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| Sugarman, Hess & Berger | |
|---|---|
| Name | Sugarman, Hess & Berger |
| Founded | 1978 |
| Headquarters | New York City, New York, United States |
| Key people | Michael Sugarman; Laura Hess; Daniel Berger |
| Num attorneys | 120 |
| Practice areas | Corporate Law; Litigation; Real Estate; Intellectual Property; Labor and Employment |
Sugarman, Hess & Berger is a multinational law firm headquartered in New York City that provides corporate, litigation, real estate, intellectual property, and labor and employment services. Founded in 1978, the firm expanded through regional offices and strategic mergers to serve clients across finance, technology, media, healthcare, and energy sectors. The firm has represented major corporations, government entities, educational institutions, and nonprofit organizations in complex transactions and high-profile litigation.
The firm traces its origins to a partnership formed in Manhattan in 1978 amid the Wall Street growth of the late 20th century, during the administrations of Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter, and the subsequent economic shifts under Ronald Reagan. Early clients included regional branches of Bank of America, Citibank, and several New York real estate developers tied to projects near Times Square and Battery Park City. Through the 1980s and 1990s the firm navigated regulatory changes influenced by the Gramm–Leach–Bliley Act, participated in securities matters connected to the Nasdaq and New York Stock Exchange, and expanded practice groups after the dot-com era linked to Silicon Valley mergers. In the 2000s the firm opened offices aligned with financial and energy hubs such as Houston, Chicago, and Los Angeles and advised on transactions affected by the Sarbanes–Oxley Act and the Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. The firm’s growth strategy included lateral hires from firms with histories at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, Latham & Watkins, and Vinson & Elkins.
Sugarman, Hess & Berger maintains multidisciplinary practice groups serving corporate clients in matters involving Securities and Exchange Commission filings, mergers and acquisitions with counterparties including those from Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, and JPMorgan Chase, and private equity transactions related to firms such as Blackstone Group and KKR. The litigation group handles commercial disputes in venues including the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York and appellate matters before the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. The real estate team manages acquisitions near Hudson Yards and leasing matters for institutional owners like Brookfield Asset Management. Intellectual property attorneys prosecute patents before the United States Patent and Trademark Office and litigate in proceedings before the United States International Trade Commission. Labor and employment counsel represent employers in arbitration panels convened under rules of the American Arbitration Association and before agencies like the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. The firm also counsels clients on regulatory compliance involving agencies such as the Federal Trade Commission and Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
The firm has represented a Fortune 500 media conglomerate in disputes against competitors including The Walt Disney Company and Comcast, and advised technology clients in transactions involving Apple Inc. supply chain partners. Sugarman, Hess & Berger defended a multinational pharmaceutical company in patent litigation alongside co-counsel from firms previously associated with Covington & Burling and Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner. The firm represented regional governments in infrastructure procurements tied to projects funded by Federal Transit Administration grants and provided counsel to nonprofit cultural institutions such as the Museum of Modern Art and universities including Columbia University and New York University on endowment investments. In securities matters the firm acted for underwriters including Credit Suisse and Deutsche Bank in high-yield offerings, and in bankruptcy proceedings collaborated with legal teams from firms that represented Lehman Brothers creditors. The firm’s pro bono docket has included representation of clients in immigration matters involving precedent established in cases decided by the United States Supreme Court.
The leadership team has included partners with career histories at firms such as Cravath, Swaine & Moore, Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison, and Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz. Managing partners and practice chairs have arisen from backgrounds in clerkships for judges on the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit and the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. Prominent litigators from the firm have argued before administrative tribunals including the National Labor Relations Board and submitted amicus briefs in matters before the Supreme Court of the United States. The firm’s leadership has participated in panels at conferences held by organizations like the American Bar Association, New York State Bar Association, and International Bar Association.
Headquartered in a Midtown Manhattan tower close to Grand Central Terminal, the firm maintains regional offices in Boston, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., Atlanta, San Francisco, and international liaison offices in London and Sydney. Office openings targeted local markets tied to industry clusters such as finance in Boston and technology in San Francisco, and facilitated cross-border work with firms and institutions in jurisdictions including Ontario, Quebec, Tokyo, Singapore, and Hong Kong.
The firm and individual partners have been recognized by rankings from Chambers and Partners, Legal 500, and Best Lawyers; attorneys have received honors from Super Lawyers and been included in lists by Crain's New York Business and The American Lawyer. Practice groups received peer recognition for work in commercial litigation, real estate, and intellectual property, and the firm has been named in corporate governance awards distributed by Institutional Investor and compliance lists compiled by BTI Consulting Group.
Sugarman, Hess & Berger maintains partnerships with nonprofit organizations such as Legal Aid Society chapters and provides volunteer legal services through clinics allied with law schools including Harvard Law School, Yale Law School, Fordham University School of Law, and New York University School of Law. The firm’s attorneys serve on boards of cultural and civic institutions like Lincoln Center and participate in fundraising initiatives connected to charities such as Habitat for Humanity and AmeriCares. Pro bono matters have included asylum representations intertwined with case law from the Board of Immigration Appeals and civil rights litigation reflecting precedents established in cases argued before the Second Circuit.
Category:Law firms based in New York City