News Category: News

StoneTurn and Three Partners Recognized in 2024 IAM Patent 1000

StoneTurn is pleased to announce that the Firm as well as three of its Partners, Christopher Martinez, Alan Ratliff and Ambreen Salters, have been recognized for their outstanding work across intellectual property (IP) in the IAM Patent 1000: The World’s Leading Patent Professionals for 2024.

StoneTurn’s Intellectual Property Partners possess experience in providing a range of expert testimony, litigation support and transactional services—from damages expertise to royalty compliance and IP valuation matters. The IAM Patent 1000 lauds the “prowess” of the team, citing the firm’s multidisciplinary capabilities across five continents. The ranking notes, “StoneTurn is revered as ‘uniformly fantastic’ for its services.”

According to IAM, the IAM Patent 1000 “is commonly regarded as the definitive ‘go-to’ resource for those seeking to identify world-class, private practice patent expertise as well as leading expert witnesses in the US… [To] arrive at the 2024 rankings, IAM undertook an exhaustive qualitative research project to identify outstanding firms and individuals across multiple jurisdictions. When identifying the leading firms, factors such as depth of knowledge, market presence, and the level of work on which they are typically instructed were all taken into account, as well as positive peer and client feedback.” Learn more about the IAM Patent 1000.

About Christopher Martinez:

Christopher Martinez—listed as “Recommended” by IAM— is a Co-Founder of StoneTurn and the firm’s Co-Chair. He has more than 25 years of experience in IP damages quantification, intellectual asset licensing and complex financial modeling. Christopher advises companies on the valuation, commercialization, licensing and management of intellectual assets. He has worked with clients across a range of industries, including the pharmaceutical, biotechnology, medical device, semiconductor, telecommunications, Internet / e-Commerce and software sectors.

According to the IAM Patent 1000, “Martinez is a skilled testifier, having worked with top law firms and well-known clients across various industries. He is particularly accomplished in defence trials, including two recent cases for Google in which his testimony led to major reductions in damages amounts.”

About Alan Ratliff:

Alan Ratliff—listed as “Highly Recommended” by IAM—has more than 30 years of experience in client service. As StoneTurn’s first lateral partner, he opened the firm’s Houston office in 2005. Alan advises attorneys and their clients on economic-related, accounting and valuation issues in disputes and investigations, as well as in various transactions including the valuation, commercialization, and licensing of intellectual assets.

According to the IAM Patent 1000, “Ratliff is praised for having ‘deep expertise in the areas of economics-based litigation and valuation advisory services, investigations and compliance/monitoring. What I like most about Alan is that he provides sound, reasoned advice based in real-world evidence and analogies to achieve client objectives.’”

In a recent case, Alan and his team worked on behalf of a top five lithium-ion battery maker in a obtaining a multi-million dollar jury verdict for royalty damages. He also helped secure a reduction of $65 million in reasonable royalty damages on behalf of a client in a case that had been pending for nearly a decade. Alan’s track record also includes helping obtain $175 million in damages for patent infringement for a mobile development messaging app client.

About Ambreen Salters:

Ambreen Salters has more than 20 years of experience in consulting for clients and counsel involved in IP and complex commercial disputes. She has assisted clients by providing a wide range of economic analyses, including lost profits, reasonable royalties, price erosion, unjust enrichment, disgorgement of profits, and market and capacity assessments.

Ambreen—listed as “Recommended” by IAM—has worked in both the London and Houston offices at StoneTurn, and according to the IAM Patent 1000, “Salters is highly sought after for her economic analysis of various intellectual property and her track record for convincing testimony on damages amounts in both arbitration panels and before the courts.”

In a recent case, Ambreen and her team assisted GE Lighting and Current Lighting with damage control in a patent infringement trial. Working closely with counsel Norton Rose Fulbright and Brooks Kushman, the StoneTurn team was able to reduce the award to the minimum royalty, $2 million, from the initial $50 million sought by the lawsuit.

StoneTurn Supports Spotlight, Hunton Andrews Kurth in Securing $16 Million Jury Verdict

StoneTurn recently assisted Hunton Andrews Kurth and Spotlight Ticket Management (“Spotlight”) in securing a $16.3 million verdict against StubHub in a month-long jury trial in California state court.

StoneTurn Partner Atanu Saha served as the damages expert for Spotlight, supported by Managing Director Narinder Walia from StoneTurn’s Los Angeles Office. In his analysis, Dr. Saha estimated Spotlight’s damages from StubHub’s breach of contract and tortious interference with the existing contracts between Spotlight and American Express. Dr. Saha testified at trial in the Superior Court of California (County of Los Angeles) and presented a detailed and versatile damages model to aid the jury in determining the amount of damages.

