A Georgia jury has awarded $58 million to a retired Stanford medical school professor who accused a biotech firm of conspiring to have him wrongfully arrested to pressure him in a contract dispute.
Attorneys for Dr. James Quinn convinced a jury in Atlanta that Chemence Medical — a subsidiary of adhesives manufacture Chemence Inc. — bilked him out of commissions he was owed as a product development consultant in the 2000s. Among the products were various medical adhesive technologies.
Then, amid an earlier federal lawsuit that resulted in an $8 million judgment in Quinn’s favor, Quinn said the company worked with local police to have him arrested on bogus trade secrets charges.
After a two-week trial that ended on April 8, a jury awarded Quinn $12 million in compensatory damages, $41 million in punitive damages and $5 million in attorneys fees.
The jury found in Quinn’s favor on all counts against Chemence Medical and executives Peter Battisti, Hugh Cooke and Robert Wilson.
Quinn’s lead attorney, Steve Lowry, said the doctor “feels vindicated,” while the company stayed silent and did not respond to requests for comment, according to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
“This verdict represents long-overdue justice for Dr. Quinn, a respected physician, professor, and innovator whose reputation and livelihood were unfairly targeted,” Lowry said in a statement. “This also is a powerful reminder that the legal system cannot be manipulated as a tool for intimidation or leverage in business disputes.”
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