A Dallas County jury awarded $30.7 million in damages to Burns Charest client, Scott Stockton, in a fraud case. In the case, Stockton claimed he had been defrauded by Dallas-based franchisee, Guillermo Perales, after Stockton did not receive a share of operating profits from roughly 150 Popeyes franchise restaurants owned by Perales in Texas, Oklahoma, and Florida. The Burns Charest team achieved this result after eight days of trial.

Perales, his company, Sun Holdings Inc., and a series of subsidiaries were defendants. And the jury found each of them liable for fraud. The jury initially returned a verdict of $15,618,873.47 in fraud damages against Perales and his entities. And, after a bifurcated trial, the jury returned another verdict totaling $15,100,000.00 in punitive damages, with Perales being assigned $12 million in punitive damages individually and the remaining $3.1 million being spread across the entity defendants in varying amounts.

“The great thing about our court system is that, rich or poor, we are all equal before the law,” said Daniel Charest of Burns Charest LLP. “The whole Burns Charest team is thrilled to be able to help Scott get justice after many years of hard work.” The remainder of the trial team included Burns Charest attorneys, Spencer Cox, Larry Vincent, and Chase Hilton.

Perales’ portfolio includes roughly 1,800 restaurants in 12 states under various brands including Applebee’s, Arby's, Burger King, Golden Corral, IHOP, McAlister’s, Papa John’s, Popeyes, and Taco Bueno locations. And according to the Sun Holdings website, the collective group aims for $2 billion in annual revenues.

The case is Jerry S. Stockton v. Sun Holdings, Inc., et al., Cause No CC-19-02768-D, in the County Court at Law No. 4, Dallas County, Texas. For a copy of the fraud verdict, click here. And, for a copy of the exemplary damages verdict, click here.