Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani Sacramento Partner Bart Blechschmidt, with the support of Fresno Senior Counsel Ryan Libke, Associate Nathan Maltes, Fresno Office Managing Partner Elizabeth Thomasian, and Paralegal Ashley Borba, obtained a complete defense verdict on behalf of the firm’s client, a certified registered nurse anesthetist partnership.
The plaintiff alleged eight separate causes of action against the partnership and several of its partners, including breach of the partnership agreement, declaratory relief, injunctive relief, access to records, intentional infliction of emotional distress, breach of fiduciary duties, and tortious interference with economic advantage. The plaintiff claimed that he was wrongfully removed from the partnership and that several partners interfered with his ability to obtain replacement work. After a six-week jury trial, the jury found that the plaintiff was wrongfully billing the partnership while he was working at another medical facility and that the partnership and its partners did nothing wrong in removing the plaintiff from the partnership.
Ultimately, the jury voted 10-2 in favor of the defendants and awarded the plaintiff nothing by way of his complaint. Despite the plaintiff’s efforts to obscure and complicate the issues, the defense team effectively distilled a highly complex matter by remaining focused on the core facts and presenting a clear, cohesive case to the jury.