The Lawsuits Thread

[SnoopyDances]

After what she put him through, I'm sure he's ready for anything.

His complaint, I thought, was that TMG paid themselves money and procured loans without his knowledge from a TMG account...or to a TMG account. And that they failed to file taxes on time, costing him more money.

I don't think Johnny was upset by payments to friends and family.

Anyway, Johnny is actually the good guy for keeping silent and professional. TMG, whether right or wrong on their claims, is behaving very unprofessionally by releasing client secrets to the media.

Would you bank somewhere that publicly displayed your spending habits? Then ridiculed you?

[Lbock]

I completely agree with the confidentiality aspect. I served as a real estate agent for a few years. We were bound by confidentiality and I will never understand how that doesn't automatically apply here. But the last thing I want is clients jumping ship on TMG. If Johnny has a chance to win, I don't want them filing for bankruptcy

[Chocolat]

After what she put him through, I'm sure he's ready for anything.

His complaint, I thought, was that TMG paid themselves money and procured loans without his knowledge from a TMG account...or to a TMG account. And that they failed to file taxes on time, costing him more money.

I don't think Johnny was upset by payments to friends and family.

Anyway, Johnny is actually the good guy for keeping silent and professional. TMG, whether right or wrong on their claims, is behaving very unprofessionally by releasing client secrets to the media.

Would you bank somewhere that publicly displayed your spending habits? Then ridiculed you?

Agree, and for that matter, how many of their other clients are shaking in their boots at the thought of their money being mismanaged? It will be interesting to see if they have TMG investigated as well.

[Lbock]

After what she put him through, I'm sure he's ready for anything.

His complaint, I thought, was that TMG paid themselves money and procured loans without his knowledge from a TMG account...or to a TMG account. And that they failed to file taxes on time, costing him more money.

I don't think Johnny was upset by payments to friends and family.

Anyway, Johnny is actually the good guy for keeping silent and professional. TMG, whether right or wrong on their claims, is behaving very unprofessionally by releasing client secrets to the media.

Would you bank somewhere that publicly displayed your spending habits? Then ridiculed you?

Part of his complaint was that they loaned out $10M in unauthorized loans.

[marija]

And again the bad news showed up right before Johnnys next film will come to the theatres...perfect

[justintime]

After what she put him through, I'm sure he's ready for anything.

His complaint, I thought, was that TMG paid themselves money and procured loans without his knowledge from a TMG account...or to a TMG account. And that they failed to file taxes on time, costing him more money.

I don't think Johnny was upset by payments to friends and family.

Anyway, Johnny is actually the good guy for keeping silent and professional. TMG, whether right or wrong on their claims, is behaving very unprofessionally by releasing client secrets to the media.

Would you bank somewhere that publicly displayed your spending habits? Then ridiculed you?

Part of his complaint was that they loaned out $10M in unauthorizedloans.

Has Johnny ever actually named the people he claims received unauthorized loans? He's had a whole lot of people dependent on him for a very long time. How were these loans/people initially referenced in TMG's "accounting"? Doesn't seem to me he is throwing anyone under the proverbial bus - it's TMG that is desperately trying to take everyone for an exasperating, circuitous ride on a sea of exclamation points, tirades of indignation and outrage, and endless self-serving, defamatory personal accusations, none of which address Johnny's original criminal complaints against these thieves. The media is gleefully going along, filling up space day after day with titillating headlines and selective copy, refusing to do an ounce of critical analysis . . .
Johnny really has no choice but to let his legal team speak for him. I truly hope and pray he is doing ok - this postponement must have been hard to absorb.

[Lbock]

Here is a thought...if they are loans then TMG better have accounted for them, written them up somehow .... if they are a gift, the IRS is gonna want their tax money on these.

Let's think what the IRS would see if they audited TMG, their actual accounting of JDs internal financials

[justintime]

http://www.vulture.com/2017/09/Johnny-d ... blems.html

This article is a couple weeks old and typical anti-Johnny, BUT if you scroll down past the “more to explore” gambits, there is one, lone comment to the article. It is brief, worth reading, and seems to have been written by someone (identified as MC0325) with a bit of legal knowledge. Ultimately, TMG may end up drowning in its own cauldron of muck.

[AdeleAgain]

It is an interesting comment and very true. I like the end bit about comparing it to a celebrity divorce, hmmmm the second time someone has tried this tactic on Johnny. Interestingly it didn't work for AH - she only got the bare minimum required under divorce law. I suspect JD is very strong on this stuff - puts a high value on loyalty but once you betray his trust ........

[PaulKemp]

People Magazine October 17, 2017

Johnny Depp's New Court Battle: Lawsuit Claims His Attorney Swindled Him Out of More Than $30 Million

Johnny Depp is claiming he was swindled out of nearly $35 million by a top Hollywood lawyer and his firm.

In a new complaint filed Tuesday, the Pirates of the Caribbean star alleges Jacob A. Bloom — an attorney known for working with clients like Ron Howard, Nicolas Cage and Jackie Chan — and his law firm, Bloom Hergott Diemer Rosenthal & LaViolette, committed “professional malpractice, breach of fiduciary duty and unjust enrichment,” ultimately costing the actor tens of millions of dollars.

