Summary:

Arbitrator and mediator of complex domestic and international commercial disputes; public and private company board director; educator. 19 years in private practice in Chicago, IL law firms as a commercial litigator and commercial transactions attorney, followed by 20+ years as a CEO, board director and chairman of the board of directors of public and private companies in the US, UK, China and Canada. Law firm roles included practice section chair, partner, member of the firm's management committee, and of-counsel. Understands business issues (and the economics and metrics of such) from the perspective of a senior manager, board director and owner, as well as the legal issues as a senior attorney representing domestic and international businesses. Started legal career as a commercial litigator trying cases in State and Federal Courts in the US, and as such was a member of the Trial Bar of the US District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. Author of the award-winning book Negotiation Simplified: A Framework and Process for Improving Negotiating Results (Amplify Publishing, 2021).

Legal & ADR:

Served as an arbitrator or mediator of domestic and international disputes concerning vendor/supplier agreements; joint ventures; distribution and licensing claims; construction, real estate buy/sell/development and leasing agreements; securities disputes; financing arrangement disputes; service agreement disputes, and; disputes regarding complex systems' compliance with their specification warranties.

Deep experience negotiating, documenting and litigating agreements regarding the purchase/sale of goods (including complex computer, manufacturing, and other commercial and industrial equipment); real estate (including purchase/sale/leasing agreements, construction agreements and disputes, development and TIF projects, and financing or real estate projects via debt and equity transactions); unfair competition disputes; non-competition agreements and disputes; theft/misuse of trade secrets; work-outs and financing, and; partnership/joint venture agreements and disputes. Successfully mediated the resolution of one of the 2020 voting machine libel lawsuits.

Business:

  • 20+ years as a public and private company CEO and board director.

  • EBT Digital Products, Inc. (CEO, Chairman of the Board of Directors; Chairman of the Board's Compensation Committee): EBT was one of China's largest retailers of cell phones and related digital products. Based in Shanghai, China, EBT operated in multiple cities in the East China region of the PRC. During tenure as CEO and then Chairman, organized and executed the listing of EBT on the London Stock Exchange AIM Market (LSE:EBT). Grew the business from US$2.25 million to US$ 275+ million in 2012, from 35 to 250+ stores over five years, and subsequent growth to 400+ stores (2013).

  • Aerofficient LLC (Founder, CEO, Managing Member): Created/manufactured proprietary aerodynamic products.

Patents:

Co-inventor of 19 issued domestic and foreign patents regarding aerodynamic and structural devices for heavy duty truck trailers

Recent Arbitrations of Note:

International Arbitration:

  • A dispute between an Israeli medical device manufacturer and a US distributor and marketer of the device regarding the scope of their agreement and damages for non-performance
  • A dispute between a software licensor and licensee regarding the term of the license, the enforceability of amendments to the license, the authority of one of the parties' employees to sign an amendment to the license, and the arbitrability of the dispute
  • A dispute regarding the claimed wrongful termination of a distributor agreement; claimed violations of the Anti-cybersquatting Consumer Protection Act ("ACPA"), 15 U.S.C.§ 1125(d), and various business tort and fraud claims. Also claimed: the "uplift" of a third party funder
  • A dispute between an auction house and the purchaser of a painting who claimed the art was a forgery, including a dispute regarding the jurisdiction of the tribunal
  • A dispute regarding damages accruing as a result of a claimed breach of an agreement to repair and service complex industrial equipment

Domestic Arbitration:

  • A dispute between a bank and its borrower regarding the enforceability of a commercial loan agreement and the claimed abandonment of secured assets
  • Multiple disputes between the buyer and seller of businesses wherein the buyer claimed multiple breaches of warranties in the buy/sell agreement regarding the business' sales and profits
  • A dispute between an insurer and its policy holder regarding claimed premiums due under the audit provisions of the policy
  • A dispute between the assignee of a commercial note and the borrower regarding a claimed default and the enforceability of the note's acceleration clause
  • A dispute regarding fees due under a commercial service agreement and a counter- complaint for breach of contract and fraud
  • A dispute regarding the termination of a franchise agreement and fees claimed to be due thereunder by the franchisor
  • A dispute between a law firm and former client regarding unpaid legal fees and a counter-claim of excessive billing.

Recent Multi-Million Dollar Domestic and International Mediations:

  • One of the 2020 US election voting machine libel lawsuits
  • A dispute between a cryptocurrency miner and the server farm host
  • A dispute between a medical device manufacturer and a distributor regarding the scope of each parties' marketing rights
  • A dispute between a domestic packaging company and a foreign paper supplier regarding jurisdiction of US courts, the enforceability of an arbitration agreement, and claimed breaches of the supplier agreement