Steven D. Skolnik

Biography

Mr. Skolnik concentrates his practice in the area of commercial litigation and general litigation and dispute resolution, appearing in courts of the United States and in state courts, before juries and arbitral tribunals. Areas in which Mr. Skolnik represents clients include all facets of real estate litigation, partnership and shareholder disputes in closely-held and public companies, pharmaceutical industry disputes, breach of contract actions, bank lending and financing transactions, letter of credit disputes, fraud, interference with business, libel, slander and other tort claims, computer industry disputes, landlord-tenant based disputes and condominium and cooperative litigation, divorce claims, and probate and estate based litigation. Mr. Skolnik’s experience and knowledge of the rules of procedure and evidence make him a multi-faceted litigator, able to assimilate and analyze claims in a variety of business areas.

After graduating summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Yale University, Steve attended Harvard Law School, where he worked closely with Professor Zentaro Kitigawa on issues of comparative law between the United States and Japan. Steve began his career with the law firm of Weil Gotshal & Manges, specializing in corporate law and securities law. While there, Mr. Skolnik worked on a merger involving a then Big Eight accounting firm, and public offerings in other industries. Desiring to practice in the area of litigation, Steve joined a predecessor firm of Cox Buchanan Padmore & Shakarchy, which was then counsel in a series of multi-state litigations in the commodities futures industry.

Mr. Skolnik’s grounding in corporate law gives him the perspective to approach litigation and dispute resolution in economic terms, balancing the cost of pursuing an avenue against its likelihood of success and projected dollar value. He has also continued to devote a segment of his time to practice in the area of corporate law, which includes negotiation and drafting of agreements. Since the inception of his legal career, Mr. Skolnik has maintained an interest in legal ethics, and has lectured at the National Institute for World Trade and guest lectured at New York Law School. He has served as an arbitrator and chairman of the panel of arbitrators under the aegis of the American Arbitration Association, and has also served his community through his membership on committees or counsels of the New York Chamber of Commerce and Town of Scarsdale. Mr. Skolnik has been counsel in an action in federal court involving fictitious securities denominated as prime bank notes, in addition to pursuing other trial level, appellate and corporate work.

He is admitted to practice in New York, Colorado, Texas, the U.S. District Court Eastern and Southern Districts of New York, the U.S. Federal Courts, the U.S. Supreme Court, and the U.S. Court of Appeals 2nd Circuit. He belongs to a variety of professional organizations, including the American Association for Justice, The National Trial Lawyers, the Litigation, Business Law and Family Law Sections of the American Bar Association, and the New York City Bar Association. The National Trial Lawyers has selected Mr. Skolnik as one of the top 100 Trial Lawyers in the State of New York. Mr. Skolnik was featured by Super Lawyers 2019 as one of New York County’s top business litigation attorneys. Mr. Skolnik was also selected in the October 2010 edition of Avenue Magazine as one of Avenue Magazine’s Legal Elite, as Avenue presented readers with a list of New York City’s top litigation attorneys.

Mr. Skolnik has received an AV Preeminent Rating^TM – the highest Peer Review Rating^TM available from LexisNexis Martindale Hubbell.

In his leisure time, Mr. Skolnik has been an avid runner and United States Soccer Federation referee.
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