Cornerstone Attorney Wins Appeal Blocking a Warehousing Plan in Maxatawny

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On April 6, 2023, the Commonwealth Court ruled in favor of the homeowners in the case of Robert P. Grim v. Maxatawny Township Board of Supervisors, No. 1452 CD 2021. The decision blocks a warehousing development plan for 12.1 million square feet of farmlands near Route 222 and Long Lane Road in Maxatawny Township. The plan would have created two warehouses that operated 24-hours, seven days a week, for 1,800 tractor-trailers. The Commonwealth Court agreed with Attorney Joel Ready’s arguments that the developer failed to get a zoning variance and special exception from the Zoning Hearing Board.

For more on this:

Cornerstone Law Firm Opens Second Location

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Cornerstone Attorney Successfully Wins Six-Figure Judgement for Berks County Contractor

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On Wednesday February 1, 2023, Attorney Joel Ready received a favorable verdict from a Berks County jury on behalf of one of our clients. The client was suing a homeowner who failed to pay a substantial bill for work done on their house. The case was a three day jury trial, heard in front of Judge Sprecher in the Berks County Court of Common Pleas. The trial involved multiple witnesses, experts and engineers.

The jury was out for about an hour and a half before returning a verdict of well over a hundred thousand dollars on behalf of Cornerstone’s client.

“We are very pleased to obtain a favorable verdict on behalf of our client,” says Joel Ready, the attorney who handled the case. “Collecting bills is an extremely important part of a successful business’ operations and we were glad to defeat the workmanship claims made by the homeowners in this case.”

For Berks County businesses, Cornerstone Law Firm continues to be a resource in collecting past due bills, helping to defeat spurious claims of bad workmanship, and more. If you have a construction case, as either a homeowner or a contractor, and wish to discuss a problem, or if you are a business owner and wish to talk about debt collection, call Cornerstone Law Firm today for a consultation.

Cornerstone case granted appeal by SCOTUS

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In 2020, Cornerstone Law Firm attorney David Crossett represented a mail carrier from Lancaster named Gerald Groff. Mr. Groff sued the United States Postal Service for their failure to accommodate his religious beliefs regarding working on Sundays. The case eventually ruled in favor of the USPS, citing a precedent set by the 1977 Supreme Court case “Trans World Airlines v. Harding.”

Mr. Groff later brought the case before the Supreme Court and asked them to reconsider the original ruling from the Harding case. His case was the 4th in recent years to push back on Harding’s precedent, and SCOTUS has granted certiorari in regards to this case. (Certiorari is the process of a higher court reviewing a decision made by a lower court.)

The SCOTUS appeal is not being handled by a Cornerstone attorney, but we are interested to see how this plays out as the original case was brought to trial by one of our own. It’s rare that a case is heard by the Supreme Court, as they only review about 60 cases per year. Depending on the ruling, Groff v. DeJoy has the potential to set a new precedent for similar religious liberty cases.

If you’re interested in learning more about this case, here are some resources:

SCOTUS Blog Post #1

SCOTUS Blog Post #2

SCOTUS Blog Post #3

Advisory Opinions Podcast

An early press release about this case

Victory for Attorney Eric Winter

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Yesterday in Lebanon County Attorney Eric Winter won a jury trial on an assault case on behalf of one of our clients. The case had lingered for nearly a year before the jury trial occurred and involved claims of domestic violence between a girlfriend and boyfriend. This was a classic case of he said/she said. This case carried serious consequences for our client if found guilty: charges of this nature could be either misdemeanor or felony charges and could have changed our client’s life permanently.

After excellent cross examination and demonstration from text messages that the fight was started by the individual claiming to be the victim, Attorney Winter was able to demonstrate to the jury that there was not enough evidence for a conviction beyond a reasonable doubt. This was a complete win for our client and a testament to Attorney Eric Winter’s twenty-three years of experience as a Berks County criminal defense attorney. It was also Attorney Winter’s fastest jury verdict to date. His client was acquitted in just 18 minutes.

As with all such cases the details of the case are vital to the outcome. From carefully interpreting and explaining the physical evidence to the jury to clarifying the implications of the digital evidence in the form of text messages, Eric Winter, of Cornerstone Law Firm, was able to reveal the truth of this matter to the ladies and gentleman of the jury. In addition to the details in this case, there were significant strategic decisions which shaped the scope of the evidence which the jury was allowed to see.

If you find yourself wrongly charged with a crime, you will want an attorney who has the experience, understands the details, and possesses the wisdom to make the crucial strategic decisions which will help you find justice. Please Call Cornerstone Law Firm if you’ve been charged with a crime, so that you can discuss your case and learn how best to defend yourself at a trial.

September 2022 Update

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This month Cornerstone Law Firm has added two new lawyers to our team. Craig Browne joins our firm to assist in general litigation, contract drafting, document review and more. Attorney Browne’s background includes substantial writing, motions practice and other drafting. Attorney Browne will be handling a broad range of cases including criminal law, family law, personal injury and more.

Federica Caloia received her favorable bar results last week, and joins the firm after an excellent academic career which recently concluded at Ave Maria School of Law. Attorney Caloia is an excellent writer and has a deep interest for understanding the public policy underpinning statutes and the common law. She will be assisting with matters ranging from criminal law to civil motions practice and more.

Our attorneys have worked hard this month to settle several personal injury cases arising from motors vehicle accidents and slip and falls caused by the negligence of others. These personal injury cases involve looking through medical records, determining the value of injuries, negotiating with insurance adjusters and company representatives as well as representatives of city governments who may be responsible for broken sidewalks or other defects that cause injuries.

