Andrew Carroll and Steve Wolf Successfully Defend Restaurant Owner

Andrew Carroll and Steve Wolf successfully defended the former owner of a Chinese restaurant in a dispute with an ATM company that claimed it had a five-year lease for an ATM to be located at the client’s restaurant starting in 2016 and renewing in 2021.

The plaintiff sued Carroll’s and Wolf’s client and the current restaurant owner by alleging they breached the lease contract by unplugging the ATM in 2021 without issuing a notice to cancel.

In December 2022, the case went before a panel of three arbitrators, who ruled in favor of the ATM company. However, the plaintiff appealed the ruling and sought a jury trial because they believed they should have won more in damages.

At trial, the jury ruled after three hours of deliberation that the plaintiff did not have an enforceable contract with the client and awarded no damages.

“We felt that once the entire story of this restaurant and its relationship with the ATM company was told, a jury would know there was never an enforceable contract and are happy the jury’s verdict reflected that understanding.”

Carroll and Wolf represented the restaurant owner pro bono through Philly VIP, a legal aid nonprofit organization.

“We’re thrilled with the outcome for our client,” Carroll said. “Philly VIP is a great community organization and we’re happy to provide counsel when necessary.”