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| Phone: (212) 808-7534 |
Fax: (212) 808-7897 |
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| Mr. Cooperman’s practice focuses on all aspects of civil litigation, including commercial litigation and contract disputes; environmental law (property damage and personal injury); corporate fraud; unfair competition; leasehold disputes; bankruptcy; and health care. Mr. Cooperman is a member of the Firm's seven person Executive Committee. In 2007, Mr. Cooperman was selected as a New York "Super Lawyer" based on independent research conducted by the publisher of Law & Politics magazine. |
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Representative Experience:
Commercial Litigation
J.P. Morgan Chase v. Liberty Mutual Insurance, et. al., S.D. New York. Part of trial team that prosecuted claims for approximately $1.2 billion against eleven insurance companies concerning surety bonds written in connection with transactions that the bank entered into with Enron Corp. A favorable settlement was achieved after closing arguments following a month-long trial.
Imax Corporation v. E-City Entertainment, ICC Arbitration in London. Handled a lengthy arbitration hearing before an international panel, resulting in an award of $9.4 million, plus interest and attorneys fees, in a case that involved leasing equipment in India.
Greenberg v. Toymax Inc. and Toymax (H.K.) Ltd., E.D. New York. Defended both Toymax companies in dispute with licensor involving various claims, including breach of contract and tortious interference with contract. After an eighteen day bench trial, the Court found for Toymax on all claims.
Yearlook Enterprises v. Videovation, Inc., AAA Arbitration. Represented two subsidiaries of The Reader's Digest Association in dispute concerning a sale of the assets of one of the subsidiaries. After a lengthy arbitration hearing, all claims against the client for breach of contract and fraud were dismissed, and the client was awarded its full requested relief on breach of contract counterclaims.
Communications Diversified v. General Motors Corporation, New York State Supreme Court. Part of trial team prosecuting lawsuit against GM for breach of contract and unfair competition arising out of GM's use of client's program in connection with the GM MasterCard program. Jury verdict with interest of $34 million after a six week trial that was upheld on appeal.
Kamyr, Inc. et al. v. Combustion Engineering, Inc., et al., New York State Supreme Court. Part of trial team defending $80,000,000 case brought by Swedish multi-national corporation alleging, inter alia, breach of contract, fraud, tortious interference of contract and unfair competition against U.S. subsidiary of Asea Brown Boveri. Trial resulted in a defense jury verdict that was upheld on appeal.
Muvico Theaters v. Imax Corporation, S.D. Florida. Represented Imax against claims for fraudulent inducement to contract and various statutory violations. After lengthy discovery, the Court granted Imax's summary judgment motion dismissing all of Muvico's claims. Imax's counterclaims were thereafter favorably settled.
Rubin-Schreiderman v. Merit Behavorial Care Corporation, et al., S.D. New York. Represented managed care provider in claim by plan participant that client negligently denied the plaintiff certain medical care which caused millions of dollars of damage. Obtained dismissal of complaint on grounds that common law negligent claims are preempted by the remedies offered under ERISA, which was upheld by the Second Circuit.
JPMorgan Chase/Enron-Related Litigations. Part of team representing JPMorgan Chase in several cases arising out of the Enron bankruptcy, including a shareholder class action in Houston, Texas, an adversary proceeding against numerous financial institutions pending in bankruptcy court in the Southern District of New York and conducted major discovery in aid of a U.K. lawsuit.
Represented BP Products North America Inc. in a series of lawsuits against BP brought by independent dealers in New York and New Jersey state and federal courts concerning disputes over their BP Dealer Supply Agreements.
Amoco Oil Company v. Edge Gas Liquids and Edge Group, Inc., S.D. Texas. Represented Amoco in breach of contract action involving propane gas contracts. After obtaining a temporary restraining order preventing the sale of certain of defendants' assets, obtained an award of summary judgment, plus attorneys fees, after expedited discovery.
Hilt v. Dictaphone Corporation and Pitney Bowes, Inc., N.D. Alabama. Represented defendants in proposed class action lawsuit alleging that a certain product was not Y2K compliant. Pursued motion practice strategy that resulted in dismissal of class action allegations.
Wagenheim v. NSI International, Inc., New York Supreme Court. Obtained summary judgment in declaratory judgment action in which the Court found that NSI was not liable for debts of company whose assets were acquired by NSI.
