State's Attempt to Close Automotive Dealership Thwarted
Represented a used car dealer in a challenge against the State of Michigan’s summary suspension and closure of two of the client’s used car dealerships, without notice and without due process. Drafted and filed emergency pleadings and appeared in circuit court, obtaining a temporary restraining order in less than 24 hours after being retained, which precluded the State of Michigan from enforcing the summary suspension order. Subsequently obtained a preliminary injunction on behalf of the client precluding the state from enforcing the summary suspension.
Jonathan F. Karmo
Acquisition of Automotive Dealerships
Lead counsel in acquisitions and sales of automotive dealerships.
Richard M. Miettinen
Summary Judgment Granted for Automotive Dealership
Represented an automotive dealership in an action for the negligence of an off duty employee. We obtained summary judgment on behalf of the dealership from the trial court and the plaintiff appealed. The Nevada Court of Appeals affirmed summary judgment in our favor.
Alexander Villamar
Representation of Tier I Automotive Supplier on Labor & Employment Matters
Lead national employment counsel for Tier I automotive supplier, handling all labor & employment matters.
Brian A. Kreucher
Mergers & Acquisitions
Handled numerous merger and acquisition transactions for privately held companies in various industries, including automotive, medical, aerospace, specialty chemicals, general manufacturing, and distribution.
John D. Logan
Successfully Appealed Judgment Against Automotive Dealer and Obtained Summary Judgment for Client from Nevada Supreme Court
Successfully appealed judgment against our client, an automotive dealership, for consumer fraud, deceptive trade practices, permanent mandatory injunction, and attorneys' fees and costs. The Nevada Supreme Court reversed the lower court and directed entry of summary judgment in favor of our client/dealership on all claims in a unanimous en banc decision.
L. Christopher Rose
Successful Settlement Achieved for Multibillion-Dollar Global Automotive Supplier in Complex Patent Infringement Case
Represented multibillion-dollar global automotive supplier as defendant in complex patent infringement case in the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware achieving settlement in favor of our client, after motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim and after our preparation and filing of two petitions for inter partes review before the United States Patent & Trademark Office. The plaintiff in this matter was represented by a top five AmLaw 100 firm.
David M. LaPrairie
Tier I Automotive Supplier Wins Arbitration Claims Brought by Labor Union
Successfully represented a Tier I automotive supplier in a complicated contract interpretation arbitration. The issue litigated went to the heart of our client’s ability to manage its business under the union labor agreement. The union argued the company must first obtain the union’s agreement before changing work schedules. Without the flexibility to adjust schedules, our client risked either shutting down the customer’s assembly line or incurring millions in overtime costs to meet customer production demands. The arbitrator found in favor of our client, affirming management's right to unilaterally change the work schedule for the purpose of efficiently operating its production schedule.
Brian A. Kreucher
Trademark Rights Enforced on Behalf of Automotive OEMs
Enforced various trademark rights on behalf of automotive OEMs.
Andrew (Jake) Grove
Defense Verdicts for Automotive Dealerships Following Arbitration
Represented numerous automotive dealerships in unrelated breach of contract and breach of warranty actions. The cases were tried in private arbitration and resulted in defense verdicts.
Alexander Villamar
Counsel to Tier I Automotive Supplier
Counsel to a Tier I automotive supplier in various OEM supply chain transactions, including resolution of complex supply chain dispute.
John D. Logan
Summary Judgment Granted for Automotive Supplier
Obtained dismissal for failure to state a claim and later summary judgment for an automotive supplier client accused by a former independent contractor of unlawfully terminating his independent contractor agreement. Al-Kahwati Engineering, Inc. v. AGC Flat Glass North America, Inc., No. 2:16-CV-10759, 2016 WL 9403759 (E.D. Mich. July 26, 2016); Al-Kahwati Engineering, Inc. v. AGC Flat Glass North America, Inc., No. 2:16-CV-10759, 2017 WL 4005912 (E.D. Mich. Sept. 12, 2017).
Jonathan F. Karmo
Patents Protected for Alternator Decoupler Manufacturer
Represented an industry leader for overrunning alternator decouplers on their patented technology, which was the core of the their business and represents hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue each year. As their patent was coming to the end of its enforceable life, competitors were anxious to get into the industry and entered the market while the patent was still enforceable. We quickly filed suit and resolved the matter to protect the client's position within the industry.
Kristopher K. Hulliberger
Counsel to Automotive Supplier
Represented an automotive supplier and defeated the efforts of an upstream supplier who sought an emergency TRO to allocate supply from our capacity-constrained client. Subsequently defeated emergency interlocutory appeal to Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals.
