Jon E. Crain, Jr.

Jon Crain is a trial lawyer and commercial litigator in the Firm’s Litigation and Appeals Practice Group. Jon has successfully litigated a broad range of matters, including corporate shareholder disputes, mass tort insurance coverage actions, litigation regarding trade secrets and proprietary business information, commercial real estate and construction litigation, First Amendment and constitutional claims, land use, zoning and commercial development litigation, and complex personal injury and products liability actions.

Jon joined the Firm in 2013, after serving as an Appellate Court Attorney for the New York State Supreme Court Appellate Division, Third Department. Jon received his Juris Doctor from Pace University School of Law in 2012, where he served as the Editor-in-Chief of the Pace Law Review. In 2021, Jon was named one of the Capital Region’s “40 Under 40” by The Albany Business Review. Jon is also a member of the Capital Region Chamber of Commerce’s Leadership Tech Valley Class of 2020.

Representative Accomplishments

•Mr. Crain prevailed in a two-week jury trial of four consolidated lawsuits arising from a three-decade dispute over ownership of several restaurant buildings located in Saratoga Springs, New York. The jury’s verdict was a total victory for the Firm’s clients, awarding them full ownership of the disputed commercial properties after decades of contentious litigation.
•Mr. Crain represented a nationwide commercial developer in a dispute concerning a reciprocal easement agreement governing a mall in Syracuse, New York. Mr. Crain prevailed at trial, obtaining a $10 million trial verdict and judgment in favor of the Firm’s client.
•Mr. Crain represented the owner of the infamous Potsdam “toilet gardens” in litigation that garnered international media attention, and was featured in The Guardian and NPR, among other publications. When the Village of Potsdam ordered our client to remove his garden installations, Mr. Crain filed a federal civil rights action, obtained a preliminary injunction prohibiting the Village from removing the art, and negotiated a settlement in which the Village recognized that our client’s gardens are permanently protected by the First Amendment. Mr. Crain’s work is featured in a full-length documentary scheduled for release in late 2022.
•Mr. Crain successfully defended a nationwide developer in consolidated actions in federal court, arising from a landlord-tenant dispute for a commercial property used for cryptocurrency mining, obtaining dismissal of an $8 million fraudulent inducement claim and thereafter mediating a favorable resolution of all outstanding claims on behalf of our client.
•Mr. Crain represented a FORTUNE 500 company and nationwide retail chain in a commercial lease dispute, obtaining a favorable settlement and re-negotiation of a lease on behalf of our client.
•Mr. Crain represented an oral surgery practice in a dispute concerning the stock redemption and deferred compensation owed to two retiring shareholders in an arbitration before the American Arbitration Association, and ultimately obtained a favorable settlement in mediation on behalf of our client.
•Mr. Crain prosecuted a securities fraud arbitration proceeding before the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) against a major national banking institution, and obtained a favorable settlement on our client’s behalf.
•Mr. Crain obtained a $500,000 judgment at trial in a breach of contract dispute between a component manufacturer and distributor.

Jon also regularly performs pro bono work, including prisoner civil rights trials in federal court, appeals of inmate disciplinary determinations before the Appellate Division, Third Department, and volunteering with the Legal Aid Society of Northeastern New York.

Publications

Scope of Liability under the Alien Tort Statute: The Relevance of Choice of Law Doctrine in the Aftermath of Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum, 32 PACE L. REV. 543 (2012).

CLE PRESENTATIONS

Introduction to Summary Eviction Proceedings. February 21, 2020. Hosted by the New York State Bar Association in conjunction with the Legal Aid Society of Northeastern New York.

A Primer on Civil Depositions in New York. April 11, 2019. Hosted by the Legal Aid Society of Northeastern New York.