Easter v. Imax Corporation and Sonics Associates, Inc., N.D. Alabama. Obtained a favorable settlement through mediation of a multi-million dollar claim for breach of an executive's employment agreement after successfully arguing that the agreement constituted a contract subject to ERISA which does not permit jury trials and after interposing several counterclaims.
Hartej, Inc. v. Jamna Corporation, S.D. New York. Defended major Indian auto manufacturer in breach of contract and letter of credit dispute brought by its American agent seeking damages of $6,500,000. Case settled for confidential five figure amount on eve of trial after pursuing aggressive pretrial motion practice.
John Q. Hammons Theaters, Inc. et al. v. IMAX Corporation, D. Iowa. Represented Imax in tortious interference of contract and breach of contract action arising out of venture to install an Imax™ theater at a museum in Davenport, Iowa. Case successfully settled after discovery and summary judgment motion.
Air BP v. Aerovivas Venezolanos, S.A., et al., S.D. Florida. Represented Air BP in dispute over fuel oil deliveries. Obtained an award of summary judgment for full amount sought.
Circus Circus Entertainment Corp. v. Imax Corporation, D. Nevada. Represented Imax in a dispute over the construction of motion picture simulator bases. Case settled before trial.
Tri-Tech International v. Ridefilm Corporation, N.D. Virginia. Represented Ridefilm in dispute over the construction of motion picture simulator bases. Case settled before trial.
Franklin Electronic Publishers v. Societe Generale d'Edition et de Diffusion, D. New Jersey. Defended Societe Generale in action to recover $1.2 million owed pursuant to the terms of a contract. Settled case for a small portion of that amount after arguing that the $1.2 million represented unenforceable liquidated damages.
William T. Bright, et al. v. QSP, Inc., U.S. Court of Appeals, 4th Circuit. Appellate counsel for a subsidiary of The Readers Digest Association, Inc. seeking to overturn a $2,000,000 jury verdict in a trial handled by another law firm involving claims of breach of contract and unjust enrichment in connection with an alleged contract to purchase another company. Appeal resulted in a complete reversal of jury verdict and dismissal of plaintiff’s complaint.
Merit Behavioral Care Corp. v. Fassler and Koman, D. Massachusetts. Prosecuted breach of contract claim arising out of breach of warranties in an Asset Purchase Agreement and subsequent agreement regarding receivables. The case was settled before trial for close to full value and dismissal of all counterclaims.
Delta Services v. Delta Air Lines, S.D. New York. Defended Delta Air Lines in breach of contract dispute brought by former overseas agent. Case settled before trial.
DHS Holdings v. Saban Entertainment, Inc., S.D. New York. Represented international toy manufacturer and license holder in dispute over licensing and merchandising of the Creepy Crawlers product line.
McGrane v. The Reader's Digest Association, Inc., S.D. New York. Defended The Reader's Digest Association, Inc. in action brought by former officer under New York's Whistleblower statute. The case was dismissed on summary judgment, which was upheld on appeal.
The Children's Place v. Federal Insurance Company, New York Supreme Court. Representing The Children's Place in business interruption insurance claim concerning the client's former store located in the World Trade Center.
Products Liability/Environmental:
Baumbach v. ExxonMobil, et al., New York Supreme Court/Spiroff v. ExxonMobil, et al., E.D. New York. Lead counsel representing defendant BP Products North America Inc. in 18 cases brought by over 600 residents of Greenpoint, Brooklyn alleging in excess of $1 billion in property damages and personal injuries due to a large oil spill.
Clark v. Dictaphone Corporation, et al., W.D. Missouri. Represented Dictaphone Corporation in a products liability action for personal injuries arising from plaintiff’s exposure to hydrogen sulfide gas at a pesticide manufacturing plant in Kansas City, allegedly due to a faulty hydrogen sulfide gas detector manufactured by the client. Favorable settlement obtained after lengthy discovery and while summary judgment motion was pending.
Amco International v. The Long Island Railroad, New York State Supreme Court, Suffolk County. Representing railroad in claim for property damage arising out of spill of diesel oil. Bench trial resulted in a split verdict.
