"This year, Mastriani led a favorable settlement agreement, and the client notified Mastriani that the entirety of the payment would be received by June 5 and that $1.5 million would be awarded to Polsinelli. However, Mastriani allegedly failed to disclose the payment information to Polsinelli management and instead falsely told the client that the money was to go to AMS in the fall-rather than immediately to Polsinelli, the complaint said."
"Mastriani's purported justification for this request was that 'there is a strong possibility that I may be joining a new firm in a couple of months. If I do, the payment would be made to that firm, which I will then pass to me and my old firm [AMS].' But the client refused this financial arrangement and the fee was paid to Polsinelli."
Polsinelli filed a federal lawsuit alleging former partner Louis Mastriani wrongly converted a $1.5 million client contingency fee. Mastriani joined Polsinelli in 2022 from AMS Trade, which remained formally extant while its prior contingency fees were still paid. A 2023 client moved to Polsinelli expecting future fees to be paid to the new firm. After a favorable settlement, the client advised a June 5 payment and $1.5 million award to Polsinelli. The complaint alleges Mastriani concealed the payment, told the client funds would go to AMS later, and attempted to direct staff to transfer funds to AMS. Mastriani disputes the claims and characterizes the suit as retaliatory.
Read at Above the Law
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