Peter Beagle wasn’t just cheated for his money, but his mom’s too

Peter Beagle supports the mission to expose and fix bad business practices by Connor Cochran. Connor is facing litigation in relation to this site – never trust info about it sourced from him.

Peter Beagle’s lawsuit against ex-manager Connor Cochran has gone to trial (with pauses) and is due to conclude in December, if there are no delays. (UPDATE: following trial, judgement may happen between now and late February 2019.)

Here’s the newly filed closing brief for the trial. It offers new details about how Cochran targeted a niche of senior citizens and defrauded Peter. After gaining control of Peter’s career, in 2006 Cochran began pitching deals with Peter’s intellectual property to investors, calling it a “Connor Cochran Venture”. He estimated Peter’s work as worth $15 billion, and sought $30 million for a 40% share. Everything was planned to make Cochran rich.

In 2008 he was able to get Peter to sign rights over to a corporation he formed (Avicenna) – but Peter received nothing for it.  According to the brief, Peter was only shown the Articles of Incorporation, while the Bylaws granted all power to Cochran. This was hidden from Peter’s knowledge until he was forced to sue.

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Connor Cochran dropped by FIFTH attorney; and where did Peter Beagle’s money go?

Peter Beagle supports the mission to expose and fix bad business practices by Connor Cochran. Connor is facing litigation in relation to this site – never trust info about it sourced from him.

Connor Cochran has now been dropped by attorneys 5 times in his current active litigation alone.  In August 2018, he is Pro Se (self represented) in lawsuits and bankruptcy proceedings against him by Peter Beagle, The Last Unicorn Tour investors, and Patrick Lake, among countless people with grievances caused by his deceptive business practices.

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Conlan Press shuts down internet sales, faces lawsuit by Lake 

Peter Beagle supports the mission to expose and fix bad business practices by Connor Cochran. Connor is facing litigation in relation to this site – never trust info about it sourced from him.

A positive step for cheated customers

Months after announcing bankruptcy, Conlan Press has shuttered its web store. Only a plain contact page remains at the home page. This pauses a longstanding worry about innocent people falling into problems surrounding its sole proprietor Connor Cochran. Warning customers has been a steadfast purpose for Fans Against Fraud since 2014. The risk may be less now, but countless people still have no resolution about how Connor treated them for many years.

Almost 10 years for this product.
The stories keep coming…

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Bankruptcy court sends Connor Cochran to liquidation, with new details about his shady business for The Last Unicorn Tour.

Peter Beagle supports the mission to expose and fix bad business practices by Connor Cochran. Connor is facing litigation in relation to this site – never trust info about it sourced from him.

Peter  just turned 79, with many birthday wishes from fans!

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BANKRUPTCY STATUS  

In January, Connor Cochran was due in court to face Peter’s claims of elder abuse. One day before trial, he filed for bankruptcy to evade it.  Cheated customers for undelivered goods were then angered at his insistence that it wasn’t real bankruptcy.

That manipulation can’t continue. In April, the bankruptcy court denied Connor’s attempt to get Chapter 11 restructuring and sent him to Chapter 7 liquidation. (Definition: he must sell business assets to pay creditors.) Expect games to hide assets – he already has a record of hiding personal income to dodge debts by disguising it as company expenses – but the dogs are on his heels.

The vast majority of value seems to be The Last Unicorn property. The next steps will decide what creditors get, including Peter. That’s now being sorted out with others, based on business done with the property after Cochran took control of it. Others may have honest claims, but at the least, Peter is breaking free of someone who isn’t.

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A CREDITOR’S STORY OF BEING CHEATED 

Sandbox LLC, the investors who funded The Last Unicorn Tour, sued Cochran for fraud when Peter did. A new legal document from them illuminates shady business by Cochran at the heart of this story:

  • It has the original 2012 agreement that Cochran made with Sandbox to fund the movie tour – he took $300,000 from them. (Page 17)
  • He promised the money would only be used for tour expenses until they were paid what they were owed. (Page 13)
  • Instead, Cochran spent tour funding as personal play money for luxury goods, massages, house landscaping, and a trip to Hawaii. (Page 12.)
  • They also sued for fraud, because Cochran conned them to pay based on his claim that he had permission to re-release a remastered version of the movie from ITV (the UK rights holders). He didn’t. (Page 14)
  • It supports what came out when this site was founded in 2014 – nonexistent goods were sold to customers with false promises about their creation.

