David Abeshouse has fully RETIRED from practice.
THIS WEBSITE REMAINS FOR PURELY PERSONAL ARCHIVAL PURPOSES
B2B ADR NEUTRAL -- ARBITRATOR & MEDIATOR (RETIRED ADR LAWYER)
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Important note:
David Abeshouse retired from practicing commercial litigation law in 2010, in favor of practicing ADR law (representing parties in business arbitration & mediation) and serving as a neutral Arbitrator & Mediator in business cases.
He retired from practicing ADR law, and from all practice of law, in 2016, in favor of serving exclusively as a neutral Arbitrator & Mediator in business cases.
David Abeshouse semi-retired from serving as a neutral in late 2019, and ceased accepting new cases in 2020. Fully retired in March 2023.
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Perhaps you are an in-house counsel at a business, or an outside counsel responsible for designing the dispute resolution clause in a contract for the business or for selecting ADR counsel or the neutral arbitrator or mediator in a case involving the business:
- you will need an experienced ADR professional to provide services either as an outside consultant, a second chair, someone to whom you can refer the entire matter, or an able and experienced neutral to move the parties toward resolution of the matter.
Perhaps you are a business owner experiencing:
- a growing sense that you soon may become involved in a business or legal conflict or dispute with a partner, vendor, affiliate, employee, or other person or company with whom you do business;
- an actual litigation (lawsuit) either as plaintiff or defendant; or an arbitration, either as claimant or respondent;
- concern that a contract to which your business is a party is about to be breached or some other legal right is being compromised;
- a feeling that a key employee with access to your company's confidential trade secret information is considering whether to go into competition with you, in breach of a non-compete clause (restrictive covenant);
- a need for guidance and assistance in negotiating a business deal or contract;
- desire for a better set of company documents such as non-disclosure agreements, purchase order forms, invoices, and other business service agreements drafted and specifically tailored to your business;
- need for advice about alternatives to court litigation (such as arbitration and mediation), and about when court litigation might be your best option;
- a desire to secure new office space by entering into a commercial lease;
- a sense of panic or confusion, having received a subpoena from a governmental agency such as the New York State Attorney General's office or the United States Department of Justice, seeking documents and information regarding your business, to which you must respond;
- a greater incidence of legal issues and problems in your business than you feel comfortable with; or
- difficulties with your present business counsel.
Perhaps you are an in-house counsel at a business, or an outside counsel responsible for designing the dispute resolution clause in a contract for the business or for selecting ADR counsel or the neutral arbitrator or mediator in a case involving the business:
- you will need an experienced ADR professional to provide services either as an outside consultant, a second chair, someone to whom you can refer the entire matter, or an able and experienced neutral to move the parties toward resolution of the matter.
- Perhaps you are an individual (entrepreneur, professional, or key employee) facing:
- a growing sense that you soon may become involved in a business or legal conflict or dispute with a vendor, affiliate, employee, employer, or other person or company with whom you do business;
- an actual litigation (lawsuit) either as plaintiff or defendant; or an arbitration, either as claimant or respondent;
- concern that a contract to which you are a party is about to be breached or some other legal right is being compromised;
- a feeling that as a dissatisfied key employee you wish to leave your present employer and yet protect your right to earn a living in your chosen field;
- a need for guidance and assistance in negotiating a business deal or contract;
- a desire for a good set of documents for your new business venture, such as non-disclosure agreements, purchase order forms, invoices, and other business service agreements drafted and specifically tailored to your new business;
- a need for advice about alternatives to court litigation (such as arbitration and mediation), and about when court litigation might be your best option;
- a need to obtain new office space under a commercial lease;
- questions about starting a new business as a franchisee, requiring review of a UFOC, assistance negotiating with the franchisor, and advice to help move your new business forward;
- the need for a reliable, trusted professional to serve in a fiduciary capacity such as trustee of a trust; or
- difficulties with your present business counsel.