Jon D. Kreucher
Copyrights Successfully Enforced for Developer of Automobile Navigation Software
Represented developer of commercial navigation software in connection with enforcement of its copyrights against manufacturers of in-dash automobile navigation systems.
Jonathan W. Fountain
Patent Case for Supplier of Sound-insulated Glass for Automotive Vehicles
Represented a supplier in a patent case involving sound-insulated glass for automotive vehicles.
Andrew (Jake) Grove
Successful Settlement in Patent Case for Software Company Specializing in Automotive Supply Chain Management
Advised a software company, who specialized in automotive supply chain management, in a patent case and reached a favorable settlement.
Andrew (Jake) Grove
Settlement for Supplier of Wheel Alignment Systems
Defended a supplier of non-contact wheel alignment systems by discovering knock-out prior art and inequitable conduct evidence to force an immediate walk-away settlement.
Andrew (Jake) Grove
Automotive OEM Minimizes Involvement in Supplier Disputes
Counseled an automotive OEM on a stream of third-party subpoenas for documents and depositions, and helped the OEM minimize its involvement in supplier disputes.
Andrew (Jake) Grove
Successful Settlement in Patent Action for Supplier of Wheel and Tire Assembly Lines
Represented a supplier of wheel and tire assembly lines against a competitor's patents and reached a favorable settlement.
Andrew (Jake) Grove
Patent Enforced for Wheel Alignment System
Enforced a patent on a wheel alignment system against a competitor, won a favorable Markman ruling, and obtained a favorable settlement.
Andrew (Jake) Grove
Successful Defense of Side View Mirror Supplier in Patent Infringement Action
Represented a side view mirror supplier by finding a knock-out prior art reference that drove prompt settlement in our client's favor.
Andrew (Jake) Grove
Jury Awards Tier I Automotive Supplier $2MM and Denies Vendor's Claim of $15MM
Obtained a jury trial victory for a Tier I automotive supplier that was sued by a vendor hired to design, integrate, and launch a robotic welding line. We counter-sued on behalf of our client. After a five-week jury trial, our client avoided a $15MM damage claim and was awarded a net jury verdict of $2MM.
Brian A. Kreucher
Successful Settlement for General Motors on Patent Infringement Case
Settled a complex patent infringement case in the District of Delaware on terms favorable to General Motors where there were multiple patents and multiple indemnifying suppliers. We successfully found strong prior art and developed non-infringement and claim construction arguments that drove settlement.
Andrew (Jake) Grove
Settlement Driven on Behalf of General Motors
Settled a complex patent infringement case in the District of Delaware on terms favorable to General Motors and its suppliers, where the suppliers also supplied multiple other OEM defendants. We coordinated a defense that helped everyone by finding invalidating prior art, and developing noninfringement and claim construction arguments that drove settlement.
Andrew (Jake) Grove
Successful Settlement for General Motors in a Complex On-Board Computer Systems Case
Served as lead counsel for General Motors in a complex on-board computer systems case against a Chinese company where we brought claims for copyright infringement, DMCA violations, computer fraud and abuse, trademark infringement, trade secret misappropriation, and unfair competition and unjust enrichment. The case settled on terms favorable to our client after defeating the Chinese company's motion to dismiss. General Motors LLC, et al. v. Autel.US Inc. et al., C.A. No. 2:14-CV-14864 (E.D. Mich).
Andrew (Jake) Grove
Seizure of Infringing Tires at Tradeshow
Represented tire manufacturer in connection with enforcement of its trademarks. Successfully obtained and executed order permitting the seizure of tires displayed at SEMA tradeshow.
Jonathan W. Fountain
Summary Judgment and Attorney's Fees Awarded
Obtained a summary judgment and a six-figure attorney's fee award in an action brought in Indiana by an automotive dealer-subtenant and the dealer-controlled landlord seeking to terminate our client's position as lessee/sub-lessor.
Jeff Sorenson
Defense Verdict and Attorneys' Fees Awarded to Manufacturer in Sales Representative Matter
Represented a manufacturer and supplier of conveyor systems, principally for use in the automotive industry. Our client’s former sales representative filed suit alleging millions of dollars of commissions, plus seeking doubling of damages, attorneys’ fees, and costs under the Michigan Sales Representative statute. After weeks of arbitration hearings, our client was awarded a full defense verdict of no liability, as well as being awarded its own attorneys’ fees and costs. The former sales representative challenged the award in court, but lost both in the lower court and in the appellate court.