Spotlight’s Chief Operating Officer, Ken Hanscom, noted:
“The damages model developed and presented by the StoneTurn team was a key factor in our success in this litigation. We extend our heartfelt thanks to Dr. Atanu Saha and Narinder Walia, whose expertise, dedication, and meticulous attention to detail exceeded our expectations.”

The month-long trial resulted in all three counts being found by the jury in Spotlight’s favor. The trial concluded in May 2024.

Read more about the case on Hunton Andrews Kurth’s website, and learn more about StoneTurn’s Litigation Advisory, Business Disputes, and Expert Testimony offerings.

StoneTurn Assists Mintz, Global Gaming Asset Management in Securing Settlement of $300M

StoneTurn recently assisted clients Mintz and Global Gaming Asset Management (GGAM) with resolving a decade-plus long dispute with Philippine casino operators Sureste Properties, Inc. (SPI) and Bloomberry Resorts and Hotels Inc. (BRHI).

StoneTurn Partner Atanu Saha served as the economics expert for Mintz and GGAM. Dr. Saha, supported by Manager Zi Peng and Managing Director Narinder Walia from StoneTurn’s Los Angeles Office, estimated the present value of damages suffered by GGAM arising from the obstructed sale of nearly one billion shares of Bloomberry Resort Corporation (BRC) in 2014. Dr. Saha and the team determined the damages to be $319 million as of August 2022.

The 11-year dispute stemmed from a 2011 contract for the development and management of Solaire Resort & Casino in the Philippines. The contract was terminated by the defendants soon after Solaire opened in 2013. As a result of arbitration proceedings in Singapore, GGAM was awarded nearly $100 million in contract damages and costs, as well as orders releasing a freeze on BRC shares GGAM acquired in 2012, which SPI and BRHI refused to comply with (SPI and BRHI are indirectly owned by Enrique Razon, Jr. through BRC).

Following Mintz’s cross-border asset recovery work, coupled with Dr. Saha’s assessed damages and a January 2024 trial, the settlement was ultimately reached in April 2024, with Bloomberry agreeing to pay $300 million in cash to GGAM, along with full access to over $6 million in accumulated dividends.

Read more about the case on Mintz’s website, and learn more about StoneTurn’s Litigation Advisory, International Arbitration, and Expert Testimony offerings.

StoneTurn Professionals Recognized as Leaders in Technology by Consulting Magazine

Four leaders across cybersecurity, data analytics and forensic technology achieve top industry honors.

StoneTurn is proud to share multiple recognitions for the 2024 Technology Leaders in Consulting Awards by Consulting Magazine:

According to Consulting Magazine, the Technology Leaders in Consulting awards seek to “identify and recognize those consultants in the industry who are not only setting the standard, but advancing the frontiers in the application of technology toward business success.”

About StoneTurn’s Technology Capabilities

As organizations face increased risk and complexity, often accompanied by large, disparate sets of data, StoneTurn’s forensic technology, cybersecurity and data science and analytics experts are leverage state-of-the-art technology to address clients’ most critical issues. From ensuring organizations are protected from cyber threats and helping minimize long-term impacts of data or reputational loss, to the collection, analysis, preservation and hosting of sensitive electronic media, and leveraging cutting-edge tools for data ingestion, analysis and visualization, our team leaves no stone unturned to ensure the right tools are used to mitigate risk.

As technology becomes more sophisticated and organizations grapple with how to manage new business threats, our team remains vigilant in understanding these challenges and providing practical solutions. Learn more about our data science and analytics, forensic technology, and cybersecurity professionals.

Excellence in Client Service: Josh Dennis

Joshua Dennis has nearly 20 years of experience working with clients and counsel on issues requiring complex data analysis, including investigations, economic damages, intellectual property, enforcement, forensic accounting, compliance monitoring, and valuation engagements. Through his expertise, which includes financial modeling and data analysis, Josh has assisted companies and their counsel across a wide range of investigative and dispute-related matters. He not only has significant experience analyzing accounting, economic and business data, as well as issues related thereto, but also applying his expertise to the creation of dynamic visual models that provide clarity and key insights. Josh has worked extensively in matters involving data analysis, mining, anomaly detection, and reporting of transactional and trading data employed across a range of industries, including banking, financial services, manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, e-commerce and retail, among others. Josh has also quantified and assessed reasonable royalty and lost profits damages related to patent, trademark, trade secret and copyright infringement claims, as well as the valuation of intellectual property outside of litigation. He also has experience in evaluating and quantifying damages related to a variety of issues, including contract disputes, purchase price disputes and class action matters.

