Practice Leader: Howard Graff
In commercial disputes and litigation, Dickstein Shapiro is the firm to have in your corner. With more than 200 litigators supported by dozens of corporate, regulatory, and government relations professionals, Dickstein Shapiro is the firm to turn to for smart litigation that achieves results.
Litigation is a powerful business tool, but it takes the right counsel to know how to use it. Litigation is not just about winning a case. It’s about achieving specific business goals for the client. Our litigators work with attorneys in our corporate and finance, government relations, and real estate practices to first and foremost understand the client’s business so any litigation is undertaken with a knowledge of both the risks and rewards for the client.
When the time is right and our clients and attorneys agree that litigation is the best course of action, we act quickly. We know that protracted litigation can affect your bottom line, so we approach each case with the goal of keeping things efficient and coming out strong so cases can be resolved quickly and decisively.
With scores of high profile clients, high stakes cases, and precedent-setting wins, our litigators are in the spotlight and making national headlines, including coverage in The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The Washington Post, national television news stations, and other major media outlets. We are ranked as one of the leading litigation practices by Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business. Of the firm, Chambers writes: “Marrying ‘top-notch’ client service with first-class legal expertise, this is ‘a firm that revels in the nitty-gritty of trial work.’”
The commercial real estate markets are confronting an unprecedented crisis. In a perfect storm of collapsing property values, looming loan maturities, and credit woes, pressure has never been higher for every market participant. In the midst of this crisis, Dickstein Shapiro is a powerful ally. Our litigators have secured huge wins for our clients, often with precedent-setting implications. Through targeted, proactive litigation strategies, our litigators give clients additional leverage to achieve favorable results.
The firm represented Helmsley-Spear, Inc., the real estate management company in multifaceted litigation challenging the management and ownership of certain commercial properties in New York City (including the Empire State Building, the Toy Building, the Fisk Building, and the Lincoln Building). A significant component of that litigation was an arbitration that spanned more than 60 hearing days and resulted in a complete vindication of Helmsley-Spear and the rejection of efforts to oust the management company from 11 buildings. The firm ultimately won a significant decision in the New York Court of Appeals, confirming the arbitration award in favor of Helmsley-Spear and establishing the standard of review that New York courts must apply to arbitration awards that are subject to the Federal Arbitration Act. Wein & Malkin v. Helmsley-Spear Inc. (6 N.Y.2d 471 (2006)).
Companies in the heavily regulated alcoholic beverage industry face unique challenges in commercial disputes. With major victories on behalf of distributors such as Charmer/Sunbelt and W.J. Deutsch and retailers such as Zachys, Dickstein Shapiro’s team of litigators has developed a reputation for representing companies in the alcoholic beverage industry in every type of commercial and corporate governance dispute.
The firm successfully represented Charmer Industries in a dispute between Bacardi USA and Premier Wine and Spirits, following Bacardi’s termination of Premier and appointment of Charmer as its distributor in New York. Charmer Industries is now Bacardi USA’s primary distributor in the New York metropolitan market.
Our litigators frequently employ alternative dispute resolution as a vehicle to advance our client’s business objectives. Our attorneys have successfully arbitrated a substantial number of domestic and international matters: