Casey D. Laffey

Casey is a seasoned litigator and trial lawyer with extensive knowledge in various areas of law. His practice is devoted to a wide range of commercial and financial services litigation. Casey has experience handling litigations in both federal and state courts, as well as in complex arbitration proceedings. Casey has extensive experience arguing complex trial court motions and appeals, taking and defending complex depositions, and has commenced and defended various actions seeking injunctive and declaratory relief. Casey has also tried significant cases and arbitrations through verdict or award. While Casey has experience prosecuting and defending all types of complex litigation, he has a particular focus on the following areas of law:

• Complex Arbitration: Casey has extensive experience handling complex arbitration proceedings in all types of areas of law, including accounting, valuation, professional liability, sports, and telecommunications disputes, and in various arbitral forums, including JAMS, AAA, and CPR. He has unique experience in both neutral and non-neutral arbitration proceedings and with seeking emergency and injunctive relief in aid of, or during, arbitration proceedings. Casey has successfully tried numerous arbitration hearings through award, including in arbitrations seeking damages in excess of $200 million.
• Hedge Fund and Investment-Related Litigation: Casey has extensive experience representing hedge funds, private equity firms, and liquidators of failed hedge funds in various types of investment-related litigation, including disputes concerning redemptions, valuation, administration and auditing practices, and overall fund management. In doing so, Casey has managed litigations and arbitrations seeking damages in excess of $200 million.
• Sports and Entertainment Law: Casey has extensive experience representing clients in the sports and entertainment industry. In addition to counseling several sports and entertainment clients and managers on day-to-day litigation and transactional issues, Casey has represented an international pop star in a large litigation adverse to her former business managers, a high-profile athlete in a complex dispute adverse to a professional sports organization, and two Hollywood producers in contract and real estate-related litigations. Casey has also represented other international musicians in federal and state court litigation and arbitration hearings, as well as in resolving private and sensitive matters. In doing so, Casey has honed an approach to aggressively pursue litigation or dispute resolutions in a way that still protects the privacy interests of celebrity clients, who are often subject to media scrutiny.
• Employment Litigation: Casey has extensive experience representing management in complex employment disputes, including litigations and arbitrations concerning the validity of terminations for cause, the enforcement of non-compete and non-solicitation agreements, and executive compensation disputes. In doing so, Casey has sought and obtained injunctive and other relief seeking to enforce non-solicitation and non-competition agreements.
• Real Estate Litigation: Casey has extensive experience handling litigations concerning real estate and cooperatives. He has represented property owners, developers, and cooperative shareholders in various disputes in New York state and federal courts, as well as before New York State zoning and regulatory bodies. He has also handled numerous commercial landlord/tenant disputes, on behalf of both landlords and tenants.
• Class Action Defense: Casey has extensive experience defending class actions. Casey currently represents numerous banks, lending institutions, debt collectors, and energy service providers in defense of putative and certified class actions and has consistently defeated multi-million dollar class actions, often before the class certification stage. In doing so, Casey has developed a strong familiarity with class action procedures, federal and state certification guidelines, and other procedural rules particular to class actions. Casey has even argued appeals before United States Circuit Courts and submitted amicus submissions to the United States Supreme Court relating to class certification and mootness issues.
• Accounting Malpractice: Casey has extensive experience representing both plaintiffs and defendants in accounting and auditing malpractice actions. For example, Casey has represented clients in several high-profile malpractice actions concerning the rendering of business management and tax-related services and is generally familiar with many of the rules governing certified public accountants and auditors.
• Debt Collection Litigation: Casey is currently representing numerous debt collections companies in defense of dozens of different lawsuits commenced in state and federal courts. These include defense of individual and class claims brought under the Fair Debt Collections Practices Act, the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, and state statutes. In doing so, Casey has developed a unique familiarity with the debt collections industry, the aforementioned statutes and the defenses applicable to each that have been developed through legislative, regulatory and judicial decisions.
• Banking and Lending Litigation: Casey has handled hundreds of cases defending banks and lending institutions in litigation arising out of, inter alia, credit card lending, mortgage lending, auto-financing, the provision of telephone and internet services, and other banking transactions. In doing so, Casey has gained a strong familiarity with claims brought under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, the Truth in Lending Act, the Electronic Funds Transfer Act, the Home Ownership and Equity Protection Act, the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act, New York’s General Business Law and other state and federal statutes, as well as a strong familiarity with the policies and practices of clients in these industries. Casey also has extensive experience commencing actions on behalf of lenders seeking to enforce debts arising from commercial obligations, including the commencement of expedited proceedings to enforce promissory notes, guarantees, and other commercial contracts. In doing so, Casey has briefed and argued numerous motions seeking provisional remedies such as preliminary injunctions, orders of attachment, and orders of seizure of collateral.
• Telecommunications: Casey has handled various types of telecommunications disputes in New York and New Jersey state and federal courts, as well as in arbitration proceedings. Casey has successfully tried cases through verdict in the prepaid calling card and wireless telecom and spectrum industries.