Find Lawyers in Connecticut, United States for Commercial Litigation
Practice Area Overview
Litigation increasingly occurs in various venues, from state and federal courts to private arbitrations and administrative hearings. Proceedings can involve business-to-business disputes or any number of government agencies. Understanding the motivations and outlook of each of the litigation participants is important for determining weak points to exploit and strong points that will persuade the audience in question. During the past decade, commercial litigators have seen a dramatic uptick in multidistrict and inter-disciplinary litigation, making the stakes higher, the cases more complex, the parties more numerous and the discovery more complicated and unwieldy. Firms that are able to develop and implement a creative legal approach to each individual problem, efficiently focus on the key legal and factual issues, and master and manage the various aspects of these complex matters will be the busiest in the years to come.
In the current challenging economic climate, commercial litigators are under increasing client pressure to keep costs in check, which has both sides testing the efficacy of alternative fee arrangements and the scope of reasonable discovery. Whether the “death of the billable hour” is ultimately realized, the keys to a commercial litigator’s success will continue to be strong client relationships, thought leadership, practical management skills, deep experience, and personal commitment.
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Cities
David P. Atkins is a member of Pullman & Comley’s Litigation Department and leads its Professional Liability Section. He practices in the areas of professional liability, commercial litigation, appeals and administrative proceedings. Attorneys, law firms, CPAs and health care professionals seek David to represent them in malpractice, licensing, court sanctions and disqualification proceedings, ethics and disciplinary (grievance) matters. His extensive experience includes handling di...
David A. Ball is a principal in the firm's Litigation , Securities , and Telecommunications & Utilities Groups. Resident in the firm's Bridgeport office, Mr. Ball practices in state and federal court handling complex commercial litigation cases; shareholder and partnership disputes; business tort claims; securities fraud actions; and administrative appeals. He also litigates before the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority and has extensive experience handling arbitrations before the Am...
Jason represents individual, corporate and municipal clients in a wide range of litigation matters including complex commercial disputes, business litigation, construction disputes, real property and title disputes, tax appeals, and municipal enforcement proceedings. He also regularly advises municipal and private clients with respect to local property tax and exemption issues and advises municipalities on a variety of local governmental matters. Additionally, he serves as an Attorney Trial R...
John W. Cannavino is a Principal in Cummings & Lockwood's Litigation Group and is based in the Stamford office. He brings over 40 years' of broad-based experience to his litigation and trial practice, representing both plaintiffs and defendants. He has extensive experience in complex commercial litigation, including securities litigation; litigation between investors and hedge fund managers; insurance coverage disputes; corporate, partnership, and limited liability company disputes and di...
John F. Carberry is a Principal in Cummings & Lockwood's Litigation Group and is based in the Stamford office. John has over a quarter century of experience representing creditors in state and federal courts, including bankruptcy court. He serves as a Special Master, Attorney Trial Referee, Arbitrator and Fact Finder for the Connecticut Superior Court in Stamford. John also serves as Principal-in-Charge of the Stamford office, the Firm's General Counsel, Loss Prevention Partner and Pro Bo...
Jeffrey M. Donofrio has been practicing law in Connecticut since 1990. Jeff's practice is focused, by design, on 3 areas: construction law, municipal law and commercial litigation. In addition to his extensive expertise in the foregoing areas of the law, Jeff's responsiveness, passion and commitment to clients, ability to understand each client's unique needs, and his efficiency enable him to effectively serve the needs of many local municipalities and businesses of all sizes. Jeff's approach...
John is a special counsel in the litigation and arbitration team at Withers Bergman LLP. He is a trial lawyer in the firm’s commercial litigation team. He practices in the areas of complex trust and probate litigation in state and federal courts, both at the trial and appellate levels. Outside of the courtroom, John advises directors, officers, shareholders, investors, trustees and beneficiaries on corporate governance and fiduciary issues and conduct in an effort to minimize litigation...
Stephen P. Fogerty is first and foremost a problem solver. For the last 35 years, he has zealously, ethically, and successfully represented hundreds of clients before judges and juries in every court in Connecticut, and successfully argued appeals in the Connecticut Appellate and Supreme Courts and the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. That experience informs his unique, thoughtful, and effective approach to solving his clients’ problems. Whether those problems rela...
Monte E. Frank is a member in Pullman & Comley’s Litigation practice, representing business and municipal clients in the state and federal courts in Connecticut and before administrative agencies on a wide range of matters. He regularly represents clients in mediation and arbitration in Connecticut and other states. Monte is immediate past president of both the Connecticut Bar Association and the New England Bar Association. He previously served as president-elect and vice-president...
Eliot B. Gersten focuses his practice on complex litigation involving individuals and companies engaged in disputes, and most recently was lead counsel in successfully challenging the candidacy of Susan Bysiewicz for Connecticut Attorney General. He has represented owners, developers, banks, contractors and subcontractors on a number of different kinds of contract negotiation, as well as handled litigation over the contracts, and accounts receivable. He has experience handling commercial and ...
Irve J. Goldman has practiced in the areas of bankruptcy law and commercial litigation for more than 30 years, and serves as chair of Pullman & Comley's Bankruptcy, Creditors' Rights and Financial Restructuring practice. In 1993, Irve was the first attorney in Connecticut to become a certified specialist in business bankruptcy and has represented a diversity of interests in bankruptcy proceedings, including companies reorganizing under Chapter 11, secured creditors, equipment lessors, fra...