Excellence in Leadership: Sean Tuttle

Sean Tuttle leads StoneTurn’s Forensic Technology practice and brings over 20 years of experience in managing investigations and litigation matters involving technology as a principal component.  Sean has worked with leading regional, national, and global law firms and corporations to provide technical services on highly sensitive matters involving electronic discovery, forensic collection, computer forensics, e-mail, business document and operating system analyses, and backup media analysis and restoration. Sean has provided expertise on a wide range of cases, including procurement fraud, e-mail fabrication, theft of intellectual property, breach of contract, insider trading, employment litigation, cyber incident response, and various regulatory investigations. Sean has worked with clients across the medical, financial services, technology, retail, transportation, pharmaceutical, healthcare, biotech, and manufacturing industries.

Mentor of the Year: Daron Hartvigsen

Daron Hartvigsen, a cyber threat response and pursuit expert, helps lead StoneTurn’s cybersecurity practice. Daron has specific expertise maturing global cybersecurity practices and teams of experts who solve complex security needs for clients in the financial services, legal, healthcare, insurance, social media, and retail industries. He is responsible for building and delivering business offerings that detect, respond to, and prevent cyber exploitation by threat actors. Previously, Daron served as the Special Agent in Charge of the Air Force OSI’s, Cyber Investigations and Operations unit located at Joint Base Andrews Maryland, Daron led global counter-threat investigations, pursuit and effects operations, network traffic surveillance, cyber intelligence analytics, intrusion response, sophisticated counterintelligence activities, and he oversaw a cadre of digital media forensics experts. Daron partnered with federal agencies, state and local authorities, multiple social media service security teams, and commercial businesses to counter sophisticated criminal and nation-state threats. Additionally, Daron served as OSI’s cyber program manager and cyber investigations and operations subject matter expert while stationed at OSI Headquarters, Quantico, VA. During this time, Daron led the transformation of OSI’s legacy cyber portfolio and drove program execution towards countering nation-state threats to defend the Air Force and DoD from sophisticated and persistent adversaries.

Tech Innovator: Michael Costa

Michael Costa has deep experience in data analytics and data science, financial crime, investigations, complex litigation, and compliance matters. He has worked with clients in the trading, financial services, education, life sciences and hospitality industries, as well as with public sector entities.  Michael has provided data analytics expertise to clients on matters involving compliance and remediation, fraud investigations, complex litigation, and monitorships. Prior to joining StoneTurn, Michael led the data analytics team at a consulting firm in the higher education space. He specialized in student lifecycle analytics, marketing analytics and data systems integration, specifically for Customer Relationship Management (CRM), Learning Information Systems (LIS) and Student Information Systems (SIS). Earlier in his career, Michael spent four years in the Valuation Advisory Services practice at Kroll (formerly Duff & Phelps), where he specialized in tangible asset valuation.

Read more about this year’s winners.

StoneTurn Partner Scott Boylan Recognized as Top Advisor for Foreign Investment, National Security

StoneTurn is proud to share Partner Scott Boylan has been named one of Foreign Investment Watch’s Top Advisors for 2024.

Foreign Investment Watch is an independent information service covering foreign investment and national security, from CFIUS filings to global regulatory updates. The Top Advisors list is comprised of 32 individuals selected from a pool of hundreds of submissions based on a myriad of criteria, including experience and references, one-to-one interactions with the Editorial team, reader recommendations, articles published, and more.

According to Foreign Investment Watch, Scott was selected for his depth and breadth of expertise. The Editorial team notes, “It’s rare that we find experts who’ve sat on literally every side of the CFIUS table. But that’s Scott Boylan. Formerly the CFIUS and Team Telecom representative at the Department of Homeland Security, Boylan has also served at Treasury and Justice. But he’s also served as Chief Legal Officer for large CFIUS-mitigated companies, which means he’s participated in the negotiation of mitigation agreements from both sides. On top of that, he now regularly conducts CFIUS audits as an independent third-party. So, he’s structured CFIUS strategy, negotiated transactions before CFIUS, overseen compliance with CFIUS and FOCI mitigation agreements, and audited them from the outside. Boylan has always carved out time to answer questions from Foreign Investment Watch editors, and has offered practical guidance for readers.”

Learn more about Scott Boylan and find the full list of 2024 Top Advisors on Foreign Investment Watch’s website.

StoneTurn Assists Top 5 Battery Maker in Obtaining Patent Infringement Damages from Competitor

Houston, TX – StoneTurn, a leading global professional services firm, assisted client, Ningde Amperex Technology Limited (“ATL”), a Top 5 worldwide Small Lithium-Ion Battery maker (Counsel: Quinn Emanuel) in obtaining $3.7 million in royalty damages at a recent trial.

