Damon W. Suden
  Associate, New York
   
     
  Practice Areas:
Litigation
- Class Actions
 
     
 
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  Publications  
Phone: (212) 808-7586 Fax: (212) 808-7897
Email: dsuden@kelleydrye.com
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Damon Suden is an associate in the firm's New York office. He focuses his practice on litigation and has experience handling single plaintiff and class action cases, as well as breach of non-compete contracts.

Mr. Suden has handled matters for companies in a variety of industries including healthcare, insurance, banking and finance, and chemicals.
 
Representative Experience:
Part of the team which prevailed conclusively and convincingly in a hotly contested arbitration proceeding in London between Swiss and Indian companies before a former Justice of the Supreme Court of India. The dispute centered on whether the parties had taken a vote at a board meeting to unanimously terminate a distribution agreement which the firm's client wanted to end. Achieved complete victory in the client's favor resulting in termination of the distribution agreement and a full award of costs.

Part of the team that successfully defended The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company (U.S.A.) ("Manulife") (now known as John Hancock Life Insurance Company (U.S.A.)), in a case brought by two individuals asserting that Manulife made misrepresentations about the premiums required to keep two high value life insurance policies in force. The First Department issued a written decision unanimously affirming the trial court's initial dismissal order and awarding Manulife its costs on the appeal.

Part of the team that successfully defended a hospital in a lawsuit brought by its former Director of Risk Management who alleged that she was fired in violation of New York’s "whistleblower law" because she advocated for the reporting of alleged "adverse" patient incidents to the New York State Department of Health, pursuant to the "NYPORTS" reporting system. Successfully moved for a directed verdict after the close of plaintiff's case with the Judge holding that the case was "without basis in law or fact" and inviting the hospital to move to recover its legal fees from the plaintiff pursuant to the whistleblower statute. The case was reported in the New York Law Journal and Crain's Health Pulse.

Part of the team that successfully defended JPMorgan Chase Bank (JPMC) in a $20 million lawsuit brought by bondholders of a complex collateralized debt obligation ("CDO") transaction asserting claims of breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty and negligence arising out of JPMC's role as indenture trustee on the deal. In a series of motions, the litigation team successfully argued that plaintiffs could not establish causation or damages as a matter of law. The Court agreed and granted JPMC's summary judgment motion. Plaintiff waived its right to appeal.

Part of the trial team for a major chemical company in a fraud, unfair competition and breach of contract case arising out of the purchase of a company and the defendant's violation of a non-compete agreement. The case also involved a claim under the federal Computer Fraud and Abuse Act. Successfully obtained a multi-million dollar jury verdict after a six-week trial and successfully prosecuted a contempt application against the defendant and his attorneys.

Part of the team that prosecuted claims for approximately $1.2 billion on behalf of JPMorgan Chase Bank against eleven insurance companies over 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.
 
Memberships and Associations:
American Bar Association
New York State Bar Association
Association of the Bar of the City of New York
Lesbian and Gay Law Association of Greater New York
 
Pro Bono:
Successfully represented a client pro bono in a dispute with her former husband regarding the custody of their son.
 
Community Activities:
Council for the Arts at MIT, member, 2008-present
MIT Educational Counselor, 2002-present
 
Bar Admission:
New York, 2003
 
Courts:
U.S. District Courts – Southern and Eastern Districts of New York
U.S. Court of Appeals – Second Circuit
 
Education:
Fordham University School of Law, J.D., 2002
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, B.S., 1999
 
Office Location:
101 Park Avenue
New York, NY 10178-0002