Neal Klausner, Litigation + Dispute Resolution Group co-chair and general counsel for the firm, represents wide-ranging businesses in court, arbitration and mediation proceedings and before regulatory agencies. Clients rely on Neal to handle their most complex and significant commercial disputes, from cases involving alleged breaches of restrictive covenants, executive compensation agreements, and real estate leases to consumer class actions, disputes arising out of corporate transactions, and other high-stakes litigation.
An experienced trial and appellate attorney, Neal has prevailed in cases throughout the nation. He has won pretrial dismissal of many matters and has also resolved numerous disputes through mediation. Neal is known for his exceptional pre-litigation analysis and risk assessment abilities. He identifies a client’s specific objectives and risk tolerance, and then devises practical solutions and strategies to avoid litigation, if possible, and works toward a resolution that is most beneficial to the client. When litigation is necessary, he helps clients secure desirable court rulings or settlements by identifying, developing and zealously advocating the client’s best arguments. Through forging professional relationships with adversaries, Neal has often persuaded opposing counsel to forgo lawsuits altogether or settle matters favorably for his clients.
Neal has litigated and arbitrated cases in more than 15 states. With extensive experience in restrictive covenant law, he has prevailed for numerous clients, across multiple industries, in disputes concerning the enforcement of post-employment restrictions on competition and misappropriation of confidential information.
He has served as a court-appointed special master for copyright, trademark and other matters. Neal is a trained mediator whom the New York Supreme Court Commercial Division has appointed to serve as the neutral in dozens of complex commercial disputes, and he has helped facilitate many settlements.
Neal is the co-author of “Employment Restrictive Covenants and Other Post-Employment Restrictions” in the highly acclaimed treatise Commercial Litigation in New York Courts. He frequently leads training sessions concerning alternative dispute resolution and attorney-client privilege matters.
