Attorney William Christopher Carmody's Legal Cases

Litigation

Marguerite Hoffman v. David Martinez et al

Sep 26, 2016

OUTCOME: Win in appellate court

Carmody’s most recent litigation success occurred just days ago, on September 26th, when the Fifth Circuit reversed a trial judge’s decision that an art dealer was liable for revealing the identity of ... the plaintiff who the dealer had sold a prominent Mark Rothko painting. In this matter Carmody was brought into play in 2013 on the eve of the original trial to represent L&M Arts, an artwork broker who originally had been accused of breach of contract when an art seller, Marguerite Hoffman, accused L&M and art buyer David Martinez of revealing her identity as the seller of the famous Rothko piece, “Red.” When Carmody first came in, his client had well over $60 million of exposure which, by expert strategy and persuasive argument, Carmody reduced to less that when he got the plaintiff’s fraud claim dismissed. By the time of trial, L&M was still being sued by Hoffman, but now for only $22.4 million. While the jury found in favor of Hoffman, they knocked down the claims to $500,000, a mere fraction of the plaintiff’s original request. L&M appealed this decision and, with Carmody as their counsel, won in the 5th Circuit when their $500,000 liability was knocked down to zero. In its ruling, the Fifth Circuit found that the broker did not breach an agreement with Hoffman.

Litigation

In Re: Municipal Derivatives Antitrust Litigation

Sep 15, 2016

OUTCOME: Settlements now exceed $300 million

In July 2016, final approval was granted for settlements totaling $100 million between plaintiffs alleging price-fixing in the municipal bond industry and six defendants including Societe Generale, Nat ... ional Westminster Bank and UBS, a deal which leaves only those who opted out of the class to litigate the seven-year-old case. Bill Carmody acted as co-lead counsel in this nationwide class action, representing the City of Baltimore as a class representative. The deals were struck as the plaintiffs pursued dozens of depositions related to the alleged Sherman Act and Clayton Act violations. Banks included in the settlements were the following: UBS ( $32 million), Natixis ($28.5 million), Societe Generale ($25.4 million), Piper ($9.8 million), NatWest ($3.5 million) and GK Baum ($1.4 million). Total settlements in this case now exceed $300 million.

Litigation

Medivation, Inc., v. UCLA et al. and Aragon Pharmaceuticals, Inc., (Intervenor) v. Medivation, Inc.

May 16, 2016

OUTCOME: Verdict in favor of Carmody's client

In this high profile licensing matter, Carmody served as lead counsel to Aragon Pharmaceuticals. The original dispute in question was between Medivation Drug Company and The Regents of the University ... of California (UCLA). Medivation sued UCLA alleging breach of contract when UCLA licensed a certain drug compound to Aragon Pharmaceuticals. Medivation claimed this drug compound was previously licensed exclusively to Medivation. In a surprise and winning move, Carmody filed a motion to intervene on behalf of Aragon, asking the court to find that the drug was properly licensed to his client, independent of any other agreement between UCLA and other drug companies. The court agreed with Carmody and ruled that in summary judgement, nulling the original claim against UCLA by Medivation. Medivation appealed the matter and in May of this year the appeals court agreed with the lower court, finding in favor of Carmody’s client, Aragon.

Litigation

U.S. ex rel. Kester et al. v. Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp.

Nov 19, 2015

OUTCOME: $390 million settlement

In a massive whistle-blower suit against Novartis Pharmaceutical company, Carmody represented relator and former Novartis sales manager David Kester who alleged that Novartis paid kickbacks to specialt ... y pharmacies in return for the pharmacies’ recommendations of five Novartis drugs. The federal government and several states intervened in the case. Houston Partner Harry Susman took the lead on the effort with plaintiff-side experts. Carmody was co-lead counsel for Kester. The Department of Justice settled allegations with Novartis for $390 million. Two specialty pharmacy defendants settled out of the case for a combined $75 million in damages and penalties.

Litigation

NATASHA BHANDARI v. TWIN AMERICA, COACH USA, INTERNATIONAL BUS SERVICES, CITYSIGHTS and CITY SIGHTS TWIN

May 30, 2014

OUTCOME: $19 million settlement

Carmody successfully represented the plaintiffs in a major class action suit involving multinational UK-based bus and coach operator Stagecoach. In 2009, Coach USA – Stagecoach’s North America subsidia ... ry – and its primary New York competitor, City Sights, formed Twin America, a joint venture that accounted for a majority of New York City’s hop-on, hop-off sightseeing bus services. In December 2012, the New York Attorney General’s office and the Department of Justice’s antitrust division brought a claim of market monopolization against Coach, City Sights, and Twin America, alleging that the firms broke federal and state laws by forming and operating the joint venture. Susman Godfrey was appointed by the court as lead counsel in consumer actions that were subsequently filed. In May 2014 the parties announced a $19 million settlement to end the consumer cases, a significant victory given the size of the cash settlement and the complexity of the case – particularly in light of increasing obstacles raised to defeat consumer class actions.

William Christopher Carmody's Legal Cases (5)

Marguerite Hoffman v. David Martinez et al

In Re: Municipal Derivatives Antitrust Litigation

Medivation, Inc., v. UCLA et al. and Aragon Pharmaceuticals, Inc., (Intervenor) v. Medivation, Inc.

U.S. ex rel. Kester et al. v. Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp.

NATASHA BHANDARI v. TWIN AMERICA, COACH USA, INTERNATIONAL BUS SERVICES, CITYSIGHTS and CITY SIGHTS TWIN