Mintz Levin Attorneys Secure Victory in Complex Fraud Trial Involving Plainridge Racecourse
3/29/2005
Boston, MA - Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky and Popeo, P.C. attorneys have secured a significant legal victory in favor Gary Piontkowski, former Chairman of the Massachusetts State Racing Commission, and his company, the Plainville Racing Company, in a complex trial against real estate developer Louis J. Giuliano and his Massachusetts company GTWO, which involved allegations of fraud, document manipulation, and diversion of construction funds for personal purposes.
The case involved a complicated 1998 real estate transaction involving the purchase of a 90-acre parcel in Plainville, Massachusetts and the construction of a state-of-the-art harness horseracing track. The transaction was premised on Mr. Giuliano's representation that he had purchased the parcel, would construct a fully completed racetrack and would provide the Plainville Racing Company with a 30-year lease to operate the track. The ensuing litigation involved competing claims by Mr. Giuliano and Mr. Piontkowski to ownership of the Plainville Racing Company, the right to occupy the real estate, and damages, among other things.
After a six-week bench trial in the Business Litigation Session of the Suffolk Superior Court, the Honorable Margot Botsford issued a decision last week in favor of Mr. Piontkowski and the Plainville Racing Company in which the Court rejected all of Mr. Giuliano's claims that went to trial. In rejecting Mr. Giuliano's allegations, the Court found that it was Mr. Giuliano who had knowingly and intentionally defrauded Mr. Piontkowski and the Plainville Racing Company, and had committed deceptive and unfair business practices in violation of Massachusetts law. Specifically, the Court found that Mr. Giuliano had deceived Mr. Piontkowski and his company when he falsely represented that he had purchased the property, fraudulently induced Mr. Piontkowski to enter into various stock agreements, and had diverted hundreds of thousands of dollars of construction funds to buy personal racehorses, custom furniture, and other items for Mr. Giulianos personal use.
"We are extremely pleased that the Court has ruled in favor of Mr. Piontkowski and his company, and are grateful for the extraordinary effort that the Court undertook to analyze the very complicated issues in this case," said Mr. Robbins, a member of the firm's Litigation Section, who headed the trial team. Assisting Mr. Robbins with the case were Rosemary Allen, Joseph Lipchitz, and Michael Day.
Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky and Popeo, PC is a multidisciplinary law firm with over 450 attorneys and senior professionals in Boston, Washington D.C., Reston, VA, New York, Stamford, CT, Los Angeles and London.
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