KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (Legal Newsline) – A personal injury law firm’s recent motion to dismiss reveals the past details of its court fight with a litigation services professional who sued over the proceeds of mass tort litigation.
Erik Cooper sued Blum Collins on April 11 in Tennessee federal court, alleging the firm reneged on an agreement after he was hired to provide exclusive marketing services to find new clients for lawsuits over the Woolsey Fire in California.
His lawsuit said he was entitled to $799 per hour, reimbursement of all expenses and up to 10% of attorneys fees received by Blum Collins. The settlements were “excellent results,” the lawsuit says.
But Blum Collins’ May 23 motion to dismiss says Cooper has already tried take on the firm in California state court, where a judge granted the firm’s request to send the dispute to arbitration because of a clause in the contract.
Cooper sued on April 26, 2021, in California, but the matter was again ordered to arbitration.
“The arbitrator ruled that Defendants owe (Cooper) nothing, but (Cooper) owes Defendants about $33,000,” the motion says.
“Cooper sues again in this court asserting claims now barred by res judicata and claim preclusion,” the motion adds. “He does so against Defendants over whom this court lacks personal jurisdiction.”
Cooper filed multiple declarations in the California case that he is a resident of that state, as have the defendants, they say, leaving no diversity jurisdiction that would warrant filing a case in Tennessee federal court.
Plus, the $75,000 threshold of damages is not an issue because the arbitrator’s decision did not reach it, they say.
“(A)ll the evidence and witnesses in this proceeding are in Los Angeles County, California – including Plaintiff Cooper, who resides there,” the motion says. “The parties agreed when they signed an agreement in California that California law would govern their dispute.”
The firm hired Cooper to conduct public information seminars in Los Angeles County after the Woolsey Fire killed three people and destroyed more than 1,000 homes in the Malibu area. It needed quick action to inform potential clients of their potential claims because of a short statute of limitations to sue Southern California Edison.
The firm said Cooper did little or no work and instead tried to extract more than $700,000 in exchange for not spreading false and defamatory statements.