Richard M. Hoffman

Rick Hoffman is a partner in the Litigation Department of Wildman Harrold. An experienced trial lawyer, Rick litigates numerous complex commercial cases in both federal and state courts on behalf of national and international companies in a wide array of industries. These cases involve claims for Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACTA) violations, misappropriation of trade secrets, breach of contract, common law and statutory business torts, securities class actions, Federal False Claims Act violations, successor liability, defamation and antitrust. Rick has been involved in several groundbreaking commercial litigation matters that have involved novel evidentiary and legal issues, such as the first ever jury verdict of $156 million in an unprecedented action under the federal Anti-Terrorism Act. He focuses a significant portion of his practice on real estate litigation, including construction disputes, lease disputes, actions to quiet title, foreclosures, limited partnership disputes, and lien disputes. As lead trial lawyer, Rick develops sophisticated and creative, results-oriented trial strategies. In addition, he successfully uses arbitration and mediation when appropriate to achieve cost effective resolutions for clients.

Representative Experience:

Successfully represented Toys “R” Us in its closely watched billion-dollar breach of contract dispute with Amazon.com. Established that Amazon.com breached Toys “R” Us’ exclusivity rights under their ten year Strategic Alliance Agreement. As a result, the court terminated the agreement. The action, brought in New Jersey State Court, involved high-stakes and several novel issues and approaches, such as effectively using Amazon’s own website as a witness against Amazon. The ruling was not only a significant win for Toys “R” Us, allowing the company to operate its own website, but has also had a considerable impact on e-commerce. Later obtained a ruling requiring Amazon to return over $12 million in converted funds. Toysrus.com, LLC, et al. v. Amazon.com Kids, Inc., et al.
Secured a $156 million judgment in an unprecedented case under the federal Anti-Terrorism Act, which held American citizens and companies accountable for supporting the international terrorist organization, Hamas. This was the first reported decision under the Act, the first case tried under the Act, and the first case brought against U.S.-based supporters of foreign terrorist organizations. The jury verdict and judgment was affirmed by the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals following an en banc hearing. Based on this victory, the defendant organizations were shut down as a result of this suit. Subsequent to this highly-publicized suit being filed, two of the defendants were criminally indicted and convicted based in part on evidence developed in the civil case. Boim v. Quranic Literacy Institute.
Currently representing national and regional retailers in consumer class actions brought under the Fair and Accurate Transactions Act. Edwards v. Toys "R" Us-Delaware, Inc.; Burtan v. Hy-Vee, Inc.; Dudzienski v. Darden Restaurants, Inc.; Dudzienski v. Texas Roadhouse Holdings, LLC.
Successfully negotiated a settlement on behalf of defendant directors of Reliance Acceptance Corp. in a class action securities litigation brought in Federal Court in Delaware and a companion adversary proceeding in Bankruptcy Court. Notwithstanding the fact that the clients were defendants in the class litigation, negotiated a settlement with the class, the bankruptcy estate, and the other defendants, resulting in a multi-million dollar recovery for the clients. Because of the clients’ position as both defendants and shareholders, and the competing claims of the class and the estate, the settlement negotiations were extremely complicated and sophisticated. In re Reliance Acceptance Group Securities Litigation.
Obtained a $2 million judgment on behalf of a limited partner against the general partner in a series of real estate limited partnership investments. Conducted a bench trial held in the Circuit Court of Cook County. The case was heavily document and fact intensive, involving eight limited partnerships over a period of several years. Henry Mermelstein v. Moshe Menora.
Obtained a favorable seven-figure settlement on behalf of a shopping center owner in a dispute arising from the defendant’s breach of its lease obligation to the client. Urban Retail Properties, Co. v. The Limited Stores, Inc.
Successfully defended Molex Incorporated, a manufacturer of electronic, electrical, and fiber optic connection systems, in a trade secrets misappropriation case brought in Rhode Island State Court. Obtained a ruling that Molex never made use of the allegedly proprietary information it received when it acquired a company that had invested in a joint venture with the plaintiff Handy & Harman. Subsequent to the ruling, and based on a mastery of the high technology at issue, negotiated a settlement on terms that were very favorable to the client. Handy & Harman Electronic Materials Corporation, et al. v. Molex Incorporated, et al.
Successfully represented DuPont in an arbitration before the American Arbitration Association for breach of a safety-consulting contract. After a full arbitration and evidentiary hearing, obtained an award of over $2 million—the entire amount sought by DuPont. E. I. DuPont De Nemours and Company v. Intermet Corporation.
Successfully represented the Kansas Public Employees Retirement System in claims brought against its real estate investment advisors and lawyers for having invested state pension funds in imprudent and improper real estate investments. Obtained multi-million dollar settlements for the client. The case, brought in Kansas State Court, touched on complex issues of fiduciary duty in the context of pension fund investments and involved issues of significant political importance in Kansas. Kansas Public Employee Retirement System v. J.W. O’Connor & Co., Inc.
As a first year associate, tried a high-profile case to verdict and obtained a $1.8 million dollar jury verdict under the Illinois Hate Crimes Act as well as an injunction barring the defendants from harassing the client. The judgment was executed by foreclosing on the defendant's home. Later successfully prosecuted the defendant for violating the injunction resulting in incarceration of the defendant. Sherry Del Dotto, et al. v. Neil Olsen, et al.
Successfully represented a Chicago Tribune reporter in a defamation suit brought in response to a Sunday Magazine article published by the Tribune and authored by the client. Obtained a dismissal of all claims. Derek A. Gilna, et al. v. Robert A. Condor, et al.

Reported Decisions:

Boim v. Quranic Literacy Institute, 340 F. Supp.2d 885 (N.D. Ill. 2004)
United States v. Northrop Grumman Corporation, 2002 WL 3110937 (N.D. Ill. Sept. 20, 2002)
United States v. Northrop Grumman Corporation, 2002 WL 31478259 (N.D. Ill. Nov. 5, 2002)
Del Dotto v. Olsen, 257 Ill. App.3d 463 (1st Dist. 1993)

Publications And Presentations:

Co-Author, "Hawala Banking: A Potential Tool For Funding Terrorism," Bank & Lender Liability Litigation Reporter, Vol. 14, Issue 09, September 15, 2008.
Speaker, “Emerging Class Action Threat: Credit Card Data Protection Under FACTA,” Class Action Law Monitor and Stafford Publications Teleconference, October 16, 2007 and March 12, 2008.
Speaker, “Understanding the Law of Data Protection: How to Comply with Your Legal Obligations,” Navigant Roundtable, October 30, 2007.
Co-author, “Retailers Under Siege on Data Security: Today, FACTA Class Actions; Tomorrow…?” Retail Law Strategist, Vol. 7, Issue 10, October 2007.
Co-author, “Class Actions Under FACTA: Lots of Activity, But What Do They Actually Accomplish?” WLF Legal Backgrounder, Vol. 22, No. 38, September 21, 2007.
Co-author, “Is Dumpster Diving the Real Threat? FACTA Class Actions Consume Judicial Resources But Do Nothing to Make Consumers Safer,” Andrews Litigation Reporter, June 2007.

Professional Associations:

American Bar Association

Chicago Bar Association (Commercial Litigation Committee)

International Council of Shopping Centers

Bar Admissions:

Illinois, 1990

U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, 1990

U.S. District Court for the Western District of Michigan, 2000

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, 2002

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, 2005

U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois (Trial Bar member), 1996

U.S District Court for the Central District of Illinois, 2007

Personal Information:

Rick is an avid sports fan, with a particular love for baseball. He plays softball in the spring and football in the fall, and enjoys fantasy sports of all stripes all year round. Rick also enjoys traveling and is actively involved in his synagogue. In March 2005, Rick was awarded the Torch of Learning Award by the American Friends of Hebrew University in recognition of the groundbreaking verdict in the Boim antiterrorism case.

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