Penn, LLC v. Prosper Business Development Corp.

991 F. Supp. 2d 981, 2014 WL 63410, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 2039
CourtDistrict Court, S.D. Ohio
DecidedJanuary 8, 2014
DocketCase No. 2:10-cv-0993
StatusPublished

This text of 991 F. Supp. 2d 981 (Penn, LLC v. Prosper Business Development Corp.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, S.D. Ohio primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Penn, LLC v. Prosper Business Development Corp., 991 F. Supp. 2d 981, 2014 WL 63410, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 2039 (S.D. Ohio 2014).

Opinion

OPINION AND ORDER

GREGORY L. FROST, District Judge.

This matter is before the Court on the motion of Plaintiffs Penn, LLC and BigResearch, LLC for judgment as a matter of law or, in the alternative, for a new trial. (ECF No. 309.)1 Defendants Prosper Business Development Corporation, Gary Drenik, and Phil Rist have filed a memo[984]*984randum in opposition (ECF No. 313) and Plaintiffs have filed a reply (ECF No. 314). For the reasons set forth below, the Court DENIES Plaintiffs’ motion and instructs the Clerk to enter final judgment in Defendants’ favor in accordance with the jury verdict in this case.

I.

This case involves a contentious commercial dispute that has progressed through multiple lawsuits and arbitration proceedings over a span of several years. In a nutshell, Plaintiff Penn, LLC (“Penn”) and Defendant Prosper Business Development Corporation (“Prosper”) formed a limited liability company, BigResearch LLC (“Big Research”), which was in the business of performing consumer research for clients seeking such data. At the time Big Research was formed, the parties contemplated that Prosper would develop the consumer research products Ce.g., consumer questionnaires) and interpret the resulting data while Penn would procure respondents for consumer research questionnaires using the e-mail network it had developed in connection with its other businesses. Not long after the parties formed Big Research, disputes began to develop, which ultimately led to Prosper taking steps to exclude Penn from decisions concerning the management of Big Research.

Penn filed this action on behalf of itself and derivatively on behalf of Big Research. Penn alleged that Defendants Prosper, Gary Drenik, and Phil Rist improperly transferred and diverted assets, revenues, and business opportunities of Big Research for the benefit of Prosper. Defendants filed counterclaims against Penn, alleging that Penn engaged in an abuse of process, theorizing that Plaintiffs used this lawsuit in order to leverage a more favorable outcome for Penn in other litigation between the parties.

This case proceeded to a jury trial that took place from September 23, 2013 to October 17, 2013. After various rulings on motions for judgment as a matter of law, the only remaining claims for the jury’s consideration were (1) Plaintiffs’ claim for breach of fiduciary duty and (2) Defendants’ counterclaims for abuse of process. After a three-week trial that included testimony from 18 witnesses and the admission of more than 200 exhibits, the jury returned a defense verdict on Plaintiffs’ breach of fiduciary duty claim and also found in favor of Defendants on their abuse of process counterclaims. The jury awarded Defendants compensatory damages in an aggregate amount of $1,200,000. The jury also awarded punitive damages in the amount of $25,000 to Defendant Drenik and $25,000 to Defendant Rist.

Plaintiffs now move the Court for judgment as a matter of law under Fed. R.Civ.P. 50(b) on Defendants’ abuse of process counterclaims, arguing that the claims never should have been submitted to the jury in the first place. Plaintiffs also move for a new trial under Fed. R.Civ.P. 59 based on a series of perceived evidentiary errors the Court committed that produced, in Plaintiffs’ view, a trial that was unfair.

II.

The Court first addresses Plaintiffs’ motion for judgment as a matter of law under Fed.R.Civ.P. 50(b). Plaintiffs argue that the Court should set aside the jury’s verdict in Defendants’ favor on the counterclaims for abuse of process and render judgment in their favor as a matter of law on those counterclaims.

Fed.R.Civ.P. 50(b) provides:

If the court does not grant a motion for judgment as a matter of law made under [985]*985Rule 50(a), the court is considered to have submitted the action to the jury subject to the court’s later deciding the legal questions raised by the motion. No later than 28 days after the entry of judgment-or if the motion addresses a jury issue not decided by a verdict, no later than 28 days after the jury was discharged-the movant may file a renewed motion for judgment as a matter of law and may include an alternative or joint request for a new trial under Rule 59. In ruling on the renewed motion, the court may:
(1) allow judgment on the verdict, if the jury returned a verdict;
(2) order a new trial; or
(3) direct the entry of judgment as a matter of law.

“The inquiry for resolving a motion for judgment as a matter of law pursuant to Rule 50 is the same as the inquiry for resolving a motion for summary judgment pursuant to Rule 56.” White v. Burlington N. & Santa Fe Ry. Co., 364 F.3d 789, 794 (6th Cir.2004) (citing Reeves v. Sanderson Plumbing Prods., Inc., 530 U.S. 133, 150, 120 S.Ct. 2097, 147 L.Ed.2d 105 (2000)). The Court views the evidence of record in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party and determines whether there was a genuine issue of material fact for the jury. Id.; see also Gray v. Toshiba Am. Cons. Prods., 263 F.3d 595, 598 (6th Cir.2001).

The Court must uphold the jury verdict “unless there was ‘no legally sufficient evidentiary basis for a reasonable jury to find for [the prevailing] party.’ ” White, 364 F.3d at 794 (quoting Fed.R.Civ.P. 50(a)). The Court draws all reasonable inferences in favor of the prevailing party (here, the Defendants), does not make any credibility determinations, and does not weigh the evidence. Id. Thus, the court must “disregard all evidence favorable to the moving party that the jury is not required to believe.” Reeves, 530 U.S. at 151, 120 S.Ct. 2097. Judgment as a matter of law is appropriate only “if a complete absence of proof exists on a material issue in the action, or if no disputed issue of fact exists on which reasonable minds could differ.” LaPerriere v. Int’l Union UAW, 348 F.3d, 127, 132 (6th Cir.2003). The Court must also be mindful of the fact that he jury is allowed to draw inferences from the evidence at trial and that such inferences may provide the basis for an appropriate verdict. See Karam v. Sagemark Consulting, Inc., 383 F.3d 421, 429 (6th Cir.2004).

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Bluebook (online)
991 F. Supp. 2d 981, 2014 WL 63410, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 2039, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/penn-llc-v-prosper-business-development-corp-ohsd-2014.