Kelley Drye Wins $130 Million Jury Award in Contract Dispute
Kelley Drye client Final Analysis Communication Services Inc. was awarded nearly $130 million by a federal jury in U.S. District Court in Greenbelt, Maryland in a contract dispute matter against General Dynamics. Kelley Drye served as litigation counsel from the inception of the case and co-trial counsel on behalf of Final Analysis.
Final Analysis had entered into an agreement with General Dynamics to develop low-flying satellites for data transmission. Final Analysis launched three test satellites. Subsequently, General Dynamics stopped work on the project. Once valued between $400 to $600 million, Final Analysis went into bankruptcy without having launched a working satellite or starting its service. The jury concluded, after a seven-week trial which included appearances by the CEO of General Dynamics and the current acting deputy Secretary of Defense, that General Dynamics had breached its contractual obligation to serve as a “strategic equity partner” for Final Analysis and that the market decline did not provide a valid justification for permanently severing the parties’ strategic relationship. The jury award is reportedly the largest of the year in the federal courts of Maryland.