Address:
425 Lexington Avenue
New York, NY 10017
New York
Partner: Hon. Richard J. Holwell
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Year of Firm Establishment: 2012
Number of Litigation Partners: 19
Number of Litigation Attorneys: 52
Since its founding in 2012, Holwell Shuster & Goldberg LLP has become one of the nation’s most influential and respected litigation boutiques. Known for its ability to try high-impact commercial disputes—both domestic and multi-jurisdictional—with the greatest financial and legal stakes, and the quality of its legal scholarship and writing, the firm selectively draws talent trained at the finest law schools, clerkships, and firms. Notably, two-thirds of our partners and associates have served as clerks on domestic or international courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court.
Benchmark Litigation named HSG its 2016 and 2024 New York Law Firm of the Year and a Top 10 Boutique since 2017, and, within three years of its founding, it was one of 10 firms named to The National Law Journal’s Litigation Boutiques Hot List. HSG lawyers have been recognized consistently for their excellence by Chambers USA, The American Lawyer, Bloomberg Law, Legal 500, and in other rankings and publications..
Representing both plaintiffs and defendants, HSG serves as lead counsel for clients such as Visa, Chubb, HSBC, and government-owned pension funds in a range of disputes, and is particularly well known for:
Financial Markets & Securities Litigation: HSG lawyers have been involved in numerous landmark financial markets cases, representing, among others, banks, hedge funds, private equity funds, foreign governments, trustees, and other market participants. Most recently, the firm has taken the lead on innovative “cost-of-insurance” litigation in the Southern District of New York and other federal courts around the country.
Antitrust Litigation: In addition to the firm’s ongoing representation of Visa in multi-district litigation involving hundreds of billions of dollars in claimed damages, the firm’s lawyers have represented Comcast, Raytheon, the NBA, General Re, Saudi Refining, Inc., and other clients in major antitrust litigation and governmental reviews. On the plaintiffs’ side, the firm recently represented Valassis, a MacAndrews & Forbes portfolio company, in a jury trial against News Corp.
Complex Commercial Disputes: HSG represents clients in a wide range of complex commercial disputes, both purely domestic and multi-jurisdictional, and is currently national trial counsel on some of the country’s largest and most high-profile cases, including for Chubb in nationwide opioid coverage litigation. The firm established itself as a pioneer in RMBS ‘putback’ litigation, resolving billions of dollars in losses from the Great Recession, and is also at the forefront of COVID-19-related litigation. The firm recently secured a $101 million jury verdict against Walmart in a lawsuit alleging the company wrongfully cancelled its contract to purchase personal protective equipment during the pandemic, and a jury verdict finding Boeing liable for $81.3 million for misappropriating substantial trade secrets related to the development of electric and hybrid-electric aircraft. Its clients include, among others, multinational corporations, financial institutions, hedge funds and private equity funds, family-owned businesses, and directors of public companies.
Transnational Litigation: The firm has represented numerous clients in matters with transnational dimensions, including creditors against foreign sovereigns in disputes over defaults of their debt, to international arbitrations to Section 1782 proceedings. The firm’s lawyers have also represented various foreign sovereigns and state-owned entities in a variety of matters. As just one example, the firm is challenging the termination of power contracts worth more than a billion dollars in multiple jurisdictions, alleging breach of contract by the Angolan government and tortious interference by General Electric.
Appellate Litigation: With its roster of former judges and Supreme Court clerks, the firm brings to the appellate process a unique understanding of how judges approach decision making. Whether in litigating an appeal or framing trial disputes in anticipation of appeal, HSG has the benefit of Judge Holwell’s experience as a district judge and designated circuit judge, Justice James McGuire’s service as a New York trial court and appellate court judge, and the insights offered by former U.S. Supreme Court clerks Vincent Levy, Daniel Sullivan, Gregory Dubinsky, and Jack Millman, along with other HSG attorneys who served as law clerks in federal courts of appeals.
Investigations/Monitorships: Bringing to bear the firm’s considerable judicial experience, HSG lawyers handle criminal and regulatory enforcement investigations, as well as independent monitorships brought about by consent decrees, settlements, or otherwise. Judge Holwell, with the assistance of HSG, acted as an independent monitor engaged by a large financial institution pursuant to an agreement between the institution and the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Key Practice Areas:
Languages Spoken at Firm: English, French, German, Hebrew, Hindi, Italian, Romanian, Russian, Spanish
Updated Sep 2024