In today’s complex and demanding business environment, the outcome of a contract dispute can impact the survival of a company or business unit.
Olshan’s Contract litigation attorneys regularly handle high-stakes matters involving contracts of great significance to our business and trading clients. We have won “bet the company” contract disputes at trial both on the plaintiff and defense side. However, in most instances we are able to resolve the dispute by motion or settle on favorable terms.
Three of our partners have literally “written the book” on contract litigation, having authored the definitive New York Commercial Litigation Guide, which contains five chapters dedicated to contract litigation.
Contract Litigation Experience
Every year we successfully litigate, settle, or try numerous domestic and international contract disputes in a variety of fields, including trading, finance, entertainment and media, technology, software, real estate, construction, sports, manufacturing, consulting, medical/dental, and biotechnology. The contracts at the center of these disputes have involved:
- Supplies and suppliers, including quality of goods and timeliness of delivery
- Manufacturing
- Construction
- Real estate
- Services
- Licensing, including geographic limitations and performance
- Franchise disputes
- Merchant and credit card processing
- Rights of first refusal
- Revenue provisions
- Trading contracts, including ISDA forms
- Software and gaming development
- Investments
- Shareholder issues
- Partnerships and LLCs
- Employment matters
- Non-solicitation and non-competition
- Commercial notes and debentures
- Bank and brokerage customers
- Implied agreements from exchange of forms or delivery of invoices
Contract Interpretation
It is not uncommon for two parties to read a contract, and thus interpret their respective obligations and responsibilities, differently. Contract law requires that one begin with a plain reading of the contract, then apply a series of technical and sometimes obscure rules of interpretation and construction. Our Contract Litigation Attorneys have successfully utilized these rules time and again on behalf of our clients.
Our Strategic Approach
Our approach typically begins with an early case assessment, which includes a preliminary review of the contract, preliminary legal research, and fact gathering. The latter includes interviewing the business principals who negotiated the agreement and/or who are responsible for its daily administration, and working with the client to obtain key documents, including relevant correspondence and emails.
We also review “the back end” of the contract for any important provisions that may affect legal strategy, including whether the parties have chosen the law and/or forum that will apply, if a dispute will go to mediation, arbitration or court, whether the prevailing party is entitled to attorneys’ fees, and if any remedies are provided for in the agreement.
We are highly skilled in obtaining the information we need to efficiently resolve cases without causing undue interruption to our clients’ businesses. With their long-term business goals firmly in mind, our litigation attorneys provide clients with key advice on continuing their business operations while litigation is pending. In some cases, we may negotiate resolutions and advise our clients in mediation. However if and when it’s necessary, we successfully litigate matters fully through trial and beyond.
Pre-Litigation and Risk Management
Given our extensive experience with contract litigation, and sometimes in conjunction with other groups from the firm, we are asked to review contracts as part of the clients’ litigation assessment or risk management, or prior to contract negotiations or renewals in order to improve our clients’ contractual rights.
