Mr. Brooks is the Chair of the Securities Litigation Practice Group. He concentrates his practice in complex commercial, corporate, and securities and commodities litigation and arbitration, and copyright litigation. He has engaged in complex commercial business litigation in state and federal courts nationwide, as well as in numerous alternative dispute resolution forums in the U.S. and abroad. He has substantial expertise in defending broker-dealers in customer and employment disputes. He has also defended other corporate clients in employment-related matters, including disputes over bonus and severance packages and sexual harassment complaints.
Areas of Experience
Summary of Experience
· Successfully represented the plaintiff in a landmark copyright fair use case, Cariou v. Prince, 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 29070 (S.D.N.Y. Mar. 18, 2011), in which the well-known appropriation artist, Richard Prince, and the Gagosian Gallery and its owner, Lawrence Gagosian, which represented the artist, were all found liable for copyright infringement. The Court rejected the defendants' defense of fair use. This decision has been the subject of extensive commentary in the press.
· Obtained reversal of client's murder conviction several months after having been admitted to the Bar.
· Successfully argued that two chapters of Mississippi's Civil War-era attachment statutes were unconstitutional.
· Wrote the winning brief in Kremer v. Chemical Construction Corp., 456 U.S. 461 (1982), a 5-to-4 Supreme Court decision in a landmark Title VII employment case.
· Represented an international tennis star in an anti-trust claim against the governing international mens' tennis organization.
· Represented Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. in more than 100 disputes with customers, including the bulk of Schwab's 1987 stock market crash cases in various states, related enforcement proceedings, and numerous other lawsuits and arbitrations up to the present.
· Successfully represented former member of the Board of Directors of the New York Stock Exchange in an arbitration brought against him by a former employee.
· Won a $13 million arbitration award (up to then, the largest ever awarded by the National Futures Association) on behalf of a commodities trader located in Dubai against a U.S. futures commission merchant.
· Was granted a permanent injunction enforcing restrictive covenants and non-compete provisions in client's employment contract with its former president.
· Represented defendant corporations, officers and directors in various shareholders' class action suits.
· Successfully represented a Saudi Arabian appliance distributor, whose agreement was wrongfully terminated by the U.S. manufacturer, as found by an arbitration panel at the AAA.
· Advised and represented purchasers of a hotel, including negotiating deal and consummating transaction.
Professional Affiliations
· The Association of the Bar of the City of New York, Committee on Securities Regulation, Member, 1995-1998; Federal Courts Committee, Member, 2011-
· Federal Bar Council, Member
· Panel of Arbitrators, Financial Industry Regulatory Authority
· The Copyright Society of the U.S.A., Member
Other Distinctions
· Rated AV® Preeminent™ by Martindale-Hubbell®
· Selected to New York Super Lawyers 2011 - Metro Edition in the area of Securities Litigation
News
05/18/2012, Schnader's Dan Brooks Mentioned in NPR Article on Cariou v. Prince
04/10/2012, Schnader's Dan Brooks Offers Comment on Litigation Involving Firm Client Artist Cady Noland
02/08/2012, Schnader Urges U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit to Uphold Ruling for Their Client, Patrick Cariou
12/28/2011, Schnader's Daniel Brooks Offers Comment to the New York Times on Prince et al. v. Cariou
09/28/2011, Schnader's Dan Brooks Offers Comment on Recent Appeal of Prince et al. v. Cariou
09/19/2011, Sixty-Eight Schnader Attorneys Rated AV® Preeminent™ by Martindale-Hubbell®
05/27/2011, Super Lawyers Recognizes Many Schnader Attorneys in 2011
03/28/2011, Schnader Scores a Significant Victory for Artist Patrick Cariou in a Copyright Infringement Case Brought Against Richard Prince and Gagosian Gallery
01/29/2009, Schnader Attorney Comments on Copyright Infringement Case
Publications
ARTICLES
04/01/1999, "Arbitration Watch: $13 Million NFA Arbitration Award Confirmed"
09/01/1985, "Penalizing Judges Who Appeal Disciplinary Sanctions: The Unconstitutionality of 'Upping the Ante'"
BOOKS
05/01/2012, New Developments in Securities Litigation
ALERTS
04/08/2008, Supreme Court Resists Expansion of Grounds for Vacating Arbitration Awards Under Federal Arbitration Act
Speaking Engagements
04/09/2012, Dan Brooks Presents on Panel for CLE Symposium - Right To Remix: Appropriation Art in the Digital Age
04/26/2011, Schnader's Dan Brooks Speaks on Recent Case Developments in Fair Use and Visual Art at New York State Bar Association CLE
04/20/2011, Schnader's Dan Brooks Discusses Art, Copyright and Litigation at the VLA in New York, April 20th
04/05/2011, Schnader's Dan Brooks Speaks on Cariou v. Richard Prince - an Artist's Copyright Infringement Litigation Case