New York: An Overview

Olshan partners from the firm’s Shareholder Activism, Litigation, Real Estate Law and Advertising, Marketing & Promotions practices authored Chambers overview articles for their respective practice areas.

Litigation partners Peter Sartorius and Joseph Weiner authored both the “New York: An Overview” and “New York: A Litigation: General Commercial Overview.” In the “New York: An Overview” article, Peter and Joe analyze the recent Second Circuit decision in Leadenhall Capital Partners LLP v. Advantage Capital Holdings LLC, which reaffirmed that federal courts generally lack the power to grant pre-judgment injunctions seeking to freeze a defendant’s assets. They explain, “To invoke a federal court’s equity jurisdiction to restrain assets pre-judgment, [] a plaintiff must seek relief tied to particular, identifiable property – such as restitution, disgorgement or the imposition of a constructive trust – not merely the satisfaction of a general monetary obligation.” In the “New York: A Litigation: General Commercial Overview” article, Peter and Joe examine how the Commercial Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York is taking an increasingly strict approach to determining which cases qualify for assignment to the division. “Although some cases fall squarely within the requirements for designation to the Commercial Division,” they write, “others seem ripe for adjudication by this specialized business court but do not fit neatly within these requirements. Each year, numerous cases that, on the surface, involve complex business disputes are rejected for designation.”