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Served as chair of a panel addressing the termination of construction manager on a major biophysics research building. Beyond overseeing highly contentious proceedings, issued lengthy decision construing scope of section 4-61 of the Connecticut General Statutes, the Connecticut dispute resolution law pertaining to this public construction contract. Decision was subject to judicial review and was affirmed.
Represented S.D. Warren (now known as Sappi North America) as Petitioner both on brief and orally in this U.S. Supreme Court case concerning the ability of state environmental agencies under the Clean Water Act to regulate federally licensed hydroelectric dams.
A single mother and her three children are able to stay in safe, suitable housing thanks to our attorneys. After our client lost her Housing Choice Voucher (Section 8) following a faulty administrative hearing, we were able to secure a new hearing before an attorney who is well-versed in the program and applicable HUD regulations. Thanks to our pro bono counsel, our client’s voucher has been restored and she and her family can stay in their home.
Pierce Atwood, along with Eimer Stahl LLP, represented Citgo Petroleum Corp. as one of the defendants in State of Rhode Island v. Atlantic Richfield Co. et al., case number 1:17-cv-00204, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island. In April 2022, Citgo, Shell Oil Co. and Sunoco Inc., agreed to pay a combined $15 million settlement to resolve Rhode Island's claims against the companies, without admitting to the state's allegations.
We recently represented a bank in a putative nationwide and statewide class action concerning student loan services filed in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. After we and counsel for other defendants filed motions to compel individual arbitration, the case was settled on favorable terms.
Pierce Atwood successfully represented the Maine House Republicans and the Maine Heritage Policy Center before the Maine Supreme Judicial Court regarding the validity of Maine’s ranked-choice voting law. In a first-in-the nation ruling, the SJC unanimously agreed with our argument that the ranked-choice voting law was unconstitutional because it violated the Maine Constitution’s plurality vote requirement. The ruling has national implications for proposed ranked choice voting laws in states that have similar constitutional provisions.
In an action concerning a commercial lease dispute brought against our client J.C. Penney by its landlord, we prevailed on a motion to dismiss in Maine federal court. The court affirmed that Maine law does not include an implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing, and, accordingly, that J.C. Penney did not violate any such covenant in the course of its commercial relationship with the landlord.
Represented one of three siblings in a dispute pertaining to care of mother with dementia and matters regarding handling of trust funds by one of the two brothers. We had the dispute stayed, pending mediation/arbitration, under which mediation occurred on the first day and when it failed, the matter immediately proceeded to arbitration before the same person who had been mediator. We received a total win for our client who was named solely responsible for the mother’s medical care, plus was given sole authority over the trusts. Brother was also ordered to reimburse the trusts for payments improperly made to himself and his wife while he managed finances.
Pierce Atwood delivered a successful outcome to the regional sewer authority Narragansett Bay Commission (NBC) at an American Arbitration Association (AAA) construction arbitration relating to a claim that a differing site condition impacted the installation of a concrete drop shaft. The 30-foot diameter drop shaft was 220 feet deep and connected to the NBC’s one-mile long retention tunnel designed to capture sewerage that historically flowed into Narragansett Bay during rain storms. During the contractor’s grouting operations at an adjacent structure, the contractor’s drop shaft experienced a large amount of water intrusion (up to 250 gallons per minute). The contractor spent $1.1 million to pump out the water and seal the concrete walls of its drop shaft. Pierce Atwood attorneys John Bulman and Katie Kohm handled the defense and the hearings before the panel of three AAA arbitrators. The arbitrators gave credence to Pierce Atwood’s main arguments, found that the contractor failed to carry its burden of proof, and dismissed the contractor’s claim in its entirety.
Pierce Atwood successfully defended a nationwide nonprofit business association and its for-profit affiliate in a putative class action on behalf of members alleging unfair trade practices, breach of fiduciary duty, breach of contract and misrepresentation; we successfully obtained dismissal of five of seven counts and defeated class certification as to the remaining two counts.
