Litigation

CHAIR

The attorneys in our Litigation Practice Group work under the precept that litigation must be rationally related to a client’s risk or reward. To turn this principle into a reality, our attorneys provide result-oriented advice drawn from their proven track record of handling complex cases to resolution. Matters are staffed with litigators who know all facets of the case, who keep the client informed as the matter progresses and who are responsive to any client inquiry or concerns.

Our clients, large or small, turn to our litigators for guidance with their most difficult issues. Though success is defined differently by each of our clients, achieving that success starts with our commitment to thoroughly understand our clients and identifying their specific needs and desired goals. To accomplish those objectives, we often devise a customized pre-litigation strategy designed to maximize the sought after result and to efficiently prepare, manage and win cases, whether by early resolution or through trial and appeal.

Each of our litigation attorneys have seen matters through trial, though they understand that effective legal counsel also includes the ability to negotiate and resolve a dispute while staying out of court or doing so short of trial. When possible, our attorneys have been able to employ their vast legal and practical business experiences to avoid the cost of litigation, without compromising the goals of our clients. Our clients have the added benefit of the firm’s ability to pool knowledge and insight from its multidisciplinary practice areas to assist our litigators when needed, rendering the firm uniquely positioned to handle a broad range of disputes.

Meltzer Lippe litigation attorneys, former clerks to Federal, State and administrative judges and former practitioners at New York national firms, are experienced advocates in both Federal and State trial and appellate courts, arbitration and mediation panels, and administrative tribunals who have appeared locally, nationally and internationally. We have handled countless litigations and served as lead counsel to established corporations, start-ups and individuals, arbitrations and mediations in virtually every area of the law.

The firm’s Litigation Practice Group is complimented by our Trusts and Estates Litigation Practice. The Trusts and Estates Litigation Practice Group represents corporate and individual clients in matters such as will contests, compulsory accounting proceedings, contested accounting proceedings, claims against an estate or trust, will and trust construction cases, discovery and turnover proceedings, conservatorships and guardianship matters and other miscellaneous proceedings. Our attorneys have successfully advised and represented clients in diverse industries, including manufacturing, financial services, technology and software, marketing, advertising, e-commerce, education, media, insurance, consumer, retail and real estate.

Recent representations/victories include:

  • Obtaining a dismissal of a federal “qui tam” whistleblower claims brought pursuant to various provisions of the federal False Claims Act and the False Claims Acts of four states by former employees of a large corporate client with potential exposure of hundreds of millions. Through aggressive and efficient motion practice, we obtained a full dismissal of the case at the pleading stage in a nationally reported decision;
  • Winning an appeal on behalf of a large landowner in the New York Appellate Division, Second Department relating to conservation easements;
  • Litigating issues of first impression under New York’s Estate Powers and Trust Law relating to fiduciary account reporting on behalf of a fiduciary of a $40 million estate;
  • Successfully representing and recovering funds for a real estate investment trust that managed over $2 billion in real estate assets in connection with a failed condominium conversion project;
  • Repeatedly establishing that a party’s use of social media can constitute theft of trade secret, unfair competition and/or violation of fiduciary duty and other matters of first impression;
  • Successfully represented a casino developer in its litigation with a Native American tribe; and
  • Successfully represented a broker in enforcing an oral special agreement relating to a multi-million real estate development through trial and appeal; among many others.

Attorneys

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