Patrick M. McCarthy
Sale of Tier I Automotive Supply Company
Lead counsel in the sale of a Tier I automotive molding supply company based in Toledo, Ohio.
Richard M. Miettinen
Successful Settlement for Automotive Supplier in Patent Infringement and Trade Secret Lawsuits
Represented an automotive supplier for critical adhesive technology used to attach hardware to automotive windows involving multiple patent infringement and trade secret lawsuits. All of the matters were settled in favor of our clients.
Kristopher K. Hulliberger
Successful Settlement for Fortune 500 Automotive Supplier in Patent Infringement Action
Lead counsel for a Fortune 500 automotive supplier in a patent infringement suit in the Eastern District of Michigan where the case settled in our client's favor after obtaining a preliminary injunction.
Steven Hays
AmLaw 100 Law Firm Settles Patent Infringement Case After Defense Files Key Motions to Dismiss
Represented a multibillion-dollar automotive supplier and successfully settled a complex patent infringement case in the District of Delaware after filing key motions to dismiss for failure to state a claim, as well as two petitions for inter partes review, both of which drove plaintiff, who was represented by an AmLaw 100 firm, to settle.
Andrew (Jake) Grove
Emergency Injunctive Relief Prevents $100MM Sale of Automotive Supplier
Represented a financial advisor in an action to ensure payment of earned fees in which we successfully obtained emergency injunctive relief, preventing the $100MM sale of an automotive supplier.
Bill Burdett
Bankruptcy of Tier I Supplier
Represented the trustees assigned to negotiate, litigate, and resolve a billion-dollar claim pool in the bankruptcy and liquidation of a Tier I automotive supplier.
Bill Burdett
Real Estate Lease
Successfully represented the real estate subsidiary of a nationally recognized automotive manufacturer in an action brought by a dealer-tenant in state court in Hawaii, claiming that our client had tortiously interfered with the plaintiff's attempt to assign a lease.
Jeff Sorenson
Joint Venture – Automotive Industry
Lead counsel in joint venture formation between a leading Japanese automotive supply company and a U.S. product development firm.
Richard M. Miettinen
Sale of Automotive Supply to Japanese Based Company
Lead counsel in the sale of the division of a U.S. automotive supply company to a Japanese based company.
Richard M. Miettinen
Counsel to Automotive Company in EPA Investigations
Defended a major automotive company in an EPA criminal grand jury investigation for alleged discharge of contaminated coolant into the local municipal wastewater treatment plant. After four years of investigation, the DOJ and EPA's Criminal Investigation Division closed their investigation without indictment or criminal liability to the company.
Gary A. Peters
$3.8MM+ Verdict Awarded for Tier II Automotive Supplier
Represented a Tier II automotive supplier against a Tier I supplier who had awarded our client a contract to supply a certain vehicle component for the life of the vehicle platform. After our client had invested millions of dollars into the project in reliance upon the contract award, the Tier I supplier subsequently withdrew the contract award when they determined that they could redesign and manufacture the component themselves at a significant cost savings. After a three-week trial, our client was awarded in excess of $3.8MM due to the Tier I suppliers actions.
Anthony J. Long
Trial Counsel for Automobile Manufacturer in Employment Matters
Trial counsel for an automobile manufacturer in the defense of numerous wrongful discharge and employment discrimination cases. In addition to obtaining summary judgments, we won a "no cause" verdict in a federal jury trial, which was subsequently affirmed by the Sixth Circuit.
Jon R. Steiger
National Counsel for Automobile Manufacturer
Served as national counsel for fuel tank litigation on behalf of a domestic automobile manufacturer.
Robert E. Graziani
Lead Counsel in Acquisition of Tier I Automotive Stamping Manufacturers
Lead counsel in acquisition of Tier I automotive stamping manufacturers based in Troy and New Baltimore, Michigan and Windsor, Ontario.
Richard M. Miettinen
Substantial Settlement for Wiper Blade Patent Holder
Enforced a wiper blade patent against a competitor and obtained a substantial monetary settlement.
Andrew (Jake) Grove
Lead Counsel in Acquisition of Automotive Stamping Manufacturer
Lead counsel in the acquisition of an automotive prototype stamping manufacturer based in Harrison Township, Michigan.
Richard M. Miettinen
Acquisition of Automotive Manufacturer
Lead counsel in the acquisitions and sales of several automotive coatings manufacturers.
Richard M. Miettinen
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