Amoco Oil Company v. ExxonMobil, E.D. New York. Represented Amoco in lawsuit over responsibility to remediate millions of gallons of petroleum products near the Newtown Creek in Brooklyn, New York. Case settled before trial with ExxonMobil agreeing to prevent contamination attributable to historical Mobil operations from migrating onto client's property.
Representing BP Products North America Inc. in negotiations with the New York Department of Environmental Conservation and Attorney General concerning the remediation of petroleum contamination at BP's Brooklyn terminal, the site of a former Mobil refinery.
Represents BP Products North America Inc. in claims by Cargill, Inc. concerning responsibility for petroleum contamination at the site of a former bulk storage facility in Providence, Rhode Island.
Stolt Realty v. Atlantic Richfield Company, New York Supreme Court, Monroe County. Represented Atlantic Richfield in lawsuit brought under the Navigation Law for alleged contamination of plaintiff's property. Obtained summary judgment dismissal of property damage claims.
Sundaram v. BP Products North America Inc., Superior Court, Connecticut. Obtained dismissal of claim seeking BP to remediate a former service station property. The case thereafter settled for a nominal amount after the Complaint was amended.
110th Street v. Amoco Oil Company, S.D. New York. Represented Amoco Oil Company in claim brought for alleged fuel spill at a former Amoco service station. Case favorably settled before trial.
Gula, et al. v. Kanzaki Specialty Papers, Inc., et al., Superior Court, Massachusetts. Defended Kanzaki Specialty Papers, Inc. in action for property damage allegedly arising from migration of chemicals from client's manufacturing facility under residential properties. After establishing that contamination could not have been caused by chemicals used by client, obtained dismissal of claim against client and obtained full indemnity from prior owner of manufacturing facility.
Gussack Realty v. Xerox Corporation, S.D. New York. Defended Xerox Corporation in action to recover alleged CERCLA response costs and for property damage allegedly caused by chlorinated solvents that had migrated from Xerox's property to plaintiffs' property. Several claims were dismissed prior to being submitted to the jury; jury verdict, below what plaintiff requested, upheld on appeal.
Represented BP Amoco in administrative proceedings commenced by the New York Department of Environmental Conservation for alleged violations in connection with repairs to fuel storage tanks.
Part of team defending Xerox Corporation in connection with five separate New York federal and state court lawsuits for property damage and personal injuries allegedly caused by environmental contamination. Cases were either dismissed or favorably settled.
Part of team defending GTE Corporation in claims for personal injuries and wrongful death arising out of a natural gas pipeline explosion in Venezuela that occurred during work to construct a fiber-optic telephone line. After discovery and extensive briefing, the Court granted GTE Corporation's motion to dismiss for forum non conveniens.
Southern Boston Management Corp. v. BP Products North America Inc., S.D. New York. Represented BP in dispute with the purchaser of property that was formerly a BP service station concerning the UST system located at the property. The case settled after mediation.
Unfair Competition/Intellectual Property:
Link Group LLP v. Toymax Inc., D. Connecticut. Represented Toymax in jury trial in which plaintiff alleged violations of the Connecticut Uniform Trade Secret Act and the Connecticut Unfair Trade Practice Act in connection with Toymax's introduction of the Laser Challenge™ toy product. Case favorably settled during jury deliberations after a three week trial.
Roquette America, Inc. et al. v. Amylum Belgium N.V., et al., Iowa State Court. Represented leading European agricultural products manufacturer and senior executives in claims arising out of the client's hiring of a senior executive that previously worked for one of the plaintiffs. Claims include theft of trade secrets and alleged tortious interference with a non-compete agreement. The case was dismissed by the Iowa Supreme Court for lack of personal jurisdiction after discovery and an extensive hearing on jurisdictional issues. A case was subsequently filed by the same plaintiffs in the Southern District of New York alleging violations of the Lanham Act and RICO, which was dismissed after motion practice and the dismissal was upheld by the Second Circuit.
Tactica International, Inc. v. Atlantic Horizon International, Inc., et al., S.D. New York. Represented British manufacturer and its current United States distributor of certain beauty products in a lawsuit brought by the British manufacturer's former United States distributor to enjoin the sale of certain products, for theft of trade secrets and to enforce a covenant not to compete. After a three day injunction hearing, the Court denied plaintiff's request that the defendants be enjoined from conducting business. The case subsequently settled with no monetary payments to plaintiff and permitting defendants to conduct business in the United States.
