Rich Baldwin is an associate in the firm's Litigation department. His practice focuses primarily on commercial litigation and international litigation and arbitration. Rich has represented shareholders, partners and companies in a variety of internal disputes arising out of issues such as options, puts, partnership accountings, and conflicts of interest. He has also represented clients in traditional commercial disputes in state and federal courts and domestic and international arbitration. Rich regularly represents foreign governments and their agencies and instrumentalities in cases brought against them in courts within the United States.
In addition to his litigation practice, Rich maintains an active pro bono practice. He has represented dozens of clients in housing, domestic violence, immigration, and special education matters, and participates in Foley Hoag's legal intake clinic at the South Boston Community Health Center through the Medical-Legal Partnership-Boston. Rich also participates in the firm's pro bono representation of individual debtors in Chapter 7 bankruptcy proceedings, representing debtors from the initial planning for the filing of the bankruptcy petition through the granting of a discharge of the debtor's debts.
As a law student, Rich was an editor of the Boston College Law School Uniform Commercial Code Reporter-Digest.
Prior to practicing law, Rich was an account manager for an international public relations agency, where he planned communications campaigns and provided media and analyst relations services to more than two dozen technology companies.
Experience
Representative Experience
· Representing a national lending company, its affiliates, and its directors and officers in defense of litigation brought under Massachusetts Uniform Securities Act concerning the sale of residential mortgage backed securities.
· Representing a Latin American banking regulatory agency in United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida against allegations of illegal expropriation of assets.
· Representing a Norwegian-based distributor of cardiovascular diagnostic tests in ICC arbitration against California-based developer of the cardiovascular diagnostic tests for breach of contract.
· Obtained judgment on the pleadings in Massachusetts Superior Court in favor of Massachusetts-based pharmaceutical company declaring that a Russian-based drug developer had no legal right to exercise control over drug compounds it assigned to the Massachusetts company.
· Obtained summary judgment in favor of public manufacturer of electrical and utility products, dismissing the claims of a contractor that botched an environmental cleanup of client's property and leading to a settlement to cover the costs of a replacement contractor.
· Obtained dismissal of defamation action brought in New York against an African country, its president, its ministers, its national press agency and its embassy.
· Counseled a Latin American State-owned petroleum company throughout the Chapter 11 reorganization of one of its largest customers.
· Obtained dismissal of an action for forced labor and false imprisonment brought in United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida against a Latin American country, and obtained affirmation of the dismissal in the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit.
Honors & Involvement
Involvement
· The Foley Hoag Foundation, Grant Proposal Reviewer
· Boston Bar Association, Bankruptcy Section, Young Lawyers Committee