Dewey Pegno & Kramarsky llp

Thomas E. L. Dewey

Partner                                                         Add vCard

 

tdewey@dpklaw.com

Phone: (212) 943-9000 x 105

Fax: (212) 943-4325

 

Tom Dewey is a commercial litigator with broad experience in state and federal courts in New York and throughout the United States, as well as in domestic and international arbitrations.  Tom has also represented clients in investigations conducted by regulatory authorities ranging from the SEC to the Defense Criminal Investigative Service.

 

Tom has extensive experience in securities litigation: he has represented parties in several of the largest and most complex securities matters, including the Adelphia, KPNQwest, Parmalat, Lehman and Madoff matters, and is one of the few attorneys who has tried a securities fraud class action to a jury verdict.  He has also represented real estate clients in a wide variety of litigation and arbitration matters, including an arbitration concerning terrorism insurance and a multi-year arbitration/litigