Eliot Kirshnitz
Senior AttorneyEliot Kirshnitz is an experienced litigator with over twenty-five years of dedicated client service at several financial institutions, in New York State government, and at a global law firm. He has litigated a wide variety of complex matters—from nationwide class actions and multimillion dollar business disputes to single-party vendor actions and employment claims—in state and federal courts and arbitral tribunals in multiple jurisdictions, with a particular focus on the unique issues faced by small- to medium-sized businesses. He also has helped clients navigate a broad range of commercial transactions, regulatory matters, and government investigations. Eliot is a problem solver who can help clients identify and mitigate risks and manage difficult situations to predictable client-approved outcomes.
Featured Representative Matters
- Managed all aspects of significant litigation docket for revenue-based finance provider
- Managed docket of significant insurance coverage disputes with potential liability exceeding $750 million
- Lead lawyer on team that recovered over $100 million in disputed reinsurance receivables
- Supervised a leading manufacturer’s response to an FTC investigation regarding marketing practices
- Conducted multiple internal investigations for companies to assess litigation and regulatory risk
Representative Matters
- Managed leading SBA lender’s responses to numerous DOJ criminal investigations of alleged borrower fraud in connection with the CARES Act PPP program
- Individually conducted all aspects of affirmative and defensive litigations on behalf of OCC-regulated bank, non-bank lenders, accounts receivable financier, payments processor, benefits manager, IT services provider, and insurance producer in state and federal courts in multiple jurisdictions
- Represented carriers for property owners in WTC Disaster Site Litigation defending hundreds of personal injury claims; mediated follow-on allocation disputes with insurers
- Managed multiple affirmative litigations on behalf of insurance liquidator resulting in over $25 million in recoveries
- Managed multiple patent litigations, ITC proceedings, and appeals regarding computer hard drive, Ethernet, digital imaging, and optical device technologies
- Represented a leading life sciences company in multiple domestic and international disputes and litigations asserted by joint development partners, co-marketers, and suppliers over product-related transactions
- Represented a leading pharmaceutical company in a major shareholder derivative suit arising from the company’s marketing practices
- Represented leading consumer packaged goods company in a multi-year engagement providing litigation defense, regulatory and business counseling, and support of in-house counsel in a wide range of activities
- Managed multiple high-profile lawsuits against food and beverage companies, including coordinated nation-wide consumer protection class actions over labeling, marketing, and product ingredients
- Represented a sugar manufacturer in connection with a major product recall and accompanying FDA inspection and investigation
- Created and implemented a world-wide audit protocol for a leading infant formula manufacturer to assure compliance with marketing codes in numerous ex-US jurisdictions
Education
St. John’s University School of Law
J.D., summa cum laude, 2001
New York University
B.A., Philosophy, 1990
Admissions
- New York
- New Jersey
- U.S. District Courts for the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York and the District of New Jersey
Featured Publications
“Litigation Financing: Commercial Claims as an Asset Class,” Practical Law The Journal, March 2012 (uncredited co-author)
“Truth or Dare: Navigating the Minefield of Voluntary Disclosures,” N.Y. Litigator, Fall 2004 (co-author)
“FDA Issues New Regulations on Dietary Supplements,” DLA Piper Client Alert, June 26, 2007 (co-author)
“Unified Drug Labeling Benefits Europe,” New York Law Journal, Feb. 11, 2002 (co-author)
“City of New York v. State of New York: The New York State Court of Appeals, in declaring the repeal of the commuter tax unconstitutional, strikes another blow against constitutional home rule in New York,” 74 St. John’s L. Rev. 935 (2000)