William A. Rome
Partner
William Rome is a Partner with Leech Tishman Robinson Brog and Co-Chair of the Litigation & Alternative Dispute Resolution Practice Group. He is also a member of the Entertainment Industry Group. William is based in the firm’s New York office, where he focuses his practice on commercial and complex litigation.
William has litigated commercial disputes involving employment contracts, notes, bonds, guarantees, licenses, letters of credit, insurance contracts, indemnification agreements, shareholder and partnership agreements and professional liability. He has substantial experience in defending and prosecuting claims in arbitration for the AAA, NYSE and NASD (now FINRA) and has tried cases on behalf of both claimants and respondents in the securities area. William also serves as a FINRA arbitrator. He represents individuals and media entities in the area of publication torts and related intellectual property claims, and has argued numerous times in the appellate courts.
Some of William’s representative matters include:
- Defended a CEO of a public company in an SEC enforcement action and related foreign investigation
- Generated a seven-figure settlement for a consultant arising out of a public works project
- Litigated a four-year family partnership dispute involving ownership of a liability insurer
- Obtained a substantial settlement for a real estate firm defrauded by a payroll company
- Litigated court/arbitration proceedings to obtain benchmark payments on the development of a new drug under a licensing agreement
- Participated in internal investigations for a condominium board and financial entities leading to the indictment of wrongdoers
William also has experience as a civil litigator in the areas of products liability and insurance defense, copyright and trademark, including licensing and software disputes, the First Amendment and publication torts, commercial litigation involving various types of business entities, securities and RICO. He developed and participated in nationwide strategies and litigation in the pharmaceutical and automotive industry and had first chair experience in preparing and trying cases, defended and/or took in excess of 100 depositions and argued several appeals.
Some of William’s representative litigations include:
- In a derivative action on behalf of limited partners, obtained a substantial settlement reflecting general partner’s wrongful undervaluation of four separate commercial properties.
- Represented a co-op in a damage claim against a general contractor and subcontractor for substandard work.
- After bench trial, vindicated debtor’s interest in the subject property, having proved defendants’ “correction mortgage” and confessions of judgment were fraudulent and therefore junior to the debtor’s senior secured interest.
- Obtained dismissal of buyer’s claim of economic duress in time of the essence real estate closing.
- Represented landowner in condemnation action.
Academics
J.D., New York University School of Law
B.A., magna cum laude, University of Pennsylvania
Admissions
New York
Massachusetts
U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York
U.S. District Court, Eastern District of New York
U.S. Court of Appeals, Second Circuit
Experience
Hoffman & Pollok LLP
Stroock&Stroock&Lavan
Professional Memberships
New York State Bar Association
Community Involvement
Patrick’s PALS