At the Law Offices of P. Andrew Torrez, LLC, we work tirelessly to help individuals and businesses resolve a multitude of problems.
The Law Offices of P. Andrew Torrez, LLC provides business advice and counseling, contract and insurance policy review and negotiation and representation in administrative proceedings, arbitration, mediation, at trial and on appeal. Mr. Torrez has brought clients success in both small cases and large trials with millions of dollars at stake.
Successful trial lawyers are not always successful appellate court lawyers, as in the latter setting rhetoric generally takes a backseat to thorough, comprehensive, sophisticated intellectual analysis. Mr. Torrez is a former clerk to the state’s highest court, one of the most well-known appellate lawyers in the State of Maryland and has argued cases before the Maryland Court of Special Appeals, the Maryland Court of Appeals and the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit.
If you’ve driven by the Royal Farms Arena in Baltimore, you can see Mr. Torrez’s litigation skills in action. Beginning in 2003, Mr. Torrez represented the parties seeking to keep the Baltimore Blast professional indoor soccer team in Baltimore. The solution involved the placement of Times Square-style exterior billboards, but that simple-sounding solution came at the end of a very bumpy road.
For over eight years, interest groups opposed three bills passed by the Maryland legislature which collectively permitted the billboards to go up, despite Baltimore City’s otherwise near-total ban on outdoor billboards within the City limits. Mr. Torrez worked on behalf of his clients to successfully oppose an injunction seeking to block the implementation of the ordinances, and then prevailed in three separate lawsuits seeking to overturn the ordinances, procure injunctive relief and for damages: one administrative proceeding in state court, one lawsuit instate court and a parallel lawsuit in federal court, all of which went up on various appeals. Ultimately, Mr. Torrez won on summary judgment, which was upheld by the Maryland Court of Special Appeals in MBC Realty v.Mayor & City Council of Baltimore, 993 A.2d 1190 (Md. App. 2010) and left standing by the Court of Appeals (which denied certiorari). Along the way, Mr. Torrez litigated one of the landmark zoning cases to be decided by the Maryland Court of Appeals, MBC Realty v.Mayor & City Council of Baltimore, 941 A.2d 1052 (Md. 2008).
Business tort cases include allegations of wrongdoing in a business setting and often go alongside contract disputes. This area of practice includes areas of wrongdoing including:
A plaintiff suing for a breach of contract is typically limited to actual damages resulting from the breach of contract. Instead, business torts involve objective wrongdoing and can allow a plaintiff to recover exemplary or punitive damages that significantly exceed actual losses.
In 2015, Mr. Torrez successfully litigated and negotiated a settlement on behalf of a water treatment company in a lawsuit against a competitor alleging that the competitor had poached a key employee and induced him to violate non-compete and other agreements. See U.S. WaterServices, Inc. v. International Chemstar, Inc., (Civ. No.GLR-14-347) (D.Md. 2014).
Most business litigation arises, at its core, from a dispute over the meaning, interpretation and effect of the terms of contracts entered into by the business. Mr. Torrez can assist you in contract and business litigation, including disputes involving:
The firm can also provide advice and counsel to assist business owners in avoiding these types of problems, including negotiating termination and severance agreements for employees, executives and partners, shareholders or others with an equity stake in the business.
In many cases, a minor contract provision can have serious consequences. In 2009, Mr. Torrez successfully arbitrated a contractual dispute over the meaning of a single sentence in a contract between an insurance runoff entity and Ashland, Inc., an oil and chemical company, concerning how the runoff entity would make various payments for asbestos liabilities incurred by Ashland. When Mr. Torrez prevailed in arbitration, he saved his clients more than $200 million in net present value due to the timing and methodology of the payments made pursuant to that contract. The arbitration award was upheld on appeal. Certain Underwriters at Lloyd’s, London v. Ashland, Inc., 967 A.2d 166 (D.C. 2009).
At The Law Offices of P. Andrew Torrez, we have a wealth of experience handling issues that clients can encounter when doing business with any level of government. We can work with clients at any stage of the process, including:
At The Law Offices of P. Andrew Torrez, we have successfully handled bid protest cases on both sides, working to protect existing contractual rights, as well as getting improperly-awarded government contracts overturned and the contracts re-bid under a new RFP. Our experience encompasses every step of the bid protest process, from preparing the initial protest, to securing an effective administrative record, to representing a client at debriefings, administrative hearings and at trial.
Mr. Torrez has successfully represented contractors before administrative agencies in the District of Columbia and Maryland, and has also litigated contract appeals before the Board of Contract Appeals (DC) and the Maryland State Board of Education. Mr. Torrez has also defended intervenors and litigated on behalf of protestors in court once those administrative remedies have been exhausted.
For over a decade, Mr. Torrez has represented insurers in high-stakes, nationwide coverage cases involving hundreds of millions to billions of dollars in potential liability from underlying asbestos, pollution, toxic torts, and other public health hazards. See, e.g., Certain Underwriters at Lloyd’s, London v. Ashland, Inc., 967 A.2d 166 (D.C. 2009).
Today, Mr. Torrez brings his vast knowledge and experience to policyholders and others with interests affected by complex insurance questions. In 2014, Mr. Torrez represented a Maryland law firm with claims pending against a defunct tool-and-die manufacturer whose assets were being disposed of in bankruptcy. When the manufacturer and its two largest insurers attempted to cut a deal that would allocate the proceeds from insurance policies to some legal claims but not others, Mr. Torrez vigorously litigated in state court, federal bankruptcy court and on appeal all the way to the Fourth Circuit to protect his client’s interests in the insurance proceeds. Ultimately, the matter was settled to the satisfaction of all parties.
Mr. Torrez has extensive experience navigating the often-confusing landscape of insurance contracts and reinsurance treaties. He has litigated scope of coverage, trigger of coverage, allocation, notice, and exclusions in state and federal court and in alternative dispute resolution proceedings before AAA and JAMS arbitrators.
Intellectual property is generated whenever someone creates something from their own intellect and creativity. The law protects a number of rights related to the property. Even if a trademark, copyright or patent has not been registered, you may have significant and valuable intellectual property rights. In the modern information-driven economy, intellectual property can be the most valuable commodity a person or business owns. Because of this, businesses – and particularly, businesses that buy and sell goods – are often wrongly accused of violating the intellectual property rights of others.
Mr. Torrez has worked closely with creators, innovators and artists to secure and protect their full intellectual property rights under the law. In addition, Mr. Torrez has experience in litigating intellectual property cases such as:
Mr. Torrez has vigorously defended his clients against statutory copyright claims; see, e.g., Metal Morphosis,Inc. v. Acorn Media Publishing, Inc., 639 F.Supp.2d 1367 (N.D. Ga. 2009).
Mr. Torrez is the author of Off Base: New Insights Into an Old Game, a 1998 book on baseball that anticipated the statistical revolution that transformed baseball. Mr.Torrez has represented and advised professional baseball players and agents in connection with various legal disputes, including:
Mr. Torrez wrote extensively about the Alex Rodriguez lawsuit and was interviewed by The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times and other media outlets. Mr. Torrez correctly predicted that Alex Rodriguez would withdraw his lawsuit against MLB several months in advance, which you can read about here.
Mr. Torrez is an authority in the world of baseball law. He speaks the language, is familiar with the MLBPA rules and other governing documents, knows how these cases work and keeps abreast of analytics and the insider world of baseball.
933 Grovehill Road
Baltimore, MD 21227
Phone: (240) 230-7309
28 E. Susquehanna Ave.
Suite 206
Towson, MD 21286
Phone: (240) 230-7309
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