We are 725+ lawyers serving clients from 12 offices located in the leading financial and business centers in the Americas, Europe and Asia. The world’s leading organizations, companies and corporations choose us to be their representatives in their most critical situations. But more, they consider Proskauer a strategic partner to drive their business forward. We work with asset managers, major sports leagues, Fortune 500 companies, entertainment industry legends and other industry-redefining companies.
Proskauer’s Litigation Department wins make-or-break cases, changes laws and establishes precedents. Our litigators cover the full spectrum of complex commercial litigation practice areas, including: antitrust, asset management, bankruptcy, copyright, false advertising, insurance recovery, patent, privacy and cybersecurity, products liability, real estate, international arbitration, securities, sports, trademark and white collar. We are also known for our appellate practice, which handles appeals in federal and state court, and advises on trial issues.
Proskauer’s 150+ litigators have built a track record of success both inside and outside the courtroom. We pride ourselves on being trial lawyers, and we have extensive experience trying cases before juries, judges and arbitral tribunals throughout the U.S. and abroad. Where appropriate, we embrace alternative dispute resolution and have achieved significant success resolving challenging matters for our clients.
Our lawyers include former senior government officials and prosecutors with formidable trial and regulatory experience. Our litigators have served as the U.S. Attorneys for New Jersey and the Southern District of Illinois; chiefs and deputy chiefs of divisions of U.S. Attorney’s offices in New York and the District of Columbia; General Counsel of the SEC; New York Deputy Attorney General; the Corporation Counsel of the City of New York; clerks for justices of the U.S. Supreme Court.
Our litigators have consistently earned top rankings from Chambers and The Legal 500, U.S. News Best Lawyers, Daily Journal and The American Lawyer. The Firm was also noted in the New York Law Journal as a General Litigation Finalist for Litigation Department of the Year.
Select recent representations include:
Representation of Financial Oversight and Management Board for Puerto Rico, created by the United States Congress to restore the long-term economic viability of the most populous U.S. territory, Puerto Rico. Puerto Rico has approximately $74 billion of bond debt and $50 billion of underfunded public pension liabilities. We are serving as lead counsel with respect to all aspects of the five Title III debt adjustment proceedings, including over 100 related adversary proceedings and over 60 related appeals to the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit and the Supreme Court of the United States. This docket is likely the most active docket in the United States, involving the most sophisticated counsel, and we are involved in literally every filing.
Lead trial counsel for Monsanto and its parent company Bayer in multiple California cases alleging the herbicide RoundUp causes non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (“NHL”). The vast majority of pending cases were settled before trial as part of Bayer’s (nearly) global settlement of the RoundUp cases. A relatively small subset of cases was not settled, however, and Proskauer tried the first of these in San Bernardino beginning in July 2021. In that case, plaintiff Donnetta Stephens alleges that her NHL was caused by her periodic use of RoundUp in her backyard.
Defense of Gilead Sciences in various Northern California state and federal product liability actions brought by ~17,000 plaintiffs related to Gilead’s HIV prevention and treatment drugs. The cases allege that Gilead failed adequately to warn about the increased risk of potential kidney disease and bone injury that could result from its highly effective and FDA-approved HIV medications. The plaintiffs also allege that Gilead held back safer drugs that it could have brought to market sooner.
Defense of Major League Soccer (MLS) against a lawsuit brought by the North American Soccer League (NASL) against MLS and the U.S. Soccer Federation following U.S. Soccer’s decision not to sanction NASL as a Division II professional league for the 2018 season. NASL alleges that MLS and U.S. Soccer are engaged in an antitrust conspiracy to ensure that MLS is the sole Division I soccer league in the United States, and further alleges that MLS is an illegal monopoly in violation of the Sherman Act.
Lead trial counsel for the “Power 5 Conferences” (Pac 12, Big Ten, Big 12, ACC, and SEC) in complex antitrust litigation in U.S. District Court in Oakland, CA, against the NCAA and eleven collegiate athletic conferences challenging the limits on compensation and benefits for student-athletes. Following a ten-day bench trial, the Court held that the rules promote demand for college sports by recognizing the distinction with professional sports. The Court rejected plaintiffs’ effort to eliminate all rules limiting athlete compensation and removed only those rules limiting in-kind educational benefits. The ruling was upheld on appeal.
Lead counsel for Alvogen and Natco in a complex Hatch-Waxman matter involving at least 18 of AbbVie/Pharmacyclics patents and Janssen Biotech. The case involves issues that relate to Alvogen’s and Natco’s commercialization of a generic version of Pharmacyclics/AbbVie’s blockbuster cancer therapy, Imbruvica, which is among the world’s bestselling drugs. We obtained a very favorable accelerated schedule—one year to trial, which is virtually unprecedented in a Hatch-Waxman case where a 30-month stay of FDA approval allows for trial dates at least 2.5 years out. This accelerated schedule will facilitate a possible earlier entry to market of the clients’ products.
Lead counsel for toy company, Mattel and their co-defendants in 35 separate product liability wrongful death cases in Delaware and California state courts related to the Fisher Price Rock-n-Play Sleeper (RNPS). The cases allege that the RNPS was not safe for use as a sleeping device for infants.
Representation of Shamrock Capital Advisors, a private equity firm that was one of the principal investors in FanDuel, a bookmaker and fantasy sports provider, in a litigation brought by FanDuel’s founders and other minority shareholders in New York state court. The lawsuit, which was filed after a merger between FanDuel and Paddy Power Betfair (PPB), a European sportsbook, alleges breach of fiduciary duty, aiding and abetting breach of fiduciary duty, and unjust enrichment against FanDuel board members and shareholders.
Trial counsel for Tiffany & Co. in a closely-watched retrial of a trademark infringement and counterfeiting case brought against Costco in the Southern District of New York based on Costco’s use of the term “Tiffany” on point-of-sale signs for diamond engagement rings. The case settled favorably before trial.
Representation of Wayne Farms, one of the largest producers of broilers (chicken) in the U.S., defending numerous class actions filed both by classes of direct purchasers and indirect purchasers, who assert a damages claim against the defendants of $48 billion. The case is the largest current antitrust case in the U.S. in the food industry.
Updated Sep 2021
