Members of Gross McGinley’s litigation team recently served as local counsel to Dalmatia Import Group, Inc. (“Dalmatia”) in the case of Dalmatia Import Group, Inc. v. FoodMatch Inc. et al. Attorneys Constance K. Nelson and Samuel E. Cohen helped successfully secure a landmark jury verdict for their client which should result in a judgment of $5.2 million as well as attorneys’ fees and a permanent injunction. It is also the first verdict to be decided under the Defend Trade Secrets Act (2016).Dalmatia, the maker of specialty fig jam products had been fighting in courts for over a year to protect their recipe from former manufacturing partners who were colluding to release an imitation jam product. It was also found that those same former business partners had already sold and distributed Dalmatia’s fig spread under the Dalmatia trademarked name and jars without the company’s consent or knowledge. The four-week jury trial took place in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, which led Dalmatia to hand-pick Gross McGinley’s experienced group of litigators to assist as local counsel in addition to its Washington, D.C. and New Jersey-based legal counsel.Due to her extensive courtroom experience as the former Chief Prosecutor of White Collar Crime in Northampton County, Connie was hand-picked by Dalmatia’s President to take a more primary role wherever possible. Specifically, Connie was asked to lead voir dire and jury selection. She also assisted in document review and the discovery process as well as managing the client’s expectations and walking them through the trial process.Connie has extensive experience representing individuals and businesses in litigation matters. She has tried numerous cases in the areas of white collar crime and personal injury, with specific experience in toxic torts and product liability matters.Sam focuses his practice on commercial litigation and business disputes. He regularly counsels individuals, small businesses, and large corporations on transactions, employment matters, product warranties, and zoning disputes. He has successfully litigated claims founded in breach of contract, employment discrimination, and premise liability defense, to name a few.