On Friday January 17, a Harris County jury rendered a unanimous defense verdict in favor of SKV’s client, Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam, a Texas non-profit corporation (“UBCV”), rejecting the plaintiff’s claims for fraud and to inspect the corporation’s books and records. Plaintiff Kien Van Dang alleged that UBCV defrauded him into making contributions that were used to purchase a Buddhist temple, and then sold the temple without accounting for the funds. Mr. Dang further alleged that he was a member of the nonprofit corporation entitled to inspect the books and records, including information about others’ contributions for the temple. He requested that the jury award him more than $1 million in damages. SKV partners Jarod Stewart and Hector Chavez tried the case, presenting evidence to the jury that the plaintiff was not a member of the corporation, that the funds were all accounted for, and that the plaintiff had not been harmed. The jury returned a complete defense verdict after less than 30 minutes of deliberation.