Perhaps you are an owner of a start-up partnership, LLC, or corporation considering:
an appropriate mechanism for handling internal issues, disputes, and conflicts, and wish to explore the possibility of designating in advance (for example, in your partnership, LLC, or shareholders agreement) a private mediator for on-call problem-solving and/or more formal mediation of internal disputes among partners in lieu of or before court litigation.
Perhaps you are a transactional or litigation attorney unfamiliar with the rules, practices, and procedures of arbitration or mediation, requiring:
arbitration/mediation consulting services to assist you with advice and assistance throughout the proceeding regarding rules of procedure, approaches and methods, what to expect, and how best to manage the process.
Perhaps you are a businessperson with a legal dispute, or an attorney whose client has such a dispute, that might be resolved through private mediation, requiring:
personal attention by a professional neutral mediator who can help facilitate consensual settlement of the business dispute.
In any of these or similar instances, please call or write to me so we can discuss the possibilities.
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What distinguishes my service from that of other lawyers:
- give extremely responsive, patient, and timely personal attention to client questions and matters; encourage open, frequent communication between attorney and client
- am appropriately aggressive in litigated matters, yet able to settle matters out of court when advantageous to my client
- am personally involved in every client matter, and do not delegate cases to inexperienced junior colleagues unfamiliar with the case or the law
- my service as a professional neutral arbitrator (essentially a private judge) for two national ADR forums provides "insider's" perspective on the ADR/litigation process
- have access to an unusually broad and deep cultivated personal network of top-notch professionals, ranging from specialty practice lawyers (through helping to run a lawyers' networking group) to accountants to most other service providers; refer business to my clients
- refrain from accepting matters outside my areas of practice (not a "jack-of-all-trades"); instead, energetically participate in the process of recommending other professionals appropriate to the particular task or matter, for the mutual benefit of the client and my network of professionals
- am zealous about fairness to clients in billing practices
- run a business (beyond the law practice) since 1988, and serve on boards of several not-for-profits continuously since the mid-1980s, and so have substantial and direct hands-on business management experience
- make presentations at public speaking engagements as well as write and publish pieces in various online and print media – recognized expertise
- have handled hundreds of business ADR (Alternative Dispute Resolution) proceedings as lawyer/advocate for my clients or as professional neutral (arbitrator or mediator)
- treat my clients as though they are relatives -- ones I like
- provide Manhattan sophistication and quality at Long Island billing rates
Representative clients:
- NYC/L.I. real estate development and management companies
- Manhattan high-end national upholstery/window treatments firm, to the trade only
- national equipment broker-dealer in heavy machinery and equipment
- numerous medical practices and individual physicians, lawyers and law firms, CPAs and accounting firms, financial planners, other financial professionals, physical therapists, architects, engineers, actuaries, and other professionals
- L.I. printing franchisees
- Manhattan commercial landlord LLC
- Chicago commercial landlord LLC
- Suffolk specialized food industry machine manufacturing corporation
- Manhattan educational software company
- L.I. restaurant corporation
- N.J. communications/trade publications corporation
- NYC/L.I. high-tech consultancies
- L.I. outsourced financial services company
- NYC hip-hop senior executive; NYC top-level financial services executives
- L.I. coaching/training businesses
- NYC coaching/training businesses
- NYC manufacturer and leasing companies
- Manhattan/California high-end international event planning company
- L.I. investors in medical facility
- Queens optical franchisee
- L.I. product development company
- CA electronics corporation; CA debt-buying corporation
- L.I. home maintenance franchisee
- L.I. high-end landscaping company
- L.I. clothing retailer
- Manhattan specialized event services company
- prospective franchisees requiring review of UFOCs and advice on starting a franchised business, as well as ongoing representation of franchisees' businesses (including litigation and arbitration)
- L.I. international supplier/distributor of computer motherboard components
- L.I. real estate appraisals company
- Hudson Valley plastics manufacturer; Hudson Valley business coach
- CT appliance wholesaler; CT education software company
- L.I. insurance brokerage
- L.I. software companies
