At Beyers Costin Simon, our experienced trial lawyers regularly try cases in court and emerge victorious. Below are a few examples of our recent trial successes.

Permitting and harassment suit: Our client was sued by a neighbor claiming permitting and construction violations. Our client had recently made improvements to their own property and the neighbor wanted the new construction torn down. The neighbor filed a lawsuit alleging permit violations, title issues, improper construction, and harassment. We offered many compromises to attempt to resolve the case, including an offer to purchase the neighbor’s property. The neighbor refused and the case went to trial. After a lengthy trial, the jury rejected all the plaintiff’s claims. As a result of the verdict, our client’s new construction will remain intact, the neighbor must cover all costs incurred by our client, and our client prevailed in a counter claim for injunctive relief to prevent any further harassment from the neighbor.

Water woes: Our client was living in a large condo unit in San Francisco when the upstairs apartment flooded, causing significant damage to our client’s property. We tried to negotiate with the upstairs neighbor and her insurance carrier to cover some of the costs from the damage. They refused to compensate our client at all, not offering a single penny. The jury awarded our client compensation for all her damages, as well as all her attorney fees and costs.

Troublesome tenant: Our client had leased a commercial space to the defendant, who failed to pay rent. The defendant claimed that permit violations and other factors negated his obligations under the lease. Our client was willing to settle but the defendant refused to even negotiate, convinced that they would prevail. Instead, all of the defendant’s claims were rejected at trial. Our client was awarded damages, the defendant was evicted, the lease was terminated, and our client regained possession of the property.

Fraud allegations: Our client was sued for breach of contract and sale arising from the sale of a business and allegations regarding the financing of that sale. After the business was sold, the plaintiff accused our client of conspiring to defraud him of the business and the profits from that business. Our client earnestly attempted to find a settlement, but the plaintiff was unwilling to compromise at all and the case went to trial. Even though the co-defendant was found liable for substantial damages, our client was found to owe nothing and was vindicated upon completion of the trial.

Shareholder battle: Our client was a minority shareholder in a corporation when the majority shareholder died. The case involved a complex interplay between probate and corporate law, as the defendants claimed that they were entitled to the shares, which would have given them a majority interest in the corporation. Our client disagreed and we went to trial in probate court to resolve the ownership of the shares and control of the corporation. Our client prevailed, was awarded all of the shares she sought, and now controls a supermajority of the shares.

Fuzzy math: This case centered on real estate properties worth many millions of dollars. Our client petitioned for an accounting and partition of the properties. To complicate the case, many of the properties were owned by entities formed for the purpose of holding title. Although the defendant did not want to give up any interest in the properties or relinquish any control, our client obtained a partition of the properties and a seven-figure cash payout. Our client was also awarded significant damages at trial for accounting mismanagement and accounting irregularities by the defendant.