There’s also a $6 million budget for Cochran’s plan to remaster the movie, including for merchandise and undelivered products. Customers should see this.

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Judge lifts stay in Connor Cochran bankruptcy – Peter Beagle gets green light to reclaim his rights

Peter Beagle supports the mission to expose and fix bad business practices by Connor Cochran. Connor is facing litigation in relation to this site – never trust info about it sourced from him.

Fans have been requesting updates since we posted in January 2018. Neil Gaiman shared our page as a source for the story; the official Peter Beagle page reshared that, and comic creator Colleen Doran supported Peter too. The whole story takes a lot of reading, but Peter has been suing his ex manager Connor Cochran, who’s on a losing streak in court. Cochran tried to game the system by claiming Peter was alcoholic and mentally unfit, conspiring with Peters kids to put him in conservatorship, suing Peter’s lawyer, and countersuing Peter. It all failed in court, getting harsh criticism from the judge. On the day before trial, Connor filed for bankruptcy and fled for cover under an automatic stay of proceedings.

PETER’S FIGHT FOR HIS RIGHTS IS BACK ON!

Thanks to Peter’s dedicated legal team, the stay is lifted. And he isn’t the only creditor coming after Cochran in court… Here’s the legal doc. Please keep in mind what Peter’s Facebook page posted:

Bankruptcy law advice does not come cheap – I ask that if you can, help support Peter by donating to his legal fund at supportpeterbeagle.com. Any amount is gratefully appreciated.

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Bankruptcy filed by Connor Cochran – alert for anyone awaiting merchandise from Conlan Press.

Peter Beagle supports the mission to expose and fix bad business practices by Connor Cochran. Connor is facing litigation in relation to this site – never trust info about it sourced from him.

Colleen Doran gave even more perspective on Peter Beagle’s fight. She’s a NY Times bestselling comics creator and a great source for creator’s rights.

The story of legal action until now:

In the early 2000’s, Connor Cochran took control of Peter’s career. While operating in Peter’s name, he gained screening rights to the Last Unicorn movie, took in a $500,000 settlement for it, and started a tour that sold large amounts of merchandise for the business Connor controlled.

Meanwhile, as exposed by this site, Connor was dodging a judgement of $83,000 he owed to his ex wife since 1999. That meant running personal finances through company accounts to hide them and claim little to no income, according to legal documents about it. Behind the front of doing good for Peter, Connor also cheated countless customers who are still waiting for goods since 2005, stiffed vendors on debts, and took a large amount of money from an elderly kid’s art teacher, before countersuing to beat back her attempts to get what she was owed.

Then he sued his own family for money from his mother’s estate, based on his word that she was alcoholic and mentally unfit. The courts rejected his claims. Multiple lawsuits against his family were thrown out in 2014.

In 2015, Peter Beagle sued him (it was followed by another lawsuit for hundreds of thousands from The Last Unicorn Tour investors). Cochran responded by:

  1. Claiming Peter was alcoholic and mentally unfit.
  2. Conspiring with Peters kids to put him in conservatorship. It was thrown out.
  3. Suing Peter’s lawyer. It was thrown out.
  4. Countersuing Peter. It was thrown out.

The scummy tactics always blame someone or something else for problems in which Cochran is the common denominator. When the claims fail he shifts to a new scapegoat or delay game. Dragging on forever runs up costs so he can take what he wants, using the court process – a venue for resolving conflict – as a weapon.

Latest tactics, January 2018:

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New filing in Peter Beagle’s lawsuit shows Connor Cochran’s history of abusive legal tactics.

Peter Beagle supports the call to the report of the lost merchandise from Conlan Press and bad business practices by Connor Cochran. Take action! (More in sidebar.) Connor Cochran is being countersued in relation to this site – Do not believe any info about it sourced from him.

Check out  the new post on Peter’s support site with a legal filing for sanctions against Connor. It describes his dirty legal tactics against Peter, and his history of gaming the system. It led to many court orders against him, including:

  • In 2016, Connor sued Peter’s lawyer with a claim that she was causing “undue influence” by simply representing Peter.  She won and the court awarded her $24,915 for legal fees. Connor refuses to pay it.
  • In another case in 2017, he was ordered to pay $3,000 for refusing to produce documents. (See page 34 in the filing).
  • In 2014, a Los Angeles court sentenced Connor to jail for contempt. Yet again, it was for refusing to produce documents in a complaint by Connor’s ex-wife about an $83,502.64 debt he refused to pay. (See page 37-39 in the filing.)