Attorney Rauch-Mannino has worked hard this month to settle custody disputes, litigate divorces and work out appropriate equitable distribution for spouses going through difficult times.

Attorney Ready has finished several trials recently and is working on defending appeals brought by the other side of several cases. In addition to doing writing work on these appeals, Attorney Ready has been handling preliminary objection arguments, which is the beginning of the pleadings process for civil cases.

Attorney Distasio has handled a number of landlord tenant cases at Magisterial District Courts across Pennsylvania, as well as an oral argument on a breach of contract case in Pittsburgh.

Finally, all of our attorneys have been providing advice to business owners and landlords, helping them to navigate everything from tax issues to debt collection and more. If you have questions about a legal issue, contact the lawyers at Cornerstone Law Firm today for a consultation.

Eric Winter joins Cornerstone Law Firm

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Photo of Attorney Eric Winter

Cornerstone Law Firm is pleased to announce the addition to our team of Eric Winter. Attorney Winter is highly regarded in the legal community and has several decades of experience handling a broad range of administrative law, criminal cases, immigration and more. Attorney Winter has handled over 100 jury trials and brings his passion for courtroom justice to the team.

Attorney Winter does more hunting law than anybody else in Pennsylvania and is one of the busiest immigration attorneys in Berks County, Pennsylvania.

Eric has also done extensive work in family and civil cases, including tortes such as defamation, invasion of privacy and more. Eric’s knowledge of federal firearms law also allows him to help with gun rights restoration questions and similar areas. Cornerstone Law Firm is please to welcome Eric to the team.

August 2022 Review

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This month the attorneys at Cornerstone Law Firm have been busy with:

  • landlord/tenant actions all over the state
  • personal injury cases that are settling and going to court
  • insurance disputes
  • contractor fights
  • a trade secrets and corporate freeze-out trial

Attorney Stephanie Rauch-Mannino has spent much of her month working out final custody arrangements for families that are splitting up, challenging a post nuptial agreement for unfairness, litigating the proper amount of child support to be paid to a single mom and working on a final distribution of assets in several divorces.

Attorney Tony Distasio has been handling landlord/tenant work for Section 8 clients, where evictions are based on everything from unpaid rent to allegations of criminal misconduct and violence. Attorney Distasio has been everywhere from Pittsburgh to Philadelphia this month as part of hearings on these issues.

Attorney Carl Carrero has been writing briefs and motions and has been to court to handle a request for a delay of a sheriff sale. As sheriff sales pickup and foreclosures continue, Attorney Carrero and the Cornerstone Law Firm team are expecting to see more last-minute litigation over attempts to sell houses after foreclosure.

Attorney Joel Ready began the month handling a 2-week trial on a claim regarding trade secrets and a fight over corporate ownership of a large company. From there, he has handled several contract disputes. He has also been finalizing a few guilty plea agreements in the last 2 weeks to ensure the best possible deal for individuals facing criminal charges.

Finally, the whole staff at Cornerstone Law Firm has been working to ensure that clients’ wills are being drafted, contracts are getting signed, deeds are being drawn up and filed, and that clients are getting quick responses to their concerns. If you have a question about your legal issue, call Cornerstone Law Firm today so we can help you.

May 2021 Update

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May 2021 has been filled with trials and advanced litigation for the attorneys of Cornerstone Law Firm. On the civil side, attorney Joel Ready spent time litigating a partnership dispute in Lehigh County court, giving advice to several businesses to avoid personnel and human resources litigation, promulgating discovery in personal injury cases based in Berks County and preparing for a summer of trials. A number of Cornerstone Law’s criminal clients were able to obtain trial dates this month, allowing them to finally pursue their innocence in a proceeding before a jury.

On the transactional side, several businesses hired Cornerstone Law Firm to draft contracts and to create new bylaws and other operating agreements for their businesses and nonprofits. These ranged from employment agreements to more complex inter-business cooperation agreements, and also agreements to resolve potential areas of dispute between rival businesses.

Attorney Crossett has been involved in several mediation for personal injury clients, obtaining settlement for car accident victims and those injured in other accidents. Furthermore, Attorney Crossett has finalized complex land deals this month for clients with conflicting real estate claims.

At Cornerstone Law Firm we are happy that the world is slowly getting back to normal, and we are looking forward to the nice weather in the summer months!

January 2021 Update

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Attorney David Crossett has continued working through personal injury claims for car accident victims in Reading, Pennsylvania this month. Speaking of clients who are concerned about whether their car insurance was sufficient during a car accident, Attorney Crossett explains: “Clients who are ‘limited tort’ should not assume their insurance will not cover their injuries, especially when the injuries are catastrophic. We don’t want to see clients give up their rights in those situations.” Attorney Crossett’s work has also included mediation with judges in attempts to help clients resolve their conflicts outside of court.

Meanwhile, Attorney Joel Ready has been handling a number of civil rights matters, including for violations of the 1st Amendment. “Harassment claims, in particular, bring an important legal issue into the crosshairs,” Attorney Ready explains. As part of his work in this area, Attorney Ready appeared on WFMZ to speak about the First Amendment’s application to private life and employment issues.

Finally, Tim Crossett, Cornerstone’s Firm Administrator, has been working on the launch of the all new web-show, “Business in Berks,” a series of interviews with local business owners about the challenges of 2020 and beyond. The show goes live in February on our youtube channel.

At Cornerstone Law Firm, our attorneys and staff are hoping that 2021 is more pleasant for the world than its predecessor! We look forward to helping you in the coming year.