Court unanimously upheld a secured creditor’s right to credit bid in bankruptcy cases.

In the recently released decision by  the U.S. Supreme Court in RadLAX Gateway Hotel, et al. v. Amalgamated Bank, 566 U.S.___ (2012), the Court unanimously upheld a secured creditor’s right to credit bid in bankruptcy cases.  The Court rejected the "indubitable equivalent" argument followed by the 3rd Circuit in Philadelphia Newspapers and specifically affirmed lower court rulings from other Circuits that bidding procedures allowing only cash, not credit, bids were impermissible.  RadLAX  restores certainty to this area, particularly for secured creditors, as it insures that secured creditors will be allowed to offset what is owed through a credit bid towards debtor property offered for sale.   You can read the decision at http://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/11pdf/11-166.pdf

Nine Meyer, Unkovic & Scott Attorneys Named As Super Lawyers In Pennsylvania For 2012

Meyer, Unkovic & Scott today announced that nine of its attorneys have been named to the Pennsylvania Super Lawyers list as the top attorneys in Pennsylvania for 2012.

Meyer, Unkovic & Scott attorneys named in this year’s Pennsylvania Super Lawyers include Patricia L. Dodge (Business Litigation), Andrea Geraghty (Real Estate), Ronald L. Hicks, Jr. (Business Litigation), Richard G. Kotarba (Construction Litigation), James R. Mall (Construction Litigation), Robert Mauro (Real Estate), Russell J. Ober, Jr. (Business Litigation), David G. Oberdick (Intellectual Property Litigation), and W. Grant Scott (Real Estate).

In addition, Patricia Dodge and Andrea Geraghy were also ranked by Super Lawyers on their Pittsburgh Top 50 Lawyers list and the Top 50 Women in Pennsylvania list.

Super Lawyers, a Thomson Reuters business rating service, evaluates outstanding lawyers across the nation annually using statewide surveys, independent research evaluations, and peer reviews in more than 70 practice areas. No more than 5 percent of the lawyers in the state of Pennsylvania are selected and featured by Super Lawyers.

Patricia Dodge is the managing partner of Meyer, Unkovic & Scott. Dodge has practiced as a trial lawyer for 30 years, representing a wide range of foreign and domestic corporations, municipal agencies and individuals in business litigation, product liability and domestic and international arbitration proceedings. She’s also been recognized as an honoree for the Legal Intelligencer’s Women of the Year award. She is a graduate of Pennsylvania State University and Duquesne University School of Law and resides in Thornburg.

Andrea Geraghty advises clients through land acquisition, development, construction, and management of real estate ventures. She has significant litigation experience in diverse real estate related matters, including eminent domain, property tax assessment appeals, real estate broker’s commissions, and leasing. She is a graduate of Indiana University of Pennsylvania and Duquesne University School of Law, and resides in Point Breeze.

Ron Hicks is Vice-Chair of Meyer, Unkovic & Scott’s Business & Tort Litigation Practice Group and co-chair of the Litigation Section of Meritas, an association of select independent law firms in principal cities worldwide. For past 25 years, he has practices handled complex business litigation matters with a focus on misappropriation of trade secrets and intellectual property, breach of restrictive covenants and contracts, insurance coverage, creditors’ rights, social media risk management, and oil and gas disputes, representing both corporate and individual clients on the plaintiff and defendant side of civil cases. He grew up in North Sewickley Township, graduated from Pennsylvania State University and Wake Forest University School of Law, and resides in South Side.

Richard Kotarba is Senior Counsel of Meyer, Unkovic & Scott. He has represented several nationally known construction companies, title insurance companies and other high-profile clients in a broad range of practice areas for more than 40 years. His experience has covered bid protest, review and negotiation of construction contracts, federal and state government construction contracting. He graduated from John Carroll University and Boston College Law School, and resides in Sewickley.

James Mall is Chair of the firm's Construction Practice Group and focuses his practice in construction and commercial litigation, land use and zoning. He graduated from the University of Notre Dame with three degrees, and resides in Hampton Township.

Robert Mauro practices primarily in the areas of commercial real estate and lending, debt restructure, commercial leasing, and real estate acquisition and development. He graduated from Cornell University and The Dickinson School of Law, and resides in Fox Chapel.

Russell Ober is Chair of the Business & Tort Litigation Practice Group of Meyer, Unkovic & Scott and focuses his practice on the litigation of business and commercial disputes and the defense of product liability, errors and omissions and other property and casualty claims. He received his undergraduate and graduate degrees from the University of Pittsburgh and resides in Mt. Lebanon.

David Oberdick concentrates his practice on representing and providing counsel to companies and individuals in intellectual property matters including patents, trademarks, copyrights, trade secrets, intellectual property litigation and related business transactions. He is a member of the firm’s Intellectual Property, Corporate & Business Law and Business Litigation Groups. He graduated from the University of Pittsburgh School of Law, and resides in Ohio Township.

W. Grant Scott is Chair of the Real Estate & Lending Group. He counsels clients on the structuring, negotiation and documentation of sophisticated real estate transactions. He also advises owners and tenants on leasing agreements, counsels borrowers on financing and works in tandem with the firm’s Corporate and Tax Departments on the real estate components of mergers, acquisitions and dissolutions. He graduated from the University of Virginia and resides in Sewickley.

