The Cope Equities lawsuit was a Fair Housing Act case filed in late 2023 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas by a plaintiff named Geonna Thompson. It ended on July 11, 2025, when the court entered a joint stipulation of dismissal with prejudice, a resolution that typically indicates the parties reached a private settlement.1PACER Monitor. Thompson v. Southgate Apartments, LLC, et al.
What the Lawsuit Alleged
Thompson sued four defendants: Southgate Apartments, LLC; Cope Equities, LLC; HLC Southgate, LLC; and Billy Peck Construction, LLC. The case was docketed as 4:23-cv-00970 and classified as a civil rights matter under the Fair Housing Act, 42 U.S.C. § 3605.1PACER Monitor. Thompson v. Southgate Apartments, LLC, et al.
The docket does not spell out the specific factual allegations. The nature-of-suit code, “Civil Rights: Housing/Accommodations,” and the statute cited point to claims of discrimination in housing. Property records connect Cope Equities to a project called “Southgate Apartments Pool” at 200 Cole Street in Princeton, Texas, which may be the property at the center of the dispute.2Zabalist. Cope Equities, LLC Projects
Defense Motions to Dismiss Were Denied
The defendants tried to end the case early. HLC Southgate filed a motion to dismiss or, alternatively, for a more definite statement. The “Cope Defendants,” a grouping that included Cope Equities, filed a separate motion to dismiss. The defendants also jointly moved to stay the proceedings while those motions were pending.1PACER Monitor. Thompson v. Southgate Apartments, LLC, et al.
On September 25, 2024, the court adopted the magistrate judge’s report and recommendation and denied all of them. Thompson’s Fair Housing Act claims survived, and the case moved toward discovery.1PACER Monitor. Thompson v. Southgate Apartments, LLC, et al.
How the Case Was Resolved
The case never reached trial. On July 10, 2025, Thompson filed a joint stipulation of dismissal with prejudice, and the court entered the dismissal the next day under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 41(a)(1)(A)(ii).1PACER Monitor. Thompson v. Southgate Apartments, LLC, et al.
Dismissal with prejudice means the plaintiff cannot refile the same claims. When it arrives through a joint stipulation rather than a court ruling, it almost always reflects a private settlement between the parties. The docket does not disclose the terms of any agreement, which is standard for confidential settlements in housing discrimination cases.
Who Cope Equities Is
Cope Equities, LLC is a land development and real estate investment company headquartered in Allen, Texas, co-founded by Stephen Cope and Mark Cope, with Nathan Cope as chief financial officer.3Cope Equities. About Us The company develops multifamily apartments, townhomes, single-family homes, retail centers, and raw land across the Dallas-Fort Worth metro area. It raises capital through private placements restricted to SEC-accredited investors, with a typical minimum investment of $100,000 and advertised fixed annual returns of up to 13%.4Cope Equities Investors. Cope Equities Investor Portal
An Unrelated SEC Case Sometimes Confused With This Company
A 2014 SEC enforcement action in the Southern District of New York involving a person named Jason Cope, charged in a pump-and-dump stock scheme, is not connected to Cope Equities. That Jason Cope is a resident of Gates Mills, Ohio, and the SEC complaint does not mention Cope Equities, LLC or any of its principals.5U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. SEC v. Cope, Litigation Release No. 23087