YOUNGSTOWN — The 7th District Court of Appeals agreed to let lawyers representing the idled Chill-Can project’s owners withdraw as legal counsel but warned that it may dismiss the company’s case if it fails to file a legal brief next month.

In this particular case, M.J. Joseph Development Corp., which owns the Chill-Can property, had filed an appeal of a Mahoning County Common Pleas Court judge’s decision that it owes $322,908 to MS Consultants Inc. for breach of contract.

In that case, Justin Markota and Brian Kopp, who have represented M.J. Joseph since legal action commenced against the company in May 2021, were supposed to file a legal brief by Dec. 6. Instead, the two filed a request that same day to withdraw as M.J. Joseph’s attorneys on three separate cases.

Judge John M. Durkin granted the withdrawal request Dec. 13 in a case brought by MS Consultants in common pleas court seeking to foreclose on the Chill-Can’s property on Youngstown’s East Side in order to recover $322,908 in unpaid architectural fees. Durkin put the case on hold for 30 days while M.J. Joseph seeks new legal counsel.

Judge Maureen Sweeney of common pleas court hadn’t ruled as of Tuesday on the request from Markota and Kopp to withdraw from a separate $2.8 million breach-of-contract lawsuit filed by the city of Youngstown against M.J. Joseph and Joseph Manufacturing Co. Inc., a sister company.

In the appeals case, Luther L. Liggett Jr., an attorney representing MS, asked that Markota and Kopp not be permitted to withdraw “until considering the effect of failing to file appellant’s merit brief and designating substitute counsel.”

Liggett also wrote that the court is permitted to dismiss the appeal because of that failure.

In a four-paragraph judgment entry filed Friday, David D’Apolito, the court’s presiding and administrative judge whose resignation is effective Saturday, wrote in approving the withdrawal: “This court shares some of the concerns raised in appellee’s response in opposition as to the delinquent status of this appeal. The appellant’s brief is now overdue. Appellant shall secure new counsel and file the appellant’s brief within 30 days.”

He added: “Failure to file the appellant’s brief by Jan. 26, 2024, may result in dismissal of the appeal for failure to prosecute and failure to comply with the appellate rules.”

While Markota and Kopp haven’t disclosed why they filed to withdraw from the cases, the most common reason is if a client fails to abide by the obligations in a contract such as lack of payment or promises to respond in a timely manner.

The proposed $18.8 million project broke ground in November 2016 and was supposed to be in full operation by 2018 to produce the world’s only self-chilling beverage can.

M.J. Joseph failed to construct four finished buildings and create 237 jobs by Aug. 31, 2021, as per its agreement with the city for $1.5 million in grants.

The project was supposed to be a key part of revitalizing the city’s lower East Side, but seven years after the groundbreaking there are only three unfinished buildings and one employee on the 21-acre site.

Nothing has gone the way of the Chill-Can owners in court.

In addition to Sweeney ruling M.J. Joseph defaulted on the contract with MS Consultants, she also ruled in the city’s case that the owners had to return $1.5 million from water and wastewater grants it received from Youngstown for the stalled project.

Also, Dennis J. Sarisky, Sweeney’s magistrate, ruled July 20 that M.J. should be sanctioned $733,480.80 — $414,948.09 the city spent on acquiring 15 properties bought for the project, which also included relocation expenses, and $318,532.71 in demolition and abatement costs.

Markota and Kopp appealed that decision to Sweeney, who hasn’t yet ruled, and asked that Sarisky be removed from the case. Sweeney hasn’t ruled on that yet either.

The city filed a $2.8 million breach-of-contract lawsuit June 17, 2021, contending the company failed to live up to its promises to develop the site.

In addition to the grant and the property and demolition / abatement costs, the city’s lawsuit contended it had lost at least $575,000 in income tax revenue from the project’s failure at the time of the court filing. That lawsuit said the “full amount of lost income tax revenue will be proven at trial,” but the city was losing about $18,333 per month. At that rate, the city would have lost almost $550,000 in additional income tax revenue.

Knowing the city’s lawsuit was coming, M.J. Joseph and Joseph Manufacturing Co. Inc. filed a May 24, 2021, lawsuit against the city to stop it from reclaiming the $1.5 million in grants. That suit also contends the city doesn’t have any legal rights to money, property and buildings.

In a March 29, 2021, certified letter, the city informed Joseph he had 60 days to construct a number of buildings and hire about 150 workers or it would file a lawsuit. The city followed through June 17, 2021, with the lawsuit that was postponed because of the Joseph legal action.