For over a year, Dean served as in-house counsel for a large financial institution, managing and defending a significant portfolio of mortgage-related litigation. He performed all functions of an in-house counsel, including overseeing more than 200 matters, developing strategy, investigating claims, supervising outside counsel, evaluating settlement proposals, managing eDiscovery, and coordinating with decision-makers across multiple lines of business. These cases included not only breach of contract, fraud, and wrongful foreclosure claims, but also alleged statutory violations regarding the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act, Fair Credit Reporting Act, Truth-in-Lending Act, and Telephone Consumer Protection Act, as well as state consumer protection statutes. This valuable experience has given Dean insight into the needs of in-house counsel that enables him to provide excellent client service. Currently, Dean serves as outside counsel representing financial institutions and loan servicers by managing mortgage litigation initiated by borrowers primarily focused in the states of California, Nevada, Montana, Oklahoma, Nebraska, New Jersey, Washington, and Pennsylvania. In this position, he liaises directly with client personnel, as well as in-house counsel, to work to resolve pending matters.
Prior to his employment at Reed Smith LLP, Dean represented a business specializing in service contracts on higher mileage vehicles as in-house counsel, responsible for all aspects of litigation; including negotiating settlements, preparing and answering pleadings, preparing and answering discovery, taking depositions (lay and expert witnesses), presenting and contesting motions, and representing the client in court proceedings in Pennsylvania and Ohio (bench and jury trials); directing a legal team regarding coverage disputes, statutory compliance, misrepresentation and fraud allegations, and alleged violations of fair business practices; conducting investigations and prepare responses to complaints received from customers, private counsel, the Better Business Bureau, and various Attorney General Offices; developing and assessing corporate operating policies and practices to ensure compliance and consistency while mitigating exposure to liability; and providing legal guidance on the operation of Human Resource practices, including hiring, firing, and discipline.
Dean also worked for over four years at a firm that represented celebrities, professionals, and businesses with various legal issues, including the frequent interpretation of the NFL Collective Bargaining Agreement with regard to player contracts, medical care and treatment, workers’ compensation, disciplinary hearings, and grievances; the formation of business entities and the development of competitive and profitable strategies, non-compete agreements, nondisclosure agreements, independent contractor agreements, and soliciting negotiating, preparing multi-year contracts with incentives, and endorsement deals. Dean greatly attributes his contract negotiation skills from the experience he obtained while working with sports agent Ralph Cindrich.
In addition, Dean has represented countless plaintiffs and claimants by diagnosing legal issues, conducting research, analyzing alternatives, assessing client’s position, and implementing solutions for various general practice law firms specializing in employment contracts, labor law, civil litigation, contract disputes, real estate transfers, domestic relations, personal injury, workers’ compensation, criminal defense, estate planning, and social security disability. Dean has also been appointed by the Honorable R. Stanton Wettick, Jr. to serve as a special arbitrator in the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas, often serving as the chair of the arbitration board, and draws from those experiences to advise and make recommendations to his clients.
