Judge vacates $100K ruling against Mark Geragos in Nike conspiracy case

A $100,000 jury verdict against Mark Geragos has been vacated in a case alleging that he ruined the plaintiff's Nike sponsorship by conspiring with convicted lawyer Michael Avenatti to extort the company.

The stipulated judgment entered on Sept. 16 determined that plaintiff Gary Franklin will recover nothing from Geragos, with each side bearing its own fees and costs. Franklin, who ran a Los Angeles-based youth basketball program, claimed Geragos and Avenatti derailed a $1.5 million settlement offer by demanding their own payout from Nike. Geragos denied wrongdoing, noting he never had an attorney-client relationship with Franklin and was never charged, though federal prosecutors identified him as an unindicted co-conspirator. Franklin v. Geragos, 20STCV37797 (L.A. Super. Ct., filed Oct. 10, 2020).

The jury awarded Franklin $100,000 in noneconomic damages but declined to award him any economic damages - a point Geragos' attorneys seized on in challenging the verdict. The defense argued that because the jury found no liability, the damages award should be thrown out.