Firm Notches Two Largest NC Verdicts/Settlements for 2009

North Carolina Lawyers Weekly recently published its annual large verdicts and settlements edition, which listed the largest verdicts or settlements for 2009. Martin & Jones had three of the top thirteen cases on the list, including No. 1 and No. 2 -- predatory lending cases settled for $42.5 million and $38.75 million respectively -- and No. 13 -- a birth injury medical malpractice cases settled for $5.2 million.

The two largest settlements in North Carolina for 2009 were class action lawsuits filed on behalf of North Carolinians who were victims of predatory lenders. In Tillman v. CitiFinancial Services, Inc., et al., Martin & Jones attorneys John Alan Jones and G. Christopher Olson secured a $42.5 million settlement, which resulted in substantial payments to some 11,000 North Carolina borrowers. In Richardson v. Bank of America, N.A., et al., Jones and Olson obtained a $38.75 million settlement, which resulted in settlement checks being distributed to more than 800 North Carolina borrowers

Both predatory lending cases were filed in 2002 on behalf of North Carolina subprime borrowers. Martin & Jones handled the cases, including appeals to the North Carolina Court of Appeals and the North Carolina Supreme Court, from the time the cases were filed through settlement in early 2009.

Martin & Jones attorneys logged more than 15,000 hours of attorney time working on the two lawsuits.  Jones and Olson and received the NC Justice Center’s 2009 "Defenders of Justice Award for Litigation" for their work on the cases.

Read the full article that about the cases that appeared in the January 25th issue of North Carolina Lawyers Weekly.