Howard J. Kaplan, a member of the Firm, is an experienced trial lawyer and has litigated cases in federal and state courts (including bankruptcy courts) throughout the United States. He specializes in securities litigation, regulatory and criminal matters, investigations and complex business disputes. He regularly represents clients in matters involving federal and state securities laws, business torts, fraud claims, fiduciary duty issues, corporate governance matters, employment disputes, and contract and licensing matters.
Mr. Kaplan has extensive experience representing financial services institutions (including investment banks, hedge funds and private equity firms) and their partners, employees and investors in all manner of disputes relating to the financial services industry. Mr. Kaplan also has extensive experience representing clients in connection with investigations, including internal investigations, special board committee investigations, and investigations and proceedings by the Securities & Exchange Commission, the U.S. Department of Justice, State Attorneys General, FINRA and other governmental and self regulatory agencies. His clients include corporations, investment banks, hedge funds, venture capital firms, real estate developers, lawyers and law firms, and officers, directors and shareholders of public and private companies.
Mr. Kaplan also represents professional athletes and sports agencies and in a wide range of business disputes across the spectrum of professional sports, including baseball, golf and basketball.
Notable representations include:
• Trial counsel in a dispute over control of a $500 million company in Delaware Chancery Court
• Trial counsel for an energy company pursuing fraud claims arising out of its acquisition of an energy trading unit
• Trial counsel in an international arbitration involving fraud allegations in connection with a $1 billion hotel and casino project in the Bahamas
• Trial counsel in a copyright infringement case against a manufacturer of a robotic assembly line
• Trial counsel for a hedge fund in connection with a dispute involving an investment in two oil tankers
• Trial counsel for an online options trading broker in a FINRA arbitration involving allegations of fraud, negligence and breach of contract
• Representing joint official liquidators of a Cayman Island investment fund, including pursuing recoveries against the perpetrators of a fraudulent scheme, and participating in related bankruptcy proceedings
• Representing a boutique investment bank in a series of litigations arising out of alleged losses on Swap transactions resulting from the failure of Lehman Brothers
• Representing a special litigation committee created to investigate and address allegations in multiple derivative actions filed against the officers and directors of a Nevada company
• Representing an issuer in a dispute with the company’s largest holder of preferred stock concerning whether the preferred stockholder had the right to redeem
• Trial counsel to the holders of Trust Preferred Securities in the Washington Mutual bankruptcy
• Representing directors of Sears subsidiaries in the Sears Bankruptcy
• Representing and advising clients with respect to securities and contractual issues in connection with bankruptcy proceedings (including representing the “Step One” creditors in the Tribune bankruptcy)
• Conflicts counsel representing the Debtor in the Revlon bankruptcy
• Representing clients in numerous highly publicized fraud investigations, both civil and criminal, including among others the mutual fund “market timing” investigations, stock option “backdating” investigations, and investigations relating to Refco, Collins & Aikman and Bernard Madoff Securities
• Representing an investor in connection with fraud claims against an investment bank arising out of a $700 million derivative product
• Defending clients in class action lawsuits and “multidistrict litigation” matters, including the Mutual Fund Market Timing MDL and the Municipal Derivatives MDL
• Defending a senior officer of Dow Chemical Company against allegations that he secretly planned a leveraged buyout of the company
• Representing an investment bank in connection with litigation arising out of a county government’s losses from trading derivative securities
• Representing a beer manufacturer in a dispute with its largest United States distributor regarding the right to distribute “Bass Ale” in the United States
• Trial counsel to a sports agency in a Major League Baseball Players Association arbitration in which the arbitrator issued a seminal decision enforcing the agency’s restrictive covenants and fee tails against a departing agent
• Trial counsel to a professional athlete in a dispute concerning his MLBPA representation agreement and his exercise of a contractual opt out provision
• Trial counsel to a sports agency in connection with an arbitration and federal court lawsuit involving a pre-eminent golf professional