Allen Matkins Team Victorious in Jury Trial with $80 Million Verdict

June 15, 2026 – Allen Matkins announced today that its trial team — led by lead trial attorney Matthew Sessions, Stacey Villagomez, and Andrew Wood — secured a jury trial victory for Patrick Byrne against Ameris Bank, winning approximately $80 million in damages after two weeks of trial.

The case centered on Ameris Bank’s breach of a carefully negotiated earn-out and long-term incentive plan (LTIP) agreement entered into at the time of the bank’s acquisition of Mr. Byrne’s company, Balboa Capital. By the time of sale, Balboa Capital was a highly profitable venture with a loan portfolio of approximately $1 billion in performing assets. As part of the acquisition, Ameris promised to keep Mr. Byrne on as Balboa’s CEO and provide additional bonus compensation each year the company hit performance thresholds. Ameris, however, systematically failed to honor those commitments, manipulating the metrics and methodology underlying the LTIP in ways that were inconsistent with the agreement’s terms. When Mr. Byrne discovered that Ameris was withholding these bonuses, he was terminated from his position as CEO.

After a full two weeks of evidence presented at trial, the jury agreed with Mr. Byrne and Allen Matkins, finding that Ameris willfully and maliciously failed to pay what was owed under the LTIP and then fired Mr. Byrne when he communicated his corrections to Ameris’s leadership.

The jury answered every factual question in favor of the plaintiff and awarded over $16 million in compensatory damages (not including interest) and another $63 million in punitive damages.

“I spent my career building Balboa Capital and stood up for the people who built it with me. I’m grateful the jury listened to the evidence and held Ameris accountable,” said Mr. Byrne.

In addition to Matt Sessions, Stacey Villagomez, and Andrew Wood, the full Allen Matkins team includes Catriona Lavery, Madison Larsen, Sean Bloks, Jordan Victor, Michael Gates, Georgia Gallaher, and Ross Neglia.