Jury Asks to Award More Than Requested in Case AZA Joined on Eve of Trial

HOUSTON – Federal court jurors asked the judge if they could award a larger amount plus attorneys’ fees to a company represented by AZA lawyers in a breach of contract case.

That remarkable query came in a trial in which attorneys from AZA, or Ahmad, Zavitsanos & Mensing, joined at the last minute, something AZA lawyers are often asked to do. AZA represented PPD Enterprises, LLC, and its owner in a suit over the termination of a medical device distributorship agreement.

AZA partner Joe Ahmad and associates Ryan Hackney and Paul Turkevich tried the case for PPD. “After an hour and a half the jury awarded our client everything she asked for. Before the award they asked Judge Stephen Smith if they could award more than a party asked for, and attorney’s fees on top of that. We could tell they’d been paying attention,” Mr. Hackney said.

PPD signed a contract with Mako Surgical Corp. in 2013 to be the exclusive Houston distributor of Mako’s hip implants for a period of two years. That agreement allowed PPD to sell implants manufactured by Corin as well. But after Mako was bought by Stryker Corp., a large manufacturer of medical devices that was in direct competition with Corin, Stryker improperly terminated PPD’s contract in 2014.

The case was PPD Enterprises, LLC v. Stryker Corporation and Mako Surgical Corp., No. 4:16-CV- 00507. Co-counsel was Jessica Hallmark of Dunham Hallmark PLLC.

AZA, or Ahmad, Zavitsanos & Mensing, is a Houston-based law firm that is home to true courtroom lawyers with a formidable track record in complex commercial litigation, including energy, intellectual property, and business dispute cases. AZA is recognized by Chambers USA 2017 among the best in Texas commercial law; by U.S. News – Best Lawyers’ Best Law Firms as one of the country’s best commercial litigation firms for 2018; and previously by Law360 as a Texas Powerhouse law firm. National corporate counsel named AZA one of the country’s best in client service among law firms serving the Fortune 1000.