Dictaphone Corporation v. Diehl, D. Connecticut. Prosecuted action for injunctive relief against former Dictaphone executive to enforce covenant not to compete. Case settled with defendant agreeing to abide by covenant.
Toymax Inc. v. Thinkway Products, Inc., S.D. New York. Prosecuted claims for Lanham Act violations and unfair competition arising out of defendant's marketing of a product improperly based upon client’s Laser Challenge™ system. A temporary restraining order was granted after an evidentiary hearing and the case was subsequently favorably settled.
Valentino v. MGA Entertainment Corp., E.D. New York. Representing defendant in claim for trademark and copyright infringement involving one of the client's doll products.
NSI International Inc. v. Big Ideas, Inc., S.D. New York. Obtained a temporary restraining order where the defendant infringed the client's trademarks for toy craft products. The case subsequently settled with a consent judgment.
Geotek Communications, Inc. v. Apex Communications, S.D. Texas. Prosecuted action for injunctive relief against former franchisee for misuse of client's confidential information. Case settled after injunctive relief obtained.
Daval, N.Y. Inc. v. Toymax, Inc., E.D. New York. Obtained summary judgment dismissal of Lanham Act and state law claims arising out of alleged misappropriation of plaintiff's concept for a toy product.
MGA Entertainment Corp. v. K'NEX Industries, S.D. New York. Represented plaintiff in Lanham Act claim involving defendant's marketing of its Commanda-bot toy product which infringed upon client's Command-o-bot™ mark. Defendant agreed, inter alia, to cease its use of the offending name.
Lexington Lasercomb L.P. AG v. Atlantic Horizon International, Inc., et al., S.D. Florida. Represented defendants in a trademark and patent dispute concerning a laser hair comb. Case settled allowing client to continue selling its product.
Represented MGA Entertainment in multiple proceedings for unfair advertising brought by the Children's Advertising Review Unit of the Better Business Bureau concerning client's television advertising for a number of its toy products.
Represented Elysee Beauty Products and Atlantic Horizon International in a proceeding before the National Advertising Division of the Better Business Bureau ("NAD") in which a competitor claimed that the client falsely advertised that its women's home electrolysis unit "permanently" removed hair. The NAD ruled in clients' favor and found that the advertising was accurate.
BP Products North America, Inc. v. Oesch Distributing, et. al., N.D. Ohio. Represented BP in breach of covenant not to compete/unfair competition case arising out of defendants' solicitation of customers they serviced while a BP consumer marketer.
Right To Privacy:
Powers v. Dictaphone Corporation, D. Kentucky. Obtained summary judgment dismissal of claim that client's installation and use of logging equipment violated federal wiretap laws and plaintiff’s right to privacy.
Sexton, et al. v. Dictaphone Corporation, et al., E.D. Missouri. Obtained summary judgment dismissal of claims for invasion of privacy and breach of federal and state wiretap laws arising out of alleged misuse of client's recording equipment.
Leasehold Disputes:
Drutman Realty Co. v. Jindo Corp. and Jindo Ventures Corp., S.D. New York. Defended Korean conglomerate in federal court dispute over guaranty of commercial real estate located in New Jersey. Defeated plaintiff's summary judgment motion by successfully arguing in a case of first impression that a New Jersey commercial landlord has a duty to mitigate damages. Case subsequently settled for confidential amount representing a fraction of what was owed on the disputed lease.
The Children's Place v. Equity Properties, Inc., Florida State Court. Prosecuted action for breach of covenant of quiet enjoyment due to landlord's failure to adequately maintain mall location. Obtained termination of lease and reduction of rent owed.
Caldwell Construction Corp. v. Clearview Cinemas, New Jersey State Court. Represented subsidiary of Cablevision in dispute with landlord concerning whether theater was built in conformity with lease specifications. Settlement resolved with landlord dropping claims for money damages.
Bakery Associates v. Miami Theatre LLC, Florida State Court. Representing Miami Theatre, an affiliate of Imax, in alleging breach of a lease for a large format theater in a mall in suburban Miami. |
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Bar Admissions:
New York, 1986
Various federal courts
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| Education:
Syracuse University, JD, magna cum laude, 1985
Williams College, BA-History, 1982
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Office Location:
101 Park Avenue
New York, NY 10178-0002
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