Richards, Layton & Finger represents local, regional and national clients in a wide variety of litigation matters in state and federal courts. We have successfully represented businesses and individuals in suits involving commercial, fiduciary, licensing, personal injury, environmental, construction, contract, professional malpractice, securities, product liability, defamation, employment and lender liability disputes. We also have substantial experience in appellate matters, routinely representing clients before the Delaware Supreme Court and the federal appellate courts.
Richards Layton litigators have served as members of the Delaware District Court Local Rules Advisory Committee, the Delaware Supreme Court Rules Advisory Committee, the Delaware Chancery Court Rules Advisory Committee and the Superior Court Civil Rules Advisory Committee. Members of the firm have been requested by appellate courts to serve as amicus curiae, and they routinely lecture on litigation practice at seminars conducted by the courts and the state and federal bar associations in Delaware.
Many of our trial lawyers have been selected for inclusion in Chambers USA, The Best Lawyers in America and Benchmark Litigation. One of our senior litigators was recently selected by his peers as a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers. The depth and breadth of our litigation practice make us the first choice for many Fortune 500 companies seeking counsel in the First State.
Proven Delaware Capabilities
Given the international significance of Delaware’s statutory framework for business transactions, disputes over successful fulfillment of transaction and contract terms are often litigated in the state’s Court of Chancery and Superior Court. Major public and private companies and the law firms that advise them rely on our litigators as Delaware counsel to resolve these disputes, whether they seek our services as defendants or plaintiffs in litigation.
Our litigators have a proven capability to handle extremely complex cases involving millions of pages of documents, substantial monetary stakes and novel issues of law. We can pursue the full range of remedies in a wide array of controversies that involve:
- Corporate law
- Complex questions of contract interpretation
- Asset purchase agreements
- Banking and commercial finance disputes, particularly lender liability
- Business torts, including fraud and misrepresentation allegations
- Insurance coverage lawsuits
- Intellectual property litigation focused on licensing agreements and joint ventures
- Professional liability lawsuits
- Fiduciary liability litigation.
Trial Skill
Delaware’s Court of Chancery and Superior Court are highly regarded as forums of choice for commercial litigation. Richards Layton’s integral role in Delaware’s legal landscape means that we have a history of practical insight into the procedures and personalities of Delaware courts and jurists. Our extensive experience gives clients reassurance and enhances our credibility at trial. We have in-depth familiarity with the courts’ formal procedures and informal practices, and are well known and respected by the chancellors, justices and judges who preside in those forums.
If a Chancery or Superior Court decision is appealed, Richards Layton litigators regularly appear in the Delaware Supreme Court representing appellants or appellees in the most sophisticated and complex disputes. Our firm’s commercial litigators also represent clients in other judicial venues, including the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware and other federal courts.
Whether the issue is inaccurate disclosure of financial information, bad faith or other business torts, we know the range of remedies that may be available and pursue the most favorable strategy to achieve our clients’ business goals. The decision to litigate aggressively or negotiate a favorable settlement ultimately is a business choice, and our vast commercial litigation experience in Delaware means we can give clients informed, strategic advice on the best course to take.
Contract disputes can also involve specialized dispute resolution issues in such areas as employment, environmental, intellectual property or fiduciary liability law. Richards Layton’s commercial litigators work with other lawyers in the firm who focus on these areas. Their insight is often instrumental in helping to define the issues at stake, and deciding whether settlement or trial is the best way to resolve them.
CASE STUDY: Successfully Resolving a Global Licensing Dispute
- Client: A subsidiary of a global telecommunications equipment manufacturer.
- Issue: A licensing dispute with another major wireless equipment and software company over a new generation of equipment technology.
- Challenge: More than 5,000 patents were at issue in the dispute, and the parties were involved in litigation on three continents and before an international trade body.
- Solution: Upon Richards Layton’s recommendation, the client filed a complaint in Delaware’s Court of Chancery seeking a global resolution of the parties’ disputes. Over 40 of our attorneys worked with the client and co-counsel for nearly two years, seeking a ruling that the defendant company had failed to provide its competitors with access to essential patents because of the excessive royalties that it sought to charge for use of those patents.
- Result: With billions of dollars at stake, and with the start of the Chancery Court trial just a day away, a strategic settlement was reached that provided our client with access to key cellular technology at favorable royalty rates.
Summary: Unique Strengths and Proven Success
Richards Layton lawyers have unique strengths that contribute to our record of successful commercial and civil litigation in Delaware. We not only understand the state’s corporate and business law provisions, we helped draft them and play an ongoing role in their revision. Not only do we practice in the state’s unique business courts, we help develop their procedures and have extensive experience appearing before the members of those courts. That’s why our firm is a leading choice as Delaware counsel in commercial disputes when the stakes are high and the issues are significant.