A U.S. Bankruptcy Court judge has ruled in favor of Stopol, Inc. and Stopol Auctions, L.L.C. on all counts, dismissing the lawsuit and denying all claims made by Reggie Sullivan and Cornerstone Products, Inc. against the Solon, Ohio-based company and its auction affiliate.

U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Brenda T. Rhodes ruled in favor of Stopol, finding and concluding that “the Stopol Entities did not engage in fraud and did not breach their fiduciary duty to Cornerstone or the bankruptcy estate.”

“Moreover, the Court found that Stopol, Inc.’s direct purchase of machines owned by Cornerstone had been repeatedly ‘encouraged’ by Cornerstone’s President and that the purchases made by Stopol were ‘inherently fair’ to Cornerstone,” according to Stopol attorney Marvin Karp.

Cornerstone had claimed that Stopol bought some Cornerstone equipment from its creditors and then resold the machines through prearranged transactions that it kept secret from Cornerstone.

On February 8, 2006, Stopol hosted and web cast an auction to sell plastics manufacturing equipment from discontinuing operations at Cornerstone Products, Inc.’s Durant, Okla., plant. The auction was a huge success, attracting over 250 bidders and generating in excess of $1 million in proceeds for Cornerstone.

“Stopol has maintained all along that Cornerstone’s claims were false and unwarranted, and now we have a judge’s ruling to confirm it,” said Stopol CEO Neil Kruschke Jr. “Being publicly vindicated in a court of law further supports our reputation as an honest and upstanding company.”

Privately held, Cornerstone Products was a molded product manufacturer that employed nearly 200 at its Durant facility. The plant produced a variety of custom-molded housewares, including trash cans and storage containers. A shrinking market of retailers and rising raw material prices forced Cornerstone to discontinue operations.