ADR

Our lawyers have proven records of success as trial and appellate counsel. The Firm recognizes, however, that the best result for our clients is achieving litigation goals early, with reduced expense. Where appropriate, the Firm is committed to the use of alternative dispute resolution (ADR), and we have substantial experience and expertise in this area. Our lawyers have arbitrated scores of matters, including before the AAA, JAMS, ICDR, ICC, NAM, and FINRA, and have also been selected to serve as party neutral arbitrators. In addition, our lawyers counsel clients on the implementation of ADR programs in their business practices.

Our lawyers are expert in the arbitration process and adept at developing compelling strategies and arguments that effectively advance our clients’ positions. We strive to do so in the most efficient manner possible to ensure that our clients fully recognize the cost benefits that arbitration often offers. Some of our recent or more notable engagements in arbitration have included the following:

Representation of a publicly traded financial services company before the ICC on breach of contract claims against one of its former agents in the Middle East;
Representation of a global money transfer service provider against claims brought before the ICDR by one of its foreign agents relating to exclusivity provisions in an international money transfer agreement;
Representation of financial services companies before FINRA against claims related to the suitability of variable annuity products;
Representation of a commercial developer in breach of contract claims brought before the AAA related to the construction of two hotels;
Representation of an investment banking firm against claims brought before the AAA by a major international financial institution arising from the parties’ participation in an LLP;
Representation of a large, publicly traded petrochemical company in an allocation proceeding involving a $25M environmental cleanup of petroleum releases at a bulk storage terminal; and
Serving as a party appointed arbitrator in a dispute between a well-known NYC developer and large, publicly traded bank.

While our lawyers are always prepared to try cases, and trials are one of the most professionally rewarding aspects of our practice, we are pragmatists who recognize that clients’ interests are most often best served by favorable resolutions that allow them to avoid the cost and uncertainties of litigation, trials, and appeals. The Firm has mediated to successful resolution countless matters and pre-suit claims. Our expertise in leveraging clients’ positions and developing creative, sensible solutions has led clients to trust us to mediate their most sensitive cases and claims, including portfolios of cases and claims pending or threatened in multiple jurisdictions.

Recent Successes

Breach of contract and unfair trade practice claims pending in the Supreme Court of New York (Richmond County) and before New York’s Appellate Division (Second Department), relating to a lapsed life insurance policy;
Construction defect and breach of fiduciary duty action pending in the Supreme Court of New York (New York County, Comm. Div.) related to Arris Lofts, a 237-unit luxury condominium in Long Island City, New York;
Breach of contract action over $26M development project, pending in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York;
Commercial litigation pending in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas, on behalf of a global provider of wireless communications infrastructure, involving Sherman Act, Lanham Act and unfair competition claims, as well as claims for a variety of business torts;

Fraud and conversion action pending in the Supreme Court of New York (New York County, Comm. Div.) related to a partnership dispute over a luxury condominium project in Houston, Texas;
Title VII pregnancy discrimination claims brought in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey;
Toxic tort action pending in the Circuit Court of Florida (Bay County) involving claims that client’s products caused plaintiff to contract cancer;
Engineering malpractice and breach of contract claims pending in the Pennsylvania Court of Common Pleas (Bucks County) related to a roof replacement of a church;
Breach of contract action pending in the Supreme Court of New York (Westchester County) related to luxury condominium project in Tarrytown, New York;
Construction defect and product liability claims arising from stucco and window repairs on a high-rise, ocean-front condominium building in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina;
Breach of contract action, pending in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey, alleging wrongful lapse of a life insurance policy;
Construction defect, warranty, and product liability claims pending in the Circuit Court of Florida (Escambia County), arising from construction of the Sacred Heart Hospital Cancer Center in Pensacola, Florida;
Multiple cases pending in the Pennsylvania Court of Common Pleas (Philadelphia County), involving claims that plaintiffs contracted leukemia arising from alleged exposures to benzene-containing solvents;
Product liability claims pending in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida arising from the construction of two Marriott hotels in Sandestin, Florida;
Numerous employment claims before the EEOC, New York State Division of Human Rights, New York City Commission on Human Rights, and New Jersey Division on Civil Rights;
Construction defect, warranty and product liability claims pending in the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina arising from the construction of a condominium building in Columbia, South Carolina;
Product liability claims pending in the Circuit Court of Florida (Orange County) relating to the construction of the Blue Heron Beach Resort in Orlando, Florida;
Construction defect and product liability claims pending in the Court of Common Pleas of Horry County, South Carolina relating to the construction of a condominium building in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina;
Product liability case pending in the Circuit Court of Florida (Flagler County) arising from the construction of the Yacht Harbor Village condominium in Palm Coast, Florida;
Construction defect case pending in the Superior Court of New Jersey (Hudson County), relating to a large residential condominium building in Hoboken, New Jersey, involving claims related to alleged defects in sealants and waterproofing membrane;
Construction defect and product liability claims pending in the Supreme Court of New York (Queens County) arising from the design and construction of Ocean One Condominiums on Rockaway Beach, New York;
Action pending in the Circuit Court of Mobile County, Alabama, arising from the design and construction of the Bayview II Colony Condominium in Fairhope, Alabama;
As specially retained settlement counsel, toxic tort actions pending in the Supreme Court of New York (Kings County) and the Circuit Court of Florida (Broward County);
Warranty and tort claims pending in the Superior Court of Rhode Island (Providence County) arising from an aliphatic polyurethane coating;
Title VII race discrimination claims brought in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York;
Construction defect and product liability claims arising from the construction of a gaming casino in Toledo, Ohio;
Design, construction defect and warranty claims arising from the development, design and construction of well-known retirement community in Rockville, Maryland;
Construction litigation, including products liability and warranty claims, pending in the Superior Court of Massachusetts (Essex County) relating to the development, design and construction of a condominium complex in Salem, Massachusetts;
Construction litigation arising from the rehabilitation and renovation of Symphony Towers in Boston, Massachusetts;
Construction litigation brought in the Superior Court of New Jersey (Hudson County) relating to the design and construction of forty-two luxury townhomes on the west bank of the Hudson River;
Construction litigation brought in the Superior Court of New Jersey (Bergen County) arising from the design and construction of 201 custom designed townhomes in Park Ridge, New Jersey;
Construction litigation brought in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York, relating to a 360-bed nursing care facility in Brooklyn, New York;
Multi-plaintiff employment discrimination action (race, national origin, gender, and hostile work) brought in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York; and
Multiple related matters arising from the rescission of stranger owned life insurance (STOLI) policies.