Milbank has successfully moved for dismissal, on behalf of ITOCHU Coal Americas, Inc. (ITOCHU), in Collingsworth, et al. v. Estate of, Garry N. Drummond, et al., No. 19-01263, a RICO case filed in the District Court for the District of Columbia, relating to alleged illegal activity connected to the Drummond Company’s (Drummond) coal mining activities in Colombia, South America.
On May 1, 2019, three plaintiffs filed suit against twelve named and ten unnamed defendants, including Drummond, an American mining company with operations in Colombia , and ITOCHU, which holds a minority interest in Drummond’s Colombia operations. The complaint accused the defendants of alleged illegal activity in connection with Drummond’s coal mining activities in Colombia with ITOCHU’s financial support of those unlawful activities. The lawsuit included federal and state law claims for (i) civil RICO, (ii) defamation, (iii) intentional interference with prospective economic advantage, (iv) intentional interference with contractual relations, and (v) intentional infliction of emotional distress.
On, August 2, 2019, ITOCHU, along with ten of the named defendants, moved for dismissal of the complaint. Milbank filed a separate motion to dismiss on behalf of ITOCHU, arguing that the Court did not have either general or specific personal jurisdiction over the company.
On May 29, 2020, the Court agreed with Milbank’s arguments and granted the motion to dismiss, finding a lack of personal jurisdiction over ITOCHU. The Court also dismissed the complaint as to the other ten named defendants.
The Milbank team representing ITOCHU is led by Litigation partner Dan Perry and includes Litigation associates Nikki Nielson, Emily Glaser and Margherita Capolino.
