With offices in New York, California, and Washington DC, Milbank has built a reputation in various complex litigation and arbitration practices. Its lawyers represent clients in a variety of disputes including bankruptcy, mergers and acquisitions, insurance, and white-collar investigations. Several recent hires have increased the firm’s antitrust presence and raised its prominence in the market.
In the New York office, George Canellos represents companies and individuals in government investigations and disputes in federal and state courts. He represents BAM which operates Binance, a cryptocurrency trading platform in an action brought by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The SEC sought a temporary restraining order and asset freeze claiming BAM’s platform trades securities without being registered as an exchange. The Court did not grant the SEC’s request and the firm worked out an alternative solution that was agreeable to the Court and all parties.
New to Milbank, Nola Heller is a frequently awarded attorney with a specialty in white-collar litigation. As the co-head of the New York office’s White Collar Investigations Group, she brings 20 years of experience as a former federal prosecutor and defense attorney. Clients describe her as “a real star” and “a brilliant lawyer.” Heller represented Thomas Whittle, a former partner at the accounting firm KPMG, who was convicted of wire fraud and conspiracy charges in 2019. Whittle testified as a cooperating witness in the case. He later received a sentence of time served. In 2024, Heller was able to convince the US Attorney’s Office to vacate all of Whittle’s convictions, clearing him of criminal wrongdoing.
Fiona Schaeffer is an international antitrust lawyer in the New York office. Chair of the American Bar Association’s Section of Antitrust Law, she has advised the world’s largest companies on some of its most complex antitrust matters. Schaffer is one of the lead lawyers representing United States Steel (USS), which has received multiple proposals involving the merger or possible acquisition of the entire company. Currently, USS is evaluating its options.
James Cavoli, who also works out of New York, focuses on white-collar cases and investigations. Clients say, “He is extraordinarily thorough, making himself an industry expert in any field he is investigating.” He joined Schaeffer as a lead attorney representing Natixis in a class-action suit concerning alleged price fixing of government bonds. They secured a favorable settlement for Natixis to end the litigation.
In New York, Atara Miller focuses on federal and state court litigation of complex commercial matters and bankruptcy. She has built a specialized practice within the media and entertainment industry, advising on license negotiations with music users. Miller was one of the lead attorneys negotiating appropriate rates for music rights on behalf of Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI), a music-performing rights-licensing organization that distributes royalties to songwriters and music publishers. She secured a victory on behalf of BMI against concert promoters in a case that enables the songwriters, composers, and music publishers to earn more royalties when their copyrighted songs are performed at live concerts.
New York’s Stacey Rappaport covers insurance and reinsurance, mergers and acquisitions, commercial disputes, and securities. She leads the defense of major insurance companies in class action and other litigation. In 2023, Ms. Rappaport successfully settled two major putative class actions on behalf of Lincoln National Life Insurance Company concerning cost-of-insurance rate adjustments.
Dan Perry’s New York practice includes complex commercial litigation, real estate, and white-collar crime. He has extensive experience conducting arbitrations before a variety of domestic and international tribunals. Perry is one of the lead attorneys that represented the Universal Entertainment Company and its affiliate, Okada Manila Resort & Casino in the Philippines. The Delaware Court of Chancery declined to order Okada to close a merger with 26 Capital Acquisition Corp, a SPAC. Perry and his team uncovered that a hedge fund, retained to advise the casino, secretly invested in the SPAC. In the ruling, the judge cited those actions in favor of the resort and casino.
Working out of the Washington, DC office, Adam Di Vincenzo is part of the firms growing antitrust practice. Di Vincenzo joined Schaeffer as lead counsel for SLB, a global energy technology company, in connection with its joint venture with Aker Solutions and Subsea7. The antitrust team successfully argued in multiple countries that competition would continue to be strong after the joint venture. The transaction closed in October 2023. Joining Di Vincenzo in DC is veteran antitrust attorney Richard Parker. Parker has connected with Schaffer as co-lead counsel for US Steel in the ongoing merger review process.