Connor’s jail sentence was settled by 60 hours of community service and 3 years of probation. (That means he was on probation from 2014-2017 during The Last Unicorn Tour, while he hustled Peter around and made him sleep on couches.)  To avoid jail, he was also ordered to pay $11,562 for his ex-wife’s legal fees.

Pay attention to the costs made by this behavior.

Stretching out the legal process is Connor’s weapon. He runs up costs for others while leveraging cheap service for himself  by an unlicensed lawyer (Charles Petit, who lost his license for cheating a client). The more Connor delays, the more power he gains from mismatched resources.  

That’s why the court is NOT equal access here. Anyone without a movie and free lawyer service is fighting on a tilted field. That’s how Connor preys.

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Peter Beagle seeks an injunction to stop unlawful sale of his work – his fans don’t know the money funds the opponent he is suing.

Peter Beagle supports the call to report missing merchandise from Conlan Press and bad business practices by Connor Cochran. Take action! (More in sidebar.)

Connor Cochran is being countersued in relation to this site. Don’t believe any info about it sourced from him (all of it is.)

In 2014, Fans Against Fraud blew the whistle about Connor’s record of wrongdoing. He tried to silence it by retaliating against people he accused of involvement with this site.  It resulted in a countersuit for defamation and a firm stand about the truth.

Meanwhile, Peter Beagle is also in the process of suing him. Here’s the main story:

PETER FILED FOR AN INJUNCTION AGAINST CONNOR COCHRAN AND CONLAN PRESS ON 7/26/17. (PDF OF THE DOCUMENT HERE.)

There have been many requests for updates about Peter. Now his official site has posted about the injunction.“If you’re a fan or supporter of Peter’s, this will give you a look at the damage being done to him.” His supporters are working to stop the damage.

AMANDA PALMER REACTS TO “HORRIBLE” HAPPENINGS, “UNKNOWING FANS”

Peter’s appeal to the court isn’t just to stop losing money made from his work.  It’s also about how his own work is used against him. When fans think they’re buying goods that support Peter, they’re inadvertently funding Connor’s fight to keep Peter’s rights away. It’s a perverse anti-creator situation.

The document has an exhibit from one fan who may catch your eye.  When she found out about this, it made her speak up for creator’s rights.

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Peter S. Beagle fans, speak out! Your help is wanted to verify info publicized by Fans Against Fraud, with a new attorney joining the fight for fairness.

UPDATE: This message is approved by Peter S. Beagle, who says: “I support Patrick Lake. I urge anyone who has ever ordered any merchandise from Conlan Press, and received neither their merchandise nor a refund, or has complaints about Connor Cochran’s business practices, to please contact Patrick’s legal representation, David M. Helbraun, at dmh@helbraunlaw.com.”

Dear readers of Fans Against Fraud,

Many of you know that as a result of FAF’s efforts to publicize business practices of Connor Cochran and his Conlan Press, he has sued one of the persons who have been critical of him in the past, Patrick Lake.

A few years ago, Patrick was forced to get a lawyer to pursue Cochran for broken promises, after he signed a contract with Patrick but refused to live up to it.  Cochran then attacked Patrick, claiming he “forged” Cochran’s signature on the contract, and proceeded to sue Patrick.

As a news source said about Cochran’s tactical accusations in another matter:

“Given the general tone of the accusations and how things have shaken out thus far, fans may be forgiven if they cast a jaundiced eye on them.”

LAST UNICORN Author Peter S Beagle Mentally OK, Heirs’ Lawyer Quits – Kelly Luck, SciFi4Me.com, 7/13/2016

On behalf of Patrick, we’re asking everyone whose stories or concerns about Cochran were ever posted on FAF (or even kept confidential and unpublished) to please contact Patrick’s attorney at dmh@helbraunlaw.com.  

Please come forward, and be willing to give a signed statement about the truth of things said here about Cochran and his business practices. Without support from the community of Peter Beagle fans, the Truth will become a casualty of Connor Cochran’s scorched-earth tactics.

This site is dedicated to fairness and supporting others- whether it’s about consumer rights, or righting other wrongs. We hope you’ll help.

REMINDER: Please also contact Peter Beagle’s attorney if you can help with his ongoing fight. Peter isn’t being paid for sales of his work by Conlan Press, The Last Unicorn Tour, ebooks on Amazon, and more.  If you have paid during December 2015 or later, please contact kathleenhunt@uniquelaw.com. (Be aware that Cochran’s tactical accusations against Peter and his attorney have already been thrown out of court).

