Attorney Elena Rivkin Franz was quoted for the Credit Union Times publication on the new Fannie Mae regulations lending to homeowners who have strategic defaults.  Read the article here:  http://www.cutimes.com/Issues/2010/July-7-2010/Pages/Fannie-Mae-to-Target-WalkAways.aspx

Attorney Elena Rivkin Franz of Pratt & Associates achieved a confidential settlement in a case against Countrywide, Bank of America and BAC Servicing for her real estate developer client who had his construction loan funding inexplicably cancelled mid-stream during construction of a luxury residence in the Tahoe Truckee area.

Elena Rivkin Franz of Pratt & Associates recently won a trial victory for her real estate developer clients in Alameda County Superior Court, related to their investment in Fremont, California, clearing the way for her clients to sell the property. Attorney Franz was able to secure past damages and also won an order from the court forcing the opposing party to comply with her clients’ request.

Susan Bishop was recently quoted in an article for CNNMoney.com regarding independent contractors versus employees and the audits and penalties that come with the misclassification of workers. Read the full article at http://bit.ly/ajqqr1.

Rosalia Tapia recently settled a hotly contested wage and hour case on terms very favorable to her employer client, a large food manufacturing company in California. Attorney Tapia’s aggressive defense of the matter was key in arriving at a nominal settlement amount, substantially below plaintiff’s original demand at the mediation.

A nuisance lawsuit filed by Sharon Glenn Pratt recently forced the removal of a giant tree from land adjoining her client’s property in Santa Cruz County. The tree had been threatening her client’s Ben Lomond home after being damaged in severe weather. A fallen limb from the tree had caused extensive property damage, yet the owners of the tree had ignored all requests to remove it. The client’s homeowners insurance policy was threatening non-renewal if the tree was not removed, and the clients were fearful for their own safety as well.

Sharon Glenn Pratt achieved two substantial settlements in March for her condominium association client, for past due assessments which had previously remained unpaid for years. Pratt & Associates collected by filing lawsuits against the non-paying owners personally, and pursuing default judgments, rather than placing liens on the devalued properties. The condominium association received payment in full for all of the past due amounts, plus the collection costs and attorney fees.

One of Susan E. Bishop’s cases was recently included on Lexis Nexis. In Chong’s Produce v. Naddir Meshaal dba Farm Fresh Produce and Farm Fresh, Ms. Bishop sought a temporary restraining order in accordance with the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act. The Honorable Judge Fogel of the United States District Court for the Northern District issued a temporary restraining order against the company who received produce but did not pay for it. As a result of the temporary restraining order, the company’s bank accounts were frozen. The case was quickly resolved.

Congratulations to attorney Susan Bishop and her husband, who welcomed a new baby girl last October. Ms. Bishop returned to work as of February 2010.

Congratulations to attorney Elena Franz and her husband, who welcomed a new baby girl last September. Ms. Franz returned to work as of January 2010.

Attorney Sharon Glenn Pratt of Pratt & Associates has won a motion for attorney’s fees and defeated the opposing party’s motion for fees and motion to tax costs. Sharon Glenn Pratt’s client was found to be the prevailing party in defending a homeowners association lawsuit with an anti-SLAPP motion in Santa Clara Superior Court. On December 18, 2009, Ms. Pratt’s client was awarded attorney’s fees of over $24,000 and costs of over $3000 against the plaintiff. The Court found that the opposing party did not prevail on any cause of action, and its motion for fees and costs was denied.

Attorney Susan Bishop of Pratt & Associates achieved an arbitration victory for her business owner client recently, after a day long arbitration. The California business owner was being accused of sexual harassment by the plaintiffs, who are former employees of the company.

Attorney Rosalia Burgueño Tapia of Pratt & Associates recently won a breach of contract lawsuit in which she recovered both monetary damages and attorney’s fees for her client, the owner of a trade show booth, against a defendant which had custody of the trade show booth and refused to return it. At arbitration, Ms. Tapia successfully argued that the defendant company and its owner had breached the contract and were liable for the value of the trade show booth, as measured by a unique method. The arbitrator agreed with Ms. Tapia on both liability and the calculation of damages. The arbitrator also affirmed Ms. Tapia’s argument that the plaintiff should fully recover its attorney’s fees.