© 2015 The Texas Lawbook.
By Natalie Posgate
(Aug. 25) – A federal appeals court last week affirmed the August 2014 dismissal of energy investment bank Mueller Chen & Co. from a $46.5 million lawsuit brought by International Energy Ventures Management for a fee dispute that resulted from a deal involving the two companies.
The deal dates back to 2011, when Mueller provided financial advice to Hong Kong-based United Energy Group for its acquisition of BP’s oil and gas assets in Pakistan for $775 million. IEVM assisted the team in evaluating BP’s assets.
After the acquisition closed, IEVM claimed it was owed $46.5 million in success fees. When UEG challenged the fee, IEVM sued Mueller and UEG in July 2013. A district court dismissed the claims against UEG and Mueller in August 2014, and IEVM filed an appeal with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.
While the Fifth Circuit’s Friday ruling affirmed Mueller’s dismissal from the lawsuit, it reversed UEG’s. The district court dismissed UEG from the lawsuit because it determined it did not have personal jurisdiction over UEG. The Fifth Circuit’s ruling disagreed, stating that “personal jurisdiction over UEG comports with due process.”
Houston attorney Sean Gorman of Bracewell & Giuliani, who defended Mueller in the case, was pleased about the Fifth Circuit’s opinion.
“False allegations of fraud and other wrongdoing in business transactions require aggressive defense. The district court and now the Fifth Circuit agreed with our arguments that IEVM’s claims against Mueller were a baseless effort to destroy federal jurisdiction and keep its case against UEG in state court, its preferred forum,” Gorman said in an e-mail. “Mueller did nothing wrong, and this outcome lays to rest IEVM’s efforts to use the judicial process to say otherwise.”
Bracewell associate Yvonne Y. Ho also worked on the case for Mueller. Gorman was a partner at Houston-based Ahmad, Zavitsanos, Alavi & Mensing when he started working on the case. AZA partner Elizabeth Pannill Fletcher also played a significant role in the litigation.
Houston Baker Botts attorneys Michael Bennett and Tina Quy Phi Nguyen, who represent UEG, could not be immediately reached for comment.
IEVM’s legal team includes Houston attorneys Michael Sydow, Kathleen Rose and Thomas Wright.
“IEVM is gratified by the Fifth Circuit’s decision that personal jurisdiction exists over defendant UEG,” Rose said in an e-mail. “It is undisputed that UEG failed to pay IEVM the oil and gas consulting fees owed – UEG has fully admitted that fact in writing.”
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