Ari J. Hoffman is the firm’s Managing Partner. He is a trusted counselor and an effective advocate. He represents businesses, municipalities, universities, non-profit organizations, and individuals. His practice includes a wide variety of commercial trial work, with significant experience in complex business disputes and contract-related litigation, securities and shareholder disputes, intellectual property matters, premises liability, and real estate and property litigation. He also ha...
Michael P. Kaelin is a Principal in Cummings & Lockwood's Litigation Group, and Family Office and Closely Held Business Group. Mike represents individuals, fiduciaries and businesses in commercial, employment, employee benefits, probate, trusts and estates, conservatorship, guardianship, and investment disputes, including wrongful discharge and discrimination claims, will contests, fiduciary removal proceedings, contested accountings, fee disputes, construction proceedings, undue influenc...
Thomas P. Lambert is a trusted advisor to multinational organizations, local businesses, insurance companies, and their insureds. Tom represents clients in commercial and civil litigation as well as corporate and real estate transactions, providing advice and counsel. His breadth of experience extends across nearly every area of law, including professional liability, premises liability, products liability, employment, and directors & officers liability, involving claims of construction de...
Tony Minchella founded Minchella Law in July 2003, following his years of private practice with top litigation firms including Halloran & Sage, LLP and Zeldes, Needle & Cooper, P.C. He represents Fortune 50 companies, financial institutions, and small to mid-size closely-held Connecticut businesses, handling corporate governance, employment litigation, trade secret and non-competition litigation, unfair trade practices, Department of Labor investigations, and construction litigation. ...
A persuasive and successful litigator, Phil has handled a variety of litigation matters including complex commercial disputes, breach of fiduciary duty claims, partnership and shareholder disputes, adverse possession claims, prescriptive easement claims, quiet title actions, landlord/tenant cases, and collection actions. He frequently appears in the Connecticut Probate Court system representing beneficiaries, fiduciaries, and creditors in a variety of probate litigation matters, including con...
Craig Raabe joined the partnership in 2016 from a large, regional law firm, where he previously served as the chair of the litigation department. Mr. Raabe has tried many complex civil and criminal cases. He is a Fellow in the American College of Trial Lawyers. He has been listed in The Best Lawyers in America© since 2006 (Copyright by Woodward/White, Inc., Aiken, SC), most recently in six disciplines: Bet-the-Company Litigation, Commercial Litigation, Antitrust, Regulatory/Environmental...
David Shaiken offers over 30 years of experience representing clients in a wide range of industries, with a focus on creditors’ rights, commercial bankruptcy, fraudulent transfer and commercial litigation, business dissolution, arbitration and mediation. In addition, David has served for more than 15 years as a commercial arbitrator and mediator, and is a member of the Register of Voluntary Mediators at the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Connecticut, Hartford Divisio...
James T. (Tim) Shearin is a member of the firm’s Executive Committee and chair of the Litigation Department. He has wide-ranging experience in state and federal courts, at both the trial and appellate levels, and before arbitration and mediation boards. He represents clients in the areas of commercial, intellectual property, Internet piracy and computer crimes, banking, securities, antitrust, civil rights, products liability and general civil litigation. Tim has lectured and written on ...
Paul Slager represents plaintiffs in cases stemming from catastrophic events involving medical malpractice, violent crimes, serious accidents, defective consumer products and sexual abuse and harassment. He also represents individuals pursuing whistleblower actions, where an individual or company has defrauded the government, and represents small businesses and individuals on a contingent fee basis in significant business disputes. His cases are designed to balance injustices and cause import...
Brian E. Tims is an experienced attorney with a strong background in general litigation. Brian represents businesses of all sizes as well as individuals in a variety of litigation matters including labor and employment, professional liability, products liability, land disputes, construction defect, premises liability, and automobile liability. He also handles commercial litigation, including breach of contract and unfair trade practice matters. In addition to his robust civil practice, Brian ...
Diane W. Whitney, chair of the firm's Land Use section of the firm's Real Estate and Land Use department, practices in the areas of environmental, toxic torts and land use law. Diane represents businesses, individuals and municipalities in all areas of environmental and land use planning and permitting. Her litigation experience includes trial and appellate work in environmental matters, toxic torts and land use, and representation before administrative agencies including siting of utilities ...
Dennis M. Carnelli is an experienced civil litigation attorney who focuses his practice principally upon: Business litigation Civil rights actions First Amendment litigation Appellate matters He represents people and businesses in private disputes, matters where their constitutional rights have been violated, and in challenging laws that abridge their constitutional rights. In so doing, Dennis draws on his prior experience representing clients in state and federal civil actions, administrativ...
Bianca LoGiurato is an Associate in Pullman & Comley's Litigation and the Labor and Employment practices. She focuses on commercial and employment litigation, and frequently litigates issues related to consumer complaints, the Connecticut Unfair Trade Practices Act, the Common Interest Ownership Act, landlord-tenant law, and on occasion, intellectual property disputes. Bianca has experience in the Connecticut Superior and Federal Courts, as well as in arbitration, small claims, housing, p...
William N. Wright is a Principal in Cummings & Lockwood's Litigation Group and is based in the Stamford office. Will primarily practices in the areas of commercial litigation and trust and probate litigation, and was recognized as among the “Ones to Watch” by The Best Lawyers in America in 2021. He represents individuals and institutional clients in a broad range of matters, including contract and partnership disputes, employment actions, trust and will contests, probate appea...
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