Free Declaration - District Court of Arizona - Arizona

1 Ed Hendricks. (Arizona Bar No. 002359)
Michael K. Dana (Arizona Bar No. 019407)
2 MEYER, HENDRICKS & BIVENS, P.A.
3003 North Central Avenue, Suite 1200
3 Phoenix, Arizona 85012-2915
Telephone Number: (602) 604-2200
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C. Frederick Reish (Arizona Bar No.: 002408)
5 Michael A. Vanic (Califomia Bar No.: 073486) (pm hac vice)
REISH LUFTMAN REICHER & COHEN
6 11755 Wilshire Boulevard, 10th Floor
Los Angeles, CA 90025-1539
7 Telephone Number: (310) 478-5656
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Attomeys for Defendants Charles M. Brewer,
9 Charles M. Brewer, Ltd. Profit Sharing Plan and Trust,
Charles M. Brewer, Ltd. Restated Pension Plan
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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
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DISTRICT OF ARIZONA
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Stuart J. Reilly, CASE NO.: CIV 02 2218 PHX EHC
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Plaintiff; DECLARATION OF DEBORAH
16 WARD IN SUPPORT OF
vs. DEFENDANTS’ MOTION FOR
17 ATTORNEY’S FEES PURSUANT
Charles M. Brewer, Ltd., Profit Sharing Plan TO ERISA § 502(g)(1), 29 U.S.C. §
18 and Trust, a retirement plan; Charles M. 1132(g)(1), AND LOCAL RULE 54.2
Brewer, Ltd. Restated Pension Plan, a
· 19 retirement plan; Ross Gordon and Associates,
I 20 Inc., a corporation; and Charles M. Brewer,
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22 Defendants Charles M. Brewer ("Mr. Brewer"), Charles M. Brewer, Ltd. Profit
23 Sharing Plan & Trust (the "PS Plan"), and Charles Mr. Brewer, Ltd. Restated Pension Plan
24 (the "Pension Plan) (collectively the "Brewer Defendants") submit the Declarations in
25 support of said Defendants’ Motion for Attomey’s Fees pursuant to ERISA § 502(g)(1), 29
26 U.S.C. § 1132(g)(1), and Local Rule 54.2.
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1 DECLARATION OF DEBORAH WARD
2
3 I, Deborah Ward, declare:
4 1 am not a party to this action. I submit the following declaration in support of
5 Defendants’ Motion For Attorney’s Fees Pursuant to ERISA § 502(g)(1), 29 U.S.C. §
6 1 l32(g)(l), and Local Rule 54.2. I state the following facts based upon my own personal
7 knowledge and if called to testify, I could and would testify competently thereto:
8 1. I am over 18 years of age.
9 2. I am a trained paralegal, and served in that capacity at the Brewer law offices
10 for approximately 21 years prior to leaving Arizona with my family to move in Nebraska.
11 3. I was present during the four days of trial of this action in April 2006 — April 18,
12 19, 20 and 26.
13 4. I assisted Defendants’ counsel, Mr. Vanic, at the trial as his paralegal.
14 5 . l have known Mr. and Mrs. Reilly since Mr. Reilly and I were both employed at
15 the Mr. Brewer’s law firm in the early 1980s.
16 6. On April 19, 2006, during a break in the proceedings, I was standing outside the
17 courtroom. Mrs. Reilly approached me at that time and commented that she did not know
18 why we were there (at trial). She then asked why Mr. Brewer would not pay them.
19 7. I responded to Mrs. Reilly, stating that Mr. Brewer had made several, very
20 reasonable settlement offers and had also made multiple offers of judgment, but that Mr.
21 Reilly had failed to respond to any of them.
22 8. Mrs. Reilly described Mr. Brewer’s offers as ridiculously small amounts.
23 9. I responded that the damage calculations of Mr. Shardlow filed by Plaintiff! if
24 assumed to be correct- were so close to the amounts that Mr. Brewer had previously offered
25 that it did not make sense to be in trial.
26 10. Mrs. Reilly told me that the damage calculation from Mr. Shardlow filed with
27 the Court did not reflect the "value of the case," and that it was prepared only because the
28 court required something to be filed.
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1 ll. Mrs. Reilly then launched into a torrent of abuse directed at Mr. Brewer, and she
2 told me that Mr. Reilly intended t0 appeal the Court’s ruling on the summary judgment
3 motion and that he also intended to file another ERISA action with regard to the Profit
4 Sharing Plan prior to the date in November that they perceive to be the statute of` limitations.
5 12. The following day, April 20, 2006, while at court, I asked Mrs. Reilly what it
6 would take for the Reillys to settle the case. She told me that she did not know. I asked her if
7 the Reillys would be willing to settle for a series of amounts in the hundred thousand dollars.
8 She responded to each indicating that she did not know. I told her that she must have some
9 idea about the amount needed to settle the case if there was any desire on the part ofthe
10 Reillys to resolve this matter and get on with their lives. However, she failed to provide me a
11 single amount that would be acceptable to the Reillys to settle this action.
12 I3. Mrs. Reilly then told me that the Reillys would continue to press these matters,
13 and that they knew that Mr. Brewer had already paid "more than a million dollars in
14 attomey’s fees." She told me that the Reillys themselves had only spent $35,000 to $40,000
15 on this case thus far, primarily in Mr. Shardlow’s fees, and that "it really doesn’t matter to us
16 how long it continues?
17 I4. Mrs. Reilly was very emotional during this conversation, raising her voice on
18 several occasions. I realized at that time that it was pointless to discuss settlement because
19 she was not interested in trying to resolve the case through settlement.
20 15. I had no further settlement communications with Mrs. Reilly.
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22 I declare under penalty of` perjury ofthe laws of the United States of America that the
23 foregoing is true and correct. Executed this 12 day of September 2006 at Oakland, Nebraska.
24 ,_.i1 /_,}’
25 L/LLM
26 Deborah Ward
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1 CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
2
I hereby certify that on September 14, 2006, I electronically transmitted _the
3 attached document to the Clerk’s Office using the CFM/ECF _System for filing and transmittal
of a Notice of Electronic Filing to the following CM/ECF registrants:
4
5 Edwin F. Hendricks, Sr. — [email protected]
6 Stuart J. Reilly — [email protected]; [email protected]
7 C. Frederick Reish, Jr. — [email protected]; [email protected]
8 Michael A. Vanic — [email protected]; [email protected]
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10 Courtesy copy of the attached document sent via Federal Express on September 14, 2006 to:
ll The Honorable Barry Ted Moskowitz
United States District Court
12 5160 Courthouse
940 Front Street
13 San Diego, California 92101
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s/ Ed Hendricks, Sr.
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