Five Meyer, Unkovic & Scott Attorney's Named Rising Stars In Pennsylvania For 2012

Pittsburgh law firm Meyer, Unkovic & Scott today announced that five of its attorneys have been named to the Pennsylvania Rising Stars list as the top up-and-coming attorneys in Pennsylvania for 2012.

Meyer, Unkovic & Scott attorneys named in this year’s Pennsylvania Rising Stars are Joshua Lorenz, Mary McGinley, Chad Michaelson, Andrew Noble, and Jason Yarbrough.

The Rising Stars lists are published nationwide by Super Lawyers, a Thomson Reuters business rating service that evaluates outstanding lawyers across the nation annually using statewide surveys, independent research evaluations, and peer reviews in more than 70 practice areas.

For the awards, lawyers are asked to nominate the best attorneys who are 40 or under, or who have been practicing for 10 years or less. No more than 2.5 percent of the lawyers in the state of Pennsylvania receive the Rising Star award.

Joshua Lorenz is a member of the firm's Business Litigation, Construction and Real Estate Groups, serving as Co-Chair of Meyer, Unkovic & Scott’s Construction Group. He regularly represents the firm's construction, corporate, municipal and individual clients in their contractual matters, including contract negotiation, review and drafting, as well as handling both the prosecution and defense of their disputes before state and federal courts, arbitration panels and administrative agencies. Mr. Lorenz graduated from Virginia Tech and the Pennsylvania State University Dickinson School of Law, and resides in Murrysville with his family where he serves as an elected member of Murrysville Council.

Mary McGinley is a member of the firm’s Business Litigation and Tort Litigation Groups. In practice, she has represented a wide range of corporations in shareholder and contractual disputes, as well as individuals in estate litigation matters before the orphans court and in employment restrictive covenant disputes in both state and federal court. She graduated from Pennsylvania State University and Duquesne University School of Law, and resides in Squirrel Hill.

Chad Michaelson chairs the firm’s Sustainable Development Practice Group and is a member of the firm’s Business Litigation, Construction Law and Tort Litigation Groups. His practice is focused on commercial and construction litigation, including contract disputes, shareholder and partner disputes, tort defense and trade secrets and business protection litigation. He graduated from West Virginia University and the Emory University School of Law, and resides in Mt. Lebanon.

Andrew Noble is a member of the firm’s Business Litigation Group. He has represented clients in both state and federal courts on a wide variety of commercial litigation matters. The clients that Mr. Noble has represented range from Fortune 500 companies to small sole proprietorships. He has handled cases involving breach of contract, copyright infringement, trade secret misappropriation, insurance coverage, oil and gas leases and commercial landlord-tenant disputes. He graduated from the University of Pittsburgh and the University of Pittsburgh School of Law, and resides in Oakmont.

Jason Yarbrough is a member of Meyer, Unkovic & Scott’s Construction Law, Litigation & Dispute Resolution and Creditors' Rights Groups. Mr. Yarbrough has represented corporate entities, officers, individuals and family-owned businesses in state and federal courts, state agencies and arbitrations on a variety of complex commercial, construction and real estate litigation matters. In his construction practice, Mr. Yarbrough represents owners, contractors, engineers, and code enforcement officials in disputes arising out of both public and private construction projects. He also frequently represents clients in commercial disputes, the sale or lease of commercial and residential real estate and real property tax assessments. He graduated from the University of Notre Dame and from the University of Pittsburgh School of Law, and resides in Allison Park (Hampton Township).

Patricia Dodge Named as an Honoree for Women of the Year

The leading statewide legal industry publication has recognized Patricia Dodge, prominent litigator and managing partner of Pittsburgh law firm Meyer, Unkovic & Scott, as an honoree for its Women of the Year award.

The Legal Intelligencer chose its Women of the Year award recipients based on the positive contributions each attorney has made to the legal profession in the last two years. The winners were picked from a broad scope of female attorneys in Pennsylvania working at law firms, public interest organizations, government agencies and other organizations.

Dodge has practiced as a trial lawyer for 30 years, representing a wide range of foreign and domestic corporations, municipal agencies and individuals in business litigation, product liability and domestic and international arbitration proceedings.

Dodge also serves as president of the Academy of Trial Lawyers and as an adjunct professor at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law where she teaches Advanced Trial Evidence. She is a Fellow of the International Academy of Trial Lawyers and the American College of Trial Lawyers. She was also recently appointed as a Hearing Committee Member serving the Disciplinary Board of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania and was chosen as the “Pittsburgh 2012 Product Liability Litigation – Defendants Lawyer of the Year” by Best Lawyers. She also serves as a Trustee of the Allegheny County Bar Foundation.

She is a graduate of Pennsylvania State University and Duquesne University School of Law. Dodge and her husband, attorney Howard Schulberg, reside in Thornburg, where she is president of the borough council.

Please click here to read additional information on The Legal Intelligencer's Women of the Year award recipients.