- varied companies nationwide whose regular counsel ask me to serve as their local counsel in matters litigated in the NY state and federal courts and arbitral forums
Several examples of matters handled:
Litigation -- Sample categories of litigation:
- Defense of numerous companies and individuals against breach of contract claims (non-payment and other non-performance) by vendors/suppliers, joint venturers, affiliates, and other parties
- Prosecution on behalf of numerous companies and individuals asserting claims of various breaches of contract and other violations of applicable law
- Corporate dissolution of family-owned and other closely-held businesses in various product and service industries
- Prosecution and defense of legal and accounting malpractice claims
Sample specific litigated cases:
- Multi-year litigation battle against General Electric on behalf of local real estate company arising out of split-up of complex limited partnership between the two companies; my clients ultimately received title to the subject property
- Representation of one half of successful medical specialty practice against their former medical practice partners in a case fought both in arbitration and court
- International commercial arbitration involving a failed corporate joint venture
- Defense of popular restaurant chain's corporate headquarters in several cases of alleged wrongful termination of senior corporate managerial employees; won all cases at trial level and successfully obtained affirmances on appeal
- Defense of claims by purchaser of a franchise against seller of the store
- Defense of principals of start-up tech development company after they left former employer which sued them for alleged theft of trade secrets and unfair competition
- Prosecution of claims of theft of trade secrets and unfair competition on behalf of list brokerage against former key salesman who suddenly resigned and stole information; obtained temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction against former employee and his new employer
- Representation of aging founding patriarch of well-known family food products business being squeezed out of his employment and ownership by next generation
- Family business internal financial squabble that unfortunately became a litigation
Transactional & Advice (limited)
- Negotiation of complex contractual deal for sale of major equipment/machinery to NYC Transit Authority (and intricate related arrangements)
- Preparation of non-disclosure agreements for business entities (both internally and with outside third-parties)
- Review and negotiation of employment contracts for employees in diverse areas including financial services, marketing, executive management, medical equipment sales, accounting, not-for-profit, entertainment, university, physicians, and independent contractor arrangements
- Negotiation of joint venture agreements between two business entities
- Negotiation of commercial leases -- apply experience as landlord toward representing small businesses leasing new office space, protecting tenants' interests; can critically review and assist in negotiation of office lease offered by landlord to prospective tenant for new office or commercial space (can be done at different levels of involvement, and therefore at different degrees of cost)
- Negotiation of business services agreements, purchase order forms, invoice forms, and other contractual documents specifically tailored to your business
- Business consulting/legal advice
- Legal Preventative Medicine: investing in an ounce of prevention advice now may help to avoid a pound of litigation later
- Fiduciary/Trusteeship service in connection with testamentary trusts, tax shelter trusts, and similar devices targeted at financial protection
I hope this information is helpful to you in determining your legal needs and selecting your legal advisor and representative, or your private Arbitrator or Mediator.
Please note: The information on this website has been prepared by the Law Office of David J. Abeshouse (LODJA) and is provided to inform the reader about the services LODJA offers to clients. It is intended for general information purposes only, and does not constitute legal advice. Links to websites are for your convenience only and do not represent endorsement of those sites; LODJA also is not responsible for the accuracy or propriety of the content of those sites. Although LODJA welcomes your e-mail communications, internet messages may not be secure, and cannot be treated as privileged or confidential information. Use of this web site does not constitute or create an attorney-client relationship. If you require legal advice, please consult with a competent attorney licensed to practice in your jurisdiction. David Abeshouse is licensed only in New York.
Law Office of David J. Abeshouse
FULLY RETIRED
David J. Abeshouse: Business Dispute Resolution Lawyer, Arbitrator, Mediator, Communicator
David Abeshouse is the Co-founder Emeritus of the Attorney RoundTable (ART), founded in 2000 and still going strong nearly a quarter century later.
See: https://attyrt.com