Blog

IT IS SO ORDERED. CRK's client gets trial after defendant's motion for summary judgment is denied.

2012-01-18T17:00:00Z

In 2005 Evergreen Homes and Evergreen Investment Corporation were identified on the Weatherhead School's list of Northeast Ohio's 100 fastest growing companies. Two years later they had shut their doors and filed bankruptcy. CRK represented the bankruptcy trustee in pursuing multi-million dollars claims against the law firm which had represented the Evergreen companies throughout this period. The Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas denied the law firm's request for summary judgment. Trial dates will be set shortly.

Cohen and Bristol named as Super Lawyers - again.

2012-01-01T05:00:00Z

Ohio "Super Lawyer" Magazine's 2012 edition lists Josh Cohen as a "super lawyer" in the area of business litigation and Jason Bristol as a "rising star." "Super lawyers" honors the top five percent of Ohio's attorneys in their given fields.

Peter Pattakos Joins CRK

2011-12-12T17:00:00Z

CRK is pleased to announce that Peter Pattakos has joined the firm in an of-counsel capacity. Peter mainly practices in the area of complex and general civil litigation. A native of Akron, Ohio, he attended New York University and Northwestern University School of Law before beginning his legal career at Jones Day in Cleveland, from where he branched out to build a solo practice before joining CRK.

While at Jones Day, Peter was part of successful representations of corporate clients in commercial contract and insurance coverage disputes, securities, shareholder, and derivative litigation, antitrust litigation, and in investigations conducted by the Securities & Exchange Commission and the United States Department of Justice. Since leaving Jones Day, Peter has undertaken the representation of a diverse clientele, including a local media personality who was assaulted by an NFL player, an attorney who was discriminated against by a prominent Cleveland law firm, a doctor who was frozen out of a business he helped to build just as the business became profitable, a private citizen who was falsely depicted on a local television program as a "wanted fugitive," a member of the town council of Woodmere, Ohio in a civil rights dispute, the Trumbull County Engineer in an employment discrimination suit, and various representations on behalf of local small business owners.

In addition to practicing law, Peter writes and edits the website, Cleveland Frowns, which comments on the Cleveland sports scene and has received national critical acclaim. Peter is also a regular columnist for Cleveland Scene magazine.

IT IS SO ORDERED: Court Dismisses City's Subprime Claims

2011-11-23T16:32:00Z

The Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas dismisses on summary judgment the City's claims against JP Morgan and GMAC for public nuisance and violation of the state racketeering statute based on their securitization of subprime mortgages in Cleveland and foreclosures improperly prosecuted in the City. The Court lets stand the City's claim to recover demolition costs on properties owned by the firms. The City will likely appeal the Court's decision.

PLAIN DEALER: "The Lawyer Who Sued Wall Street"

2011-11-16T17:00:00Z

In an article entitled "The Lawyer who Sued Wall Street," Plain Dealer columnist Chris Evans discusses Josh Cohen's role in suing Wall Street firms on behalf of the City of Cleveland over their role in the subprime foreclosure crisis, and the parallels between that litigation and the Occupy Wall Street Movement.

AT THE PODIUM: "Stockbroker Malpractice"

2011-10-28T15:11:00Z

Josh Cohen spoke on the topic of "Stockbroker Malpractice" at a Business Litigation seminar sponsored by the Ohio Association of Justice. Josh's presentation focused on particular types of broker misconduct as well as the mechanics of securities arbitration.

IT IS SO ORDERED. Ohio Supreme Court declines to review appellate court ruling in favor of CRK's client.

2011-08-24T16:59:00Z

The Ohio Supreme Court rejected a debtor's attempt to seek further review of Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas Orders of Granishment, and declined jurisdiction to review the case. The trial court's orders to pay granished funds into Court are now final and non-appealable. This is a major victory for CRK's client because the debtors insisted that the law on which CRK's client was relying to satisfy a judgment had been supplanted by the statute for decades. The Ohio Supreme Court did not agree.

IT IS SO ORDERED: Court approves FirstMerit Settlement

2011-08-17T20:19:00Z

Judge Jose Villenueva of the Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas approves the proposed settlement between Receiver Matthew Fornshell and FirstMerit Bank in litigation arising from the Ponzi scheme run by Joanne and Alan Schneider. The $10.5 million settlement will give investors more than 17 percent of the losses they sustained in buying promissory notes from the Schneiders. CRK represented Fornshell in the case, which began in 2006.

Settlement Announced in FirstMerit Litigation

2011-07-20T20:02:52Z

The parties announce a proposed settlement in the litigation between Receiver Matthew Fornshell and FirstMerit Bank concerning the Ponzi scheme run by Joanne and Alan Schneider. The court must approve the settlement before it becomes final. CRK represents Fornshell in the lawsuit, which began in 2006. If approved, the settlement will benefit investors who suffered losses from purchasing promissory notes from the Schneiders.

BLOOMBERG: "Foreclosures prompts four U.S. cities to sue banks for mowing, repair costs"

2011-05-12T20:44:24Z

Bloomberg news service runs an article concerning the lawsuits filed by Cleveland and three other cities to recover damages caused by the foreclosure crisis. The article discusses the cases filed by Cohen Rosenthal & Kramer on Cleveland's behalf against Wall Street firms based upon their securitization of subprime mortgages and their practice of filing "sham foreclosure complaints."