continues its long-time and strong support of the communities in which its attorneys live and work.