Michael S. Gordon

Qualifications and Career Profile

Michael S. Gordon has a broad range of commercial litigation experience, and regularly represents clients in state and federal courts, as well as in arbitration and mediation proceedings, in New York, New Jersey and throughout the United States. Mr. Gordon has substantial experience in real estate and secured lending litigation, representing developers, management and hospitality companies, banks and private equity funds. Mr. Gordon also has extensive experience handling all types of business disputes including breach of contract, business torts, partnership and corporate shareholder disputes, intellectual property, insurance coverage, securities and common law fraud and breach of fiduciary duty. In addition, he regularly provides strategic counseling to his clients, assisting them in devising creative solutions either to avoid litigation or to facilitate the settlement of protracted lawsuits.

For four years, Mr. Gordon served as co-hiring partner for associates in New York and co-head of the New York office’s hiring committee.

Representative Matters

Lender Liability Litigation

• Successfully represented real estate lender being sued by an investor alleging breach of contract and tortious interference claims premised on lender’s alleged refusal to allocate to the investor $150 million of a billion dollar term loan facility.
• Successfully represented leading private equity fund in Southern District of New York to enforce guarantees of a mezzanine loan exceeding $70 million.
• Successfully represented leading private equity fund in various jurisdictions to enforce guarantees of building mortgage loans exceeding $50 million.
• Successfully represented real estate lender against allegations of breach of contract and tortious misconduct arising out of lender’s alleged “breach” of a term sheet regarding a proposed $850 million loan.
• Successfully represented real estate lender against claims of breach of contract and tortious misconduct arising out of lender’s pre-closing modification of draft loan documents and borrower’s attempt to compel lender to close transaction consistent with terms of non-binding financing agreement.
• Successfully represented leading real estate developer against lender resulting in turnover of the property and a full release of the developer’s principals from all guaranteed obligations.
• Successfully represented a foreign government in connection with its default on an $11 million bank loan incurred for the purpose of building a luxury hotel resort.

Representation of Real Estate Clients in Commercial Litigation

• Successfully represented real estate fund in connection with disputes arising out of its acquisition of various luxury resort properties.
• Successfully represented leading real estate company in dispute with foreign hotel operators regarding overseas hotel development.
• Successfully represented one of the largest real estate owners in New York City, in connection with its insurance coverage action for more than $75 million in business interruption and property damage losses incurred by it as a result of the events of September 11th.
• Successfully represented hotel fund in numerous litigations exceeding $100 million in alleged damages incurred in connection with the acquisition and development of various hotel properties.
• Successfully represented leading real estate company against claims of trade name infringement.
• Successfully represented owners and operators of an exclusive Caribbean resort in litigation regarding fiduciary breach and fraud.

General Business Litigation

• Successfully represented software manufacturer in nationwide litigations and arbitration regarding the manufacturer’s right to terminate agreements with local distributors and to preclude these local distributors from using the manufacturer’s proprietary software to provide “technical support” to existing customers.
• Successfully represented a not-for-profit home health care provider in combatting anti-competitive poaching and patient steering activities by a larger home health care provider.
• Successfully represented a subcontractor against a general contractor in a complex construction litigation.
• Successfully represented policyholder against disability insurance company that attempted to terminate disability benefits, notwithstanding policyholder’s unabated chronic medical condition.
• Successfully represented celebrated journalist and author against internationally-renowned rap artist for breach of collaboration agreement.

Associations and Committees

Mr. Gordon is a member of the New York State Bar and the New Jersey State Bar. He is admitted to practice before the US District Courts for the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York, as well as the District of New Jersey. He is also a member of the New York State Bar Association, the Association of the Bar of the City of New York, and the New York County Lawyers’ Association.

Mr. Gordon also serves on the mediation panel for the US District Court, Southern District of New York Mediation Program.

Publications

• “Accommodating Struggling Borrowers: No Good Deed Goes Unpunished,” New York Law Journal (November 2, 2009)
• “Caveat Emptor in the Purchase of New York Real Estate,” New York Real Estate Law Reporter (March 2006)

Education

Mr. Gordon earned his undergraduate degree (BA) from Columbia University, where he graduated Phi Beta Kappa. He received his law degree (JD) from New York University School of Law, where he was on the editorial staff of Annual Survey of American Law.