New York

Our lawyers have in-depth experience representing secured lenders, special servicers, indenture trustees, debtors, creditors’ committees, individual creditors and entities interested in acquiring troubled companies or their assets in bankruptcy cases and out-of-court restructurings and workouts. We also counsel clients on domestic and cross-border bankruptcy and creditors’ rights matters, loan workouts and restructurings and prepare the true sale and non-consolidation opinions necessary for sophisticated corporate and real estate transactions.

We regularly advise clients on highly complex corporate transactions including domestic and cross-border mergers and acquisitions and public and private issuance of debt and equity. We also regularly act as disclosure counsel to domestic and foreign public companies. Our clients are from a wide range of industries, including financial services, retail, manufacturing and technology. Lawyers in our emerging companies practice represent startup and emerging growth companies in every stage of development from inception through entry into the public markets or a sale.

We handle all aspects of environmental law and litigation for New York industrial, commercial and real estate clients, as well as several public benefit corporations, public authorities and municipalities. Our land use lawyers represent developers, public authorities and municipalities in zoning, land use, historic preservation, building code, administrative proceedings and litigation matters.

We represent banks, finance companies and other lenders and borrowers in all aspects of commercial lending. Our work includes both asset-based lending and high-risk specialty finance lending. We assist clients in structuring, negotiating, documenting and administering all manner of loans. Our Fund Finance Team regularly represents institutional clients in connection with U.S. and offshore financing transactions for mutual funds, closed-end funds, hedge funds, private equity funds and other types of pooled investment vehicles. Our Corporate Trust Team represents the leading corporate trust departments in the financial services industry, handling domestic and global origination transactions, litigation and default/bankruptcy matters.

For businesses invested in intellectual property – including chemical, pharmaceutical, biochemical, electrical/electronic, mechanical and computer technology fields – our lawyers can add significant value by creating and implementing intellectual property strategies, in addition to handling a wide range of litigation and related patent office proceedings, patent and trademark preparation and prosecution, and intellectual property licensing and transactions. We are a leading firm for handling high-value patent challenges for Fortune 500 technology companies. With our combined depth of experience in patent prosecution and litigation, we have a strong record practicing before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB), as well as the trial experience key to handling inter partes reviews and other PTAB proceedings.

Our practice covers all aspects of employment discrimination, wage and hour, and traditional labor law, as well as employment contracts and policies, and related litigation: class actions, non-compete and trade secrets, federal and state agency administrative proceedings, and employment and labor arbitration. We advise employers on union organizing, employee terminations, reductions in force, leaves, overtime exemptions and labor and employment law compliance; negotiate collective bargaining agreements; draft employment handbooks, policies and agreements; and provide compliance training for management.

Our Litigation Group combines the experience of our attorneys in all phases and types of dispute resolution – in trial and appellate courts, regulatory proceedings, domestic and international arbitrations and mediations – with innovative uses of technology and cost-effective approaches to project management. Our litigators are experienced in virtually every substantive area and industry, including banking, securities, real estate, employment, environmental, insurance, white collar criminal defense, attorney and accountant liability and fiduciary litigation. Our International Arbitration Team represents corporate, sovereign and individual clients in international commercial and investment treaty arbitrations brought under all of the major arbitration rules and ad hoc.

We have a leading practice in the areas of prepaid and emerging payments including gift cards, prepaid and reward cards, mobile payments, eWallets, virtual currencies, credit cards, debit cards and check processing. We advise banks, payment networks, processors, retailers, program managers and marketers, ACH networks, and bill payment and payment facilitation companies regarding federal and state consumer protection, privacy, data security and anti-money laundering laws, as well as state abandoned property and money transmitter licensing laws.

Our private client lawyers engage in sophisticated personal estate and tax planning, probate and trust administration, business succession planning, will, estate and trust litigation, charitable planning, pre-marital planning and related legal services. The group counsels and represents clients throughout the United States and internationally, ranging from individuals, families and closely-held businesses to major trust and charitable institutions.

Our Chambers USA-rated real estate practice has handled many of the most exciting and sophisticated transactions in the country, providing comprehensive legal services addressing all facets of real estate ownership, commercial leasing, joint ventures, development, land use, regulation, investment and financing and covering nearly every asset class. We are active in the creation and offering of residential and mixed-use condominiums and cooperatives. Within our real estate practice is the Real Estate Private Equity and Joint Venture Team, a coordinated, multi-disciplinary group with vast capacities in real estate, corporate, tax, ERISA and other related legal specialties.

On the transactional side, our Tax Group regularly provides tax advice and tax planning with respect to mergers and acquisitions, international transactions, sophisticated real estate transactions, joint ventures, venture capital and private equity funds, executive compensation and state and local tax matters. In tax controversy matters, we regularly represent clients on federal tax matters before the Internal Revenue Service and in the United States Tax Court and on state and local matters before the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance and New York City Department of Finance, among others.

Our White Collar Group regularly defends companies and individuals in criminal investigations brought by the DOJ and U.S. Attorneys' Offices, as well as state district attorneys and attorneys general. We also conduct independent and internal investigations and compliance audits, ordered by in-house counsel, audit committees, or other groups of independent directors, or by independent monitors or trustees, receivers or examiners.