Avi Israeli represents clients in complex commercial disputes concerning contracts, securities, financial instruments, business torts, intellectual property, and bankruptcy in both litigation and arbitrations nationwide. Avi has been recognized by clients and peers as a tenacious, pragmatic advocate whose decisive strategic approach gets results.
As the firm’s first elected partner, Avi has played a prominent role in many of Holwell Shuster & Goldberg’s most notable engagements and successes, particularly in securities-related actions, disputes among investors, and other large-scale litigation. Avi was an early pioneer in the billion-dollar RMBS cases stemming from the collapse of the housing bubble and was instrumental in establishing HSG as a leader in litigating RMBS putback disputes, which for the past decade have been resolving the enormous liabilities associated with the housing crisis. In nationwide opioid insurance coverage litigation, he represents various affiliates of Chubb in actions brought by manufacturers and distributors of opioids, and national pharmacy chains that sold opioids, regarding coverage for over 3,000 lawsuits brought by governmental entities across the country.
The government-owned investment fund AIMCo, and Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., as securities intermediary, turned to Avi and his team to represent them in a series of innovative cases against life insurers concerning improper Cost of Insurance rate increases, where hundreds of millions of dollars are at stake. Avi secured several important wins in these COI cases, including defeating defendant Transamerica’s summary judgment motion, ensuring defendants were held to account. He also represents a Facebook co-founder in proceedings related to a dispute with an investment advisor and various individuals arising out of investments in Facebook stock, and he served as lead trial counsel representing former directors of the now bankrupt Liquid Holdings Group in a securities fraud class action and an adversary proceeding that asserted claims against the directors for breach of fiduciary duties. Avi and his team secured dismissal of both actions. Avi also recently secured a summary judgment win for his client PPD Development, part of Thermo Fisher Scientific, in a Southern District of New York action brought by Edgewood Partners Insurance Center where the judge agreed, after oral argument, that EPIC was not entitled to any outstanding fees under the parties’ agreement.
Among other accolades, Avi has been recognized as an Elite Boutique Trailblazer by The National Law Journal and a Litigation Star by Benchmark Litigation. He was named to the first-ever Euromoney Legal Media Group Rising Stars shortlist in the Best in Litigation: Securities category, and to Benchmark’s first-ever Under 40 Hot List.
Before joining HSG, Avi was a litigation associate at Jones Day and at Kasowitz, Benson, Torres & Friedman, and clerked for the Hon. Marcia G. Cooke of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.
Key Practice Areas: Banking + Financial Services; Bankruptcy; Business & Commercial; Securities; Trials
Year Joined Firm: 2012
Education: Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law (J. D.), cum laude; University of Arizona (B.A.), cum laude
Languages Spoken: Hebrew
Updated Sep 2024
