Represented an affiliated registered investment advisor, trustee, and custodian in claims related to a $175,000,000 investment fraud perpetrated by First Farmers Financial, LLC, a counterparty of the investment advisor. The claims were made by over 53 investors comprised of 11 customers of the investment advisor and 42 Employee Stock Ownership Plans that were core customers of the trustee. The available assets, including insurance, amounted to less than 8 percent of the losses. After two separate mediations over a three-year period, a settlement was achieved without insolvency proceedings or other litigation funded primarily with available insurance that allowed the trustee to maintain the vast majority of its Employee Stock Ownership Plans customer relationships and at the same time resolved an investigation by the United States Department of Labor.

Represented West Suburban Bank in the defense of a nationwide class action alleging breach of contract and violations of the Illinois Consumer Fraud Act brought by purchaser of a prepaid foreign currency card against claims of over charges for unauthorized and improper fees. The case was dismissed with prejudice after the Plaintiff was allowed to file a second amended complaint. Pennington v. Travelex Currency Servs. et al, 114 F. Supp 3d 697 (N.D. Ill 2015)

Represented GreatBanc Trust Company in the defense of a securities fraud class action arising out of cherry-picking scheme perpetrated by an investment advisor. The case involved successive state court and federal court class actions. After dismissal by the state court on jurisdictional grounds, the federal court dismissed the case with prejudice, and concluded that it would award GreatBanc sanctions under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act. GreatBanc ultimately recovered more than $100,000 in legal fees. Pomeroy v. GreatBanc Trust Co.et al., 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 173490 (N.D. Ill 2014)

Represented Brandenburg Industrial Service Company as plaintiff in a tax refund litigation against the states of Illinois and Indiana. The litigation was filed as part of a long term effort to obtain a legal ruling that Brandenburg was eligible to certain tax exemptions to the states’ sales and use tax. After approximately six years of litigation and two separate trials, Brandenburg prevailed and secured rulings, settlements and refunds in 2017 that confirmed Brandenburg’s eligibility for the exemptions at issue.