Attorney Leslie E. Van Alstine II's Legal Cases

Criminal defense

Jury trial acquittal for a life offense

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OUTCOME: Acquittal

A young man was facing life in prison because he was accused of causing the death of his friend. The trial was a success for us because we were able to demonstrate, through expert testimony, that he w ... as not responsible for the death. The prosecutor really pulled out the stops in this case. They even convinced the court to allow a jury view of evidence that the jury was able to determine as irrelevant. This was an important case because there was never any doubt of my client's innocence. He has since gone on to have a very successful life and I am very proud of the results of this case.

Criminal defense

Delivery of Marjiuana

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OUTCOME: Dismissal after 3 days of jury trial

A young man was accused of delivering marijuana to a young woman. The State had lined up several witnesses to the transaction and had some amount of marijuana that they claimed was delivered by my cli ... ent to the young woman. We had just finished our first day of presenting our defense witnesses, including a young man who testified that the girl had actually taken the marijuana from her father. During a recess in the trial the local drug enforcement team did a random fly-over of the girl's parent's property. They identified several marijuana plants growing on the property. After securing a search warrant the drug team found several kilos of processed marijuana in the girl's home. The prosecutor had the wisdom to dismiss the case against my innocent client before it was given to the jury for deliberation.

Litigation

Defense of Consumer Protection Case

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OUTCOME: Jury delivered no cause of action.

A consumer protection case were the Plaintiff was claiming that a roofing company did not comply with the terms of a contract, thereby resulting in a leaking roof several months after it was installed. ... The Plaintiff refused to settle the case for after the parties mediated the issues. At trial expert testimony combined with lay witness testimony established that the Plaintiff/consumer did not heed the advice of the roofing company. The Plaintiff would not allow the roofing company to use the proper techniques and materials to complete the job in an attempt to reduce costs. The jury returned a verdict that dismissed all of Plaintiff's claims.

Litigation

Fraud, Silent Fraud, and Unjust Enrichment

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OUTCOME: Bench trial resulting in no cause of action.

The purchasers of a home sued the seller for fraud, silent fraud, and unjust enrichment. The purchasers claimed that the seller failed to disclose a second septic system on the property that serviced ... part of the home. After the undisclosed septic failed the purchasers sued the seller. The testimony of the Plaintiffs' expert witness established that septic systems have a life expectancy. The Defendant's lay witnesses testified that the septic appeared to work fine even after the closing. The use of discovery in this matter,and the proper introduction of closing documents, combined with Plaintiffs' expert's own opinion resulted in the Court finding that Defendant did not commit any fraud.

Employment and labor

Employment Case

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OUTCOME: Back pay and reinstatement of employment.

Through a trial in front of a Tribal Court we were able to prove through the introduction of evidence of a terminated employee's employment file, as supported by testimony of lay witnesses, that an emp ... loyee was wrongfully terminated. In addition to receiving all of Plaintiff's back pay for the period he/she was unemployed, and an award for lost benefits and attorney fees, the Plaintiff was allowed to return to his/her prior employment.

Litigation

Dissolution of Partnership, Unjust Enrichment Claim

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OUTCOME: Settlement that was beneficial to Defendant.

A partnership that involved assets in excess of seven figures dissolved after the partners had a serious falling out. The aggrieved partner claimed that it was due one half of all value of the partner ... ship. The case was filed by Plaintiff, the aggrieved partner, asserting several theories for recovery. The parties engaged in significant discovery which resulted in very different testimony from several witnesses, both lay and expert. The parties were ordered by the court to participate in alternative dispute resolution. It became apparent that neither party was willing to move away from their respective positions, and the first alternative dispute resolution failed. Plaintiff failed to successfully win any of its pretrial dispositive motions. We used several procedural techniques to systematically defeat most of Plaintiff's positions and controlled the speed and methods of pretrial actions. The court became frustrated with Plaintiff's inability to comply with the procedural hurdles that were properly placed before it and ordered additional alternative dispute resolution before it would hear the case in chief. The use of additional discovery right up until the eve of the alternative dispute resolution combined with aggressive defense of each and every claim made by Plaintiff resulted in Plaintiff settling for a settlement of around 2% of its claimed damages and it agreed to completely waive any interest in any of the partnership's assets. The amount of the settlement was significantly less than the cost that would have been spent if we had proceeded to be successfully on the merits at trial.

Leslie E. Van Alstine II's Legal Cases (6)

Jury trial acquittal for a life offense

Delivery of Marjiuana

Defense of Consumer Protection Case

Fraud, Silent Fraud, and Unjust Enrichment

Employment Case

Dissolution of Partnership, Unjust Enrichment Claim