Joe Wendt is a partner in the Litigation Department in the Indianapolis office of Barnes & Thornburg and Co-Chairs the Commercial Litigation Practice Group.
Joe's practice focuses on commercial disputes, with experience representing heavy equipment manufacturers, real estate development and construction companies, utilities and entities involved in energy trading.
Representative cases include:
- Obtained judgment in favor of a global manufacturer on claims that it violated the False Claims Act through purchases from an allegedly sham, minority-owned entity.
- Obtained arbitration award in favor of public utility, enforcing the terms of a wind power purchase agreement.
- Obtained judgment in favor of a global manufacturer on claims that it violated Puerto Rico's distributor protection laws.
- Obtained judgment in favor of public utility on negligence claims, through enforcement of the liability limitation in the utility's filed and approved tariff.
- Obtained summary judgment for corporate defendant on alleged minority shareholder's claims that the corporation was vicarious liable for the CEO's alleged breach of fiduciary duties.
- Obtained judgment in favor of a subsidiary of the world's largest water company on two separate consumer class actions due the exclusive jurisdiction of the relevant regulatory agency.
- Obtained judgment in favor of corporate defendant on purported shareholder's individual claims of fraud, constructive fraud, breach of fiduciary duty and usurpation of corporate opportunities.
