A New Jersey judge allowed a defamation and malpractice claim against Porzio Bromberg & Newman and firm lawyer Warren Martin Jr. to push through. The claim alleged that Martin Jr. damaged several reputations after sending an e-mail that accused a former client of extortion.
According to the New Jersey Law Journal, Superior Court Judge Charles Powers Jr. has refused to toss out defamation claims against Porzio Bromberg & Newman and a firm attorney Warren Martin Jr. who revealed that he was drunk when he sent an e-mail accusing a former client of extortion. The said September 2012 e-mail copied the names of nearly three dozen bankruptcy lawyers as well as judges. Powers also denied motions for partial summary judgement in the lawsuit even though the plaintiff didn't assign a particular dollar value on the alleged reputation offense.
The defamation claim is intended as part of a malpractice lawsuit by the former owners of Armanti Financial Services LLC that was purchased by Apollo Health Street Inc., according to Law 360. The plaintiffs include Ariel Morales, William Colgan and Michael Nudo.
The three alleged that Porzio Bromberg & Newman and Martin Jr. advised them to file an involuntary Chapter 7 petition against Apollo for breach of payment, licensing and lease agreements.
Powers Jr. allowed for the defamation case to push through as he found that the plaintiffs provided sufficient evidence. He wrote on a rider accompanying the December 4 order, "To reiterate, reputational injury is an actual harm and supports actual damages; that is so even though a reputational injury always 'defies exact calculation.'"
Another article by ABA Journal wrote that Martin Jr.'s e-mail alleged that the former client promised to pay outstanding legal fees to Porzio Bromberg & Newman should Martin Jr. help the client win in a bid for Christ Hospital after it filed for bankruptcy. An excerpt of Martin Jr.'s e-mail read, "You later told me that since I didn't 'fix' the Christ Hospital auction in your favor... not only would you not pay me what you owe me, but you would sue for $4.5 million."
Atty. David A. Mazie, who will be representing the plaintiffs, said, "Warren Martin sent a false allegation concerning my client to more than two dozen business associates, and those false allegations have irreparably harmed my client's reputation. We will be asking a jury to award compensatory and punitive damages at trial."
The controversial e-mail that was copied to 30 individuals was republished numerous times all over the internet and also on print media. The defamation and malpractice claims against Porzio Bromberg & Newman and Atty. Warren Martin Jr. will take place on January 25, 2016.
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