Have you paid for Peter Beagle’s works during his lawsuit? Peter NEEDS YOU to contact his lawyer.

In Peter’s lawsuit for fraud and elder abuse against his ex manager Connor Cochran, part of the problem is that he isn’t getting paid for sales.  YOU can help to win justice.  It doesn’t matter whether you got what you paid for or got scammed like so many other victims.  If you paid, your voice is needed.

Sales from the Last Unicorn Tour, Conlan Press, and ebooks at Amazon need to be documented.  If you paid FROM DECEMBER 2015 TO THE PRESENT, please email Peter’s lawyer (with records if possible): kathleenhunt@uniquelaw.com

The judge needs proof that Peter’s works are being sold during the lawsuit.  (Sales like hardcopy books from other honest publishers like Tachyon are excepted.)

Help Peter get more support by sharing with hashtag #TakeBackTheUnicorn.

Injustice – 12 years and counting.

Are you one of many victims wondering why you never got Last Unicorn Tour merchandise you paid for? Remember how Connor Cochran kept promising everything by “spring” of 2016 while taking more and more “pre-orders” (notice he removed the date)… but it just isn’t happening?

“On May 16, 2015… I purchased what was referred to as the “Bigger Better Beagle Bundle” from Conlan Press… We (the audience) were told that this “bundle” was still in the process of being published but would ship no later than January 2016… I never received an invoice either on paper or through email for this “bundle,” which was the first red flag that I had been scammed.  January came and went and there was no package shipped to my house and no communication from Conlan Press about why there may have been a delay. I have tried to contact the company numerous times but have never received a reply.” – Customer in Middletown RI – May 2016

When Cochran seized control of Peter’s career and life, fans were a target for Cochran’s predation.  Dominating Peter was the way to milk the fanbase since 2004.

In 2014 when this expose came out, the small victims were revealed first.  Our expose was the original source about “pre-sale” scams that built a pyramid of new scams on top of old ones.

He’s still making fake “pre sales” while people are still expecting to get goods they paid for 12 years ago!

We didn’t really know how bad it was – the full story was just predicted in 2014.  Confirmation has come from everywhere.  A year later, Peter’s story broke open because we peeled back Cochran’s layers of distractions that he used to hide the cheating against fans.  It took until 2016 to get headlines about Peter’s lawsuit.  That was matched by the fraud lawsuit from the Last Unicorn tour investors, and much more coming out of the woodwork.

Cochran still pretends to be the victim.  Everything was an accident and everyone else is “lying”.  It worked for just as long as he could use Peter as a false front.

For years, Cochran has been incredibly canny about manipulating victims.  He would do whatever it took to keep them separated and quiet – whether it meant sob stories that kept changing, giving people the run-around, buying them off with sweet talk, hiding and attacking their complaints, or threatening to retaliate against them personally.  No matter what tactic he uses, SPEAK OUT!

The pretense is exposed but he won’t stop.  They say possession is 9/10ths of the law… With Peter’s rights in his hands, and a movie to milk, the money is going to his lawyers to deny justice to everyone.  It’s a David and Goliath situation for small fan and elderly writer alike.

This needs People Power.  Please speak out and contact Peter’s lawyer to help.

There should be picket lines in front of any theater that would still help Cochran to push sales, without telling fans how their money is going to lawyers to attack Peter.  Some theaters have shared Peter’s story.  But one theater is helping Cochran to profit in Seattle this June.

“THE LAST UNICORN w/ Connor Cochran.  This special screening brings producer Connor Conlon to Central Cinema, including a Q&A with the one person who may know more about this film than any other breathing soul on this planet.”

(Forget THE GUY WHO WROTE IT.  With a misspelled name of a con artist who had zero to do with making the movie, do they have any clue at all?)

PAYING FOR THE MOVIE IS PAYING FOR ABUSE.  Peter’s lawsuit gives documents about how Cochran tried to get doctors to fake evidence about his health.  Cochran is still trying to use these lies to take away Peter’s rights.

Peter continues to be an active creator.  On May 28, he appeared as guest of honor at Balticon in Baltimore MD with his friend, George R.R. Martin (Game of Thrones).  He has a new book coming out. He isn’t helpless – he’s wronged.

The story of Peter’s fight is being actively suppressed.  Please help bring it to light, to finally make a happier ending for Peter and everyone who deserves it.  
Support Peter so he can get back to making magic.