Alan Ratliff (CPA/CFF/CGMA/CPVA, MPA, JD), a StoneTurn partner in Houston, Texas, testified on patent infringement reasonable royalty damages on behalf of StoneTurn client ATL in a lawsuit against one of their competitors, Zhuhai COSMX Battery Company (“COSMX”), in Marshall, Texas, in February 2024. The jury returned a verdict in favor of ATL awarding $3,701,108 in running royalty damages through the date of trial on the one patent found infringed and not invalid, the exact amount to which Mr. Ratliff testified.

StoneTurn was retained by Quinn Emanuel on behalf of ATL.  Mr. Ratliff was primarily assisted by StoneTurn colleague Katie Prichard, Managing Director.

Find the verdict form here.

StoneTurn’s experts regularly work with clients and their counsel to analyze and explain complex concepts, prepare detailed analyses, and develop clear and concise findings, which are presented in reports and through testimony at depositions, trials and before other triers of fact. The firm’s experts bring decades of experience in business disputes, working to address the complex financial, accounting and economic-related issues in legal matters ranging from intellectual property disputes to international arbitration. StoneTurn provides consulting and expert witness services for disputes in federal, state, administrative and private tribunal proceedings.

Read more about the case through Bloomberg Law.

StoneTurn Professionals Recognized in 2024 Rising Stars by Consulting Magazine

StoneTurn is proud to share Johannesburg Managing Director Minette Manna and New York Manager Naphtali Rivkin were named as 2024 Rising Stars of the Profession by Consulting Magazine. Naphtali Rivkin was recognized for Excellence in Client Service and Minette Manna was recognized for Excellence in Leadership.

“At StoneTurn, we know we are only as successful as our people, and we are proud to spotlight the achievements of Minette and Naphtali,” said Brad Wilson, Managing Partner and CEO. “Whether mentoring members of the team, stepping outside their comfort zone to pitch in on a project, or stretching their skillset to contribute to the operations of the firm, Naphtali and Minette live our ‘one firm’ approach every day. We look forward to supporting their continued growth in this profession.”

The Rising Stars of the Profession awards are for those aged 36 and under who are shaking up the industry in impactful ways, and redefining the consulting profession, according to Consulting Magazine. Professionals are selected across Excellence in Client Service, Excellence in Leadership, and Excellence in Strategy Consulting.

Learn more about Minette Manna and Naphtali Rivkin, and view the full list of this year’s winners.

 

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Allen D. Applbaum, Partner at StoneTurn, Appointed Receiver of ArciTerra Companies, LLC

U.S. District Court appoints Applbaum as the Receiver of ArciTerra and affiliated entities, freezing certain assets of CEO Jonathan M. Larmore and certain related entities.

On December 21, 2023, the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona appointed Allen D. Applbaum, a Partner at StoneTurn, as the Receiver of ArciTerra Companies, LLC and its related affiliates (“ArciTerra”), in connection with an alleged $35 million misappropriation of funds by Phoenix-Area Real Estate Fund Adviser Jonathan Larmore and affiliates. The SEC’s complaint, filed on November 28, 2023, alleges, among other things, that since at least January 2017, Larmore and certain charged entities misappropriated more than $35 million from private real estate funds and other investment vehicles that ArciTerra managed.

The Receivership, which will be supported by a team of multidisciplinary StoneTurn professionals with expertise in investigations, real estate, forensic accounting, data analytics, and forensic technology, was announced publicly on December 26, 2023, by the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”).

In his role as the Receiver, Mr. Applbaum, supported by the StoneTurn team, will, among other responsibilities:

  • Preserve the assets of the Receivership Entities;
  • Ascertain the financial condition of the Receivership Entities and Receivership Assets;
  • Oversee and manage the Receivership Entities and Receivership Assets;
  • Prevent the encumbrance or disposal of the Receivership Assets contrary to the Receiver’s mandate;
  • Preserve the books, records, and documents of the Receivership Entities and Receivership Assets;
  • Manage litigation by and against the Receivership, the Receivership Entities and the Receivership Assets;
  • Propose for Court approval a fair and equitable distribution of the remaining Receivership Assets; and
  • Be available to respond to investor inquiries.

The Receiver has retained Archer & Greiner, P.C., as his counsel, with the representation led by New York partner, Allen G. Kadish.

In order to centralize and address inquiries of investors, creditors and other affected parties, the Receiver has established the following email address, hotline, and website:

Receiver@ArciTerraReceivership.com
212-430-3488
www.ArciTerraReceivership.com

Read the full SEC press release here, and find the order here.