In a complex legal battle involving accusations of fraud and breach of fiduciary duty, the Arizona Court of Appeals has delivered a decision that partially dismisses and partially affirms previous rulings in favor of a law firm. The complaint was initially filed by AXT Analytics, LLC, and Frederic Buonincontri against Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani, LLP, along with other defendants. The case was filed in the Superior Court in Maricopa County under Judge Dewain D. Fox on November 26, 2025.
The origins of this legal saga trace back to October 2018 when AXT Analytics and Frederic Buonincontri initiated litigation against ORHub Inc., which was represented by the defendants. The plaintiffs accused ORHub of defaulting under a Note Agreement after they became Note Holders through purchasing ORHub debt. Various Note Holders assigned their claims to AXT, leading to an attempt to replace ORHub as the Note Agent. Despite some progress in the earlier case, including sanctions against ORHub for failing to provide financial information, settlement agreements did not conclude all disputes.
In June 2021, AXT Analytics and Buonincontri launched a new lawsuit against Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani LLP and its attorneys John L. Condrey and Kira N. Barrett. They alleged aiding and abetting ORHub’s breach of fiduciary duty, conspiracy with ORHub, abuse of process, and wrongful institution of civil proceedings. However, complications arose when AXT’s counsel withdrew due to communication issues with their clients. Without securing new representation within court deadlines, Buonincontri attempted to represent himself and AXT despite being warned that corporate entities must appear through counsel.
As proceedings continued into 2023 without new legal representation for AXT Analytics, the court dismissed AXT’s claims due to procedural deficiencies while granting summary judgment against Buonincontri on grounds including failure to disclose damages timely and lack of standing since he had assigned his rights to AXT previously.
Buonincontri’s appeals for reconsideration were denied consistently by the court. In response to perceived unreasonable delays caused by plaintiffs’ actions throughout litigation, defendants sought attorney fees under Arizona Revised Statutes § 12-349(A)(3). The court awarded them $74,637 in fees along with additional costs amounting to over $39,000.
Represented by Amy W. Hoffman from Frost LLP for the plaintiffs/appellants and Elizabeth S. Fitch alongside Benjamin L. Hodgson from Righi Fitch Law Group PLLC for the defendants/appellees; Judges Samuel A. Thumma (delivering opinion), Paul J. McMurdie (Presiding Judge), Kent E Cattani participated in rendering this decision documented under Case ID No: CV2021-009326.
Source: 1CACV240631_AXT_Analytics_LLC_v_Gordon_Rees_Scully_Mansukhani_LLP_Opinion_Arizona_Court_of_Appeals.pdf