“Johnny Depp’s lawsuit filed today reflects his continued stand against systemic, self-serving Hollywood practices that he hopes this lawsuit will expose and end,” Depp’s lawyer, Adam Waldman, tells PEOPLE.

According to the complaint, Depp hired Bloom and his firm to handle his legal affairs in 1999. “But instead of protecting Mr. Depp’s interests, [Bloom and his firm] engaged in misconduct for their own financial benefit and violated some of the most basic tenets of the attorney-client relationship.”

Specifically, Depp is claiming that Bloom “improperly and negligently collected over $30,000,000 in voidable contingent fees” from his variable income over the years without a legally binding contract under California law.

The complaint also claims that Bloom and his firm took out a “hard money loan” with a “double digit interest rate” from a lender with whom they also had a professional relationship with for Depp, and manipulated the terms of the loan for their own financial benefit, as well as for the benefit of Depp’s business managers at The Management Group (TMG), whom he is also suing.

The complaint is just the latest in a bitter and complicated series of allegations made by the actor against his former business managers and attorneys, whom he claims mismanaged the $650 million he’s made in the last two decades to the point of depletion.

Depp sued TMG in February for $25 million in a fraud lawsuit. TMG then filed a cross-complaint, claiming the actor lived an “ultra-extravagant lifestyle that often knowingly cost [him] in excess of $2 million per month to maintain, which he simply could not afford.”

A judge later ruled that Depp’s personal spending habits are not currently relevant in his ongoing legal battle. The case is ongoing.

Due to the terms of the loan, Depp in his new complaint claims he lost out on approximately $32,000,000 in residual payments from his films over a three-year period. He also claims he’s still on the hook for $5,000,000 on the loan, “which continues to capitalize substantial interest at unreasonable rates” and fees.

“This loan cost Mr. Depp millions of dollars in unreasonable interest, fees, and voidable contingent fees, and was imposed on Mr. Depp without any of the protections that should have been afforded to a client when dealing with his attorney,” the documents state.

In addition, Depp claims that Bloom “took hundreds of thousands of dollars in additional payments for reimbursement of alleged ‘expenses’ that were submitted” by the firm to TMG without explanation.

According to the documents, “A former TMG employee who was the day-to-day manager of Mr. Depp’s account at TMG testified that [Bloom] submitted requests for expense reimbursement, with little to no supporting backup, which TMG would then pay, without question, from Mr. Depp’s funds. [Bloom’s] expenses and requests for reimbursement were never sent to Mr. Depp for review and approval.”

Ultimately, Depp is accusing Bloom and TMG of employing a “fox guarding the hen house” strategy, “never disclosing to Mr. Depp either California’s protective legal requirements for written contingency contracts nor the huge fees TMG paid to itself and [Bloom] in violation of California law.”

Bloom and the firm, Bloom Hergott Diemer Rosenthal & LaViolette, did not immediately respond to our request for comment.

[Vanillababe]

This is crazy! What in the world are these "professionals" doing? How many other celebrities have fallen prey to these kind of rats!

[justintime]

Thanks, PaulKemp, for posting that piece.
Here is the actual complaint:



I found it clear, well-written, thoroughly documented, and devoid of the elementary school “for effect” tactics that routinely riddle TMG’s paperwork. It is also gut-wrenchingly sad. To have one’s trust so totally and callously dismissed for so long is beyond comprehension.

[Lbock]

Thanks, PaulKemp, for posting that piece.
Here is the actual complaint:



I found it clear, well-written, thoroughly documented, and devoid of the elementary school “for effect” tactics that routinely riddle TMG’s paperwork. It is also gut-wrenchingly sad. To have one’s trust so totally and callously dismissed for so long is beyond comprehension.

THR updated their article with Bloom's lawyer statement.

"Attorney Kurt Peterson, who is representing Bloom's firm in the matter, sent The Hollywood Reporter a statement Tuesday: “In light of the long-standing relationship between the Bloom Firm and Mr. Depp, the Firm is extremely disappointed that Mr. Depp has decided to file this lawsuit. The Firm disagrees with Mr. Depp and his counsel on the law and the facts, and intends to defend the lawsuit vigorously.”

[ForeverYoung]

The firm shouldn't be so surprised given the fact that while Bloom tried to contact Johnny he refused to answer the calls. A review of the complaint shows they violated CA law by taking monies without a signed agreement, Bloom told Johnny he knew the foreclosure was going to happen and never told him and also was reimbursed by TMG for a lot of big expenses without back up paperwork. The counsel representing them was most likely appointed by their malpractice insurance company.

[justintime]

Not sure how to show this correctly:

http://deadline.com/2017/11/Johnny-depp ... 202202669/

Of course, it’s been done just when MOTOE is opening in the US. If anyone can glean anything positive from this, I would be ever so grateful to hear it. Depressing . . .