As an experienced, aggressive trial attorney, Rob Kort has successfully litigated numerous complex cases for plaintiffs and defendants in state and federal courts, administrative proceedings and alternative dispute resolution forums, achieving several noteworthy victories.
In 2009, Rob chaired a lengthy federal court jury trial and obtained a $56.8 million verdict for his client, the largest verdict in any Arizona state or federal court in 2009 and one of the largest verdicts in Arizona history. The trial, which involved fraud, breach of contract and other claims against an international manufacturer of flooring products, was featured in articles appearing in The Arizona Republic, Arizona Attorney magazine, and several national legal publications. Rob also successfully defeated the defendant’s appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, which affirmed the verdict in its entirety and his client recovered in full.
Rob has litigated and arbitrated cases involving a wide variety of claims, including fraud and civil racketeering actions, franchise disputes, securities litigation, trade secrets and unfair competition, shareholder derivative actions, director and officer liability, privately held corporation and partnership disputes, insurance coverage and bad faith, and professional malpractice. He has represented large corporations, small businesses and individuals across a multitude of industries, including banking and financial services, franchise and retail operations, consumer goods distribution, commercial real estate, pharmaceutical development, and computer hardware, software and integration.
Representative Litigation
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Rob has obtained numerous other significant victories for his clients, including the following recent results:
- Obtained $1.1 million verdict in arbitration proceeding on behalf of individual who sold his interests in a tobacco distribution business and successfully defeated multi-million dollar counterclaims for fraud, racketeering and breach of contract
- Successfully defended major national financial services firm in federal class action lawsuit, defeating class certification at trial court and appellate level of proposed class of thousands of individuals purporting to assert electronic privacy claims. Decision published at 2008 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 93419
- Obtained defense verdict in arbitration proceeding involving fraud claims arising out of client’s sale of security-related business and recovered full award of attorneys’ fees
- Successfully defended professional services firm in jury trial involving claims of securities fraud and malpractice, resulting in nominal settlement just before closing arguments
Education
- Arizona State University, College of Law (J.D., magna cum laude, 1995)
- Order of the Coif
- Associate Note and Comment Editor, Arizona State Law Journal
- University of Arizona (B.S., Business Administration, 1991)
Court Admissions
- Supreme Court of Arizona
- United States District Court, District of Arizona
- United States Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit
Professional Memberships & Activities
- State Bar of Arizona
- Executive Council, Trial Practices Section
- Maricopa County Bar Association
- American Bar Association
- Business Law Section
- Litigation Section
Professional Recognition & Awards
- Southwest Super Lawyers®, Business Litigation (2012)
Community Involvement
- Arizona Humane Society, Board of Directors (2006-present), Chair (2011)
- North Scottsdale Little League, Coach
