Judge Sides with Consumer’s Right to Speak Out in Car Restoration Dispute

Meet Philip H. Lo, an insurance defense lawyer with the prominent law firm Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani, LLP, a firm devoted primarily to representing the interests of insurance companies and their clients.

Recently, Lo unsuccessfully tried to curtail free speech by requesting that a California court bar a wronged car collector from sharing online photos of a Land Rover Defender. Defenders, classic Land Rovers renowned for their rugged appeal, boast a loyal fan base among Jeep enthusiasts and adventurers who cherish these vehicles for their off-road capabilities and iconic appearances in safari excursions and James Bond films.

The photos came from a court-mandated car inspection, part of a fraud and breach of contract lawsuit against a car restoration shop. Instead of returning a meticulously restored Defender, the rogue shop delivered a different, dilapidated vehicle: rusted, inoperable, and entirely unsuitable.

Enter Phil Lo and his colleagues at Gordon Rees, who attempted to impose a protective order on the aggrieved customer while being aware of their clients’ alleged scheme to deceive the court and the plaintiffs.

Chad Ullery, the defrauded customer, described Lo’s actions as “an evil, ill-conceived attempt by Phil Lo to file a baseless motion to prevent the facts from reaching the crooked shop’s customer base.” Lo’s legal maneuvering aimed to prevent public exposure of his client’s activities. Yet, ultimately, Lo failed. Sources familiar with the underlying litigation suggest that Lo has been driving up legal costs through poorly crafted motions and delay tactics, benefiting from Liberty Mutual’s (the insurance firm in question) deep pockets. Unfortunately, such practices are hardly uncommon in insurance defense law, where legal expenses are often inflated by unscrupulous law firms paid by insurance companies.