Owoc’s motion pulls no punches. He claims the firm orchestrated a campaign to obstruct his ability to receive fair legal representation, weaponizing procedural rules and engaging in bad-faith tactics.
“These actions are not mere procedural errors; they constitute an abuse of process that has caused defendants irreparable harm and must be sanctioned accordingly,” Owoc stated in the filing.
A Fall from Power and a Contentious Bankruptcy
Owoc’s legal woes began in October 2022, when Vital Pharmaceuticals, the parent company of Bang Energy, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. By March 2023, the company’s board ousted him as CEO, along with his wife, who had been senior vice president of marketing.
Two months later, the Owocs retained Conrad & Scherer to represent them in the fallout of the bankruptcy proceedings. But the relationship quickly soured.
Owoc contends that in addition to mishandling the case, the firm played a role in the undervaluation of Bang Energy, which was ultimately acquired by competitor Monster Energy for $362 million in July 2023—far below the billions Owoc insists it was worth.
The Computer Controversy
A flashpoint in the legal drama is the dispute over a computer that was seized under court order while ownership issues were resolved. Owoc maintains the device contained protected and confidential legal information. He accuses Conrad & Scherer’s lead attorney, Irwin Gilbert, of misleading the court by falsely claiming the firm had taken possession of the device when, in fact, it had remained in Owoc’s hands.
A System Rigged Against Him?
Owoc alleges that his former attorneys’ actions placed him in an “extremely compromising legal position” by leaving him without representation at critical moments in the case. He further claims that the firm’s legal work was tainted by the involvement of a disbarred attorney, whose role remains unclear in the filings.
