Litigation + Dispute Resolution

The most complex and hardest-fought legal cases tend to center around people, their ideas, their contracts or their workplaces. These disputes frequently involve the movement of talent between competitors, workplace claims, the ownership of intellectual property, false and deceptive marketing practices, the rights and responsibilities of the parties to corporate transactions and controversies over commercial leasing. Our litigation and disputes attorneys handle matters in all of these areas. We assess risk, secure favorable resolutions, and forcefully pursue our clients’ interests through trial and appeals. Our clients include major players in the marketing communications, e-commerce, financial services, hospitality and commercial leasing sectors. We also represent prominent advertisers, agencies and their brands.

Unique Perspective

The sheer volume of cases we encounter gives us unique insight into likely scenarios and how they might play out. Such insight has proved especially effective when disputes arise out of advertising, restrictive covenants, mergers and acquisitions and real estate leases, as well as when opposing consumer class actions. Our litigators are in high demand nationwide, and clients in every state rely on us to facilitate resolutions and, when necessary, aggressively represent them in court.

Multidisciplinary Thinking

The firm, as a whole, brings vast knowledge of the industries we serve and the legal and business issues they face. This experience often informs our litigation approach and provides a unique, holistic view that leads to creative and effective litigation strategies.

Keeping Things in Proportion

We believe in “proportional” litigation, in which the associated costs — of staffing, discovery, research and motion practice — are calibrated both to the amount at stake and to obtaining our clients’ objectives cost-effectively. We develop and implement litigation strategies with an eye toward performance efficiencies and return on investment.

Represented a prominent bank against a group of employees who resigned en masse to join a major competitor. Established that the former employees not only had resigned with confidential information in their possession, but also had conspired to solicit clients and transactions being handled by their former employer. We immediately designed a forensic review protocol that uncovered all company confidential information and ensured that information’s deletion from their devices. We also obtained standstill agreement, preventing the competitor from soliciting additional bank employees for several months.
Represented a global healthcare technology company in an AAA arbitration trial regarding a covenant not to compete in a business partner agreement with another software company. Defeated the plaintiff company’s attempt to obtain an injunction that would have forced our client to shut down a component of its software, and defeated a motion to vacate in the Southern District of New York.
Won a temporary restraining order for a major transportation company to enforce a restrictive covenant against key employees who formed a competing transportation company. Negotiated standstill agreements in which the defectors agreed not to solicit our client’s customers or employees for 15 months after the TRO.
Defended a former computer programmer against a restrictive covenant lawsuit and arbitration brought by a hedge fund. Defeated the fund's application for a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction preventing our client from starting a competing company and defeated its application to extend the life of the restrictive covenant. Then secured a favorable settlement, permitting our client to operate a competing company.
Established at trial that an inventor's financial stock selection model was not unlawfully derivative of a model developed by his former employer and further established that our client's model was itself a trade secret, awarding him substantial monetary damages for his new business. The case made law both in the trade secret and damages area in New York and is frequently cited as leading precedent.
Represented a former executive of a global modeling agency against allegations of post-employment restrictions and conspiracy. Secured award of legal fees from a former employer in a state court lawsuit and favorable outcome in a subsequent arbitration for failure to pay wages.
Defending a real estate technology company in a trademark infringement action filed by another real estate startup, and represent our client in related counterclaims. Coordinated discovery requests and responses concerning issues of consumer confusion, senior user status, and nationwide presence to establish common law trademark rights.
Represented a national clothing retailer in over a dozen NY lease litigations involving evolving legal issues related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Obtained favorable decisions from multiple New York courts in contrast to the losses suffered by other retailers in similar cases.
Defeated a motion to dismiss frustration of purpose and impossibility claims on behalf of a well-known retail tenant against its Times Square landlord, arguing that the COVID-19 pandemic and associated government mandates were not foreseeable and, thus, temporarily frustrated the purpose of the parties' negotiated lease.
Settled a breach of lease claim brought against a fashion retailer by its landlord regarding its surrender obligations under various leases around the country. Convinced Landlord that its position was not supported by the lease or by relevant common law after extensive analysis, leading to an agreement that saved the client upwards of $5 million.
Defending a European investment bank against over $600 million in exposure from an ongoing fraudulent transfer lawsuit brought by Madoff bankruptcy trustee based on derivative transactions, including total return swaps and leveraged notes. In Madoff-related litigation, achieved, with other similarly situated banks, dismissal of over $200 million state law- and foreign insolvency-based actions asserted by liquidators of largest offshore Madoff feeder fund. The litigation resolved legal exposure for the client incurred in providing its customers with desired synthetic deal structures.
Pursuing over $300 million in recoveries from Wells Fargo as the master servicer of securitization trust for breach of contract and failing to comply with servicing standards, through a detailed analysis and proprietary calculation of losses caused by servicing failures, including delays in foreclosure, failures to modify loans and unreasonably low-priced collateral sales, all of which contributed to the client-sponsor's legal exposure for repurchases of loans.
Represented a national transportation company in a bankruptcy adversary proceeding relating to whether the client had entered into a binding, enforceable agreement to sell its bankruptcy claim, despite the absence of a written agreement. At the conclusion of the trial, Bankruptcy Court ruled entirely in our client’s favor, finding that the parties had not entered into a contract and that the client retained full ownership interest in its claim against the debtor.
Prevailed in breach of contract claims against commercial real estate borrowers and warded off counterclaims against commercial real estate lenders in deals gone bad. Argued that borrowers were obligated to pay contractually agreed fees and client's costs and expenses, despite deals not closing, creating favorable precedent and sending a strong signal to other borrowers who might consider not paying agreed costs.
Achieved numerous victories, including multiple dismissals and favorable resolutions for one of the largest residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) sponsors in cases brought by investors and securitization trusts for fraud and repurchase, leading to the dismissal of over $1 billion in claims. These litigation victories created precedent that cut off future claims against our client and other defendants in the RMBS space and benefit ABS sponsors in all credit markets with similar deal structures.
Saved an advertising agency from disgorgement of nearly $10 million in alleged preferential transfers prior to the filing of a threatened chapter 11 adversary proceeding against it by arguing the concept of sequential liability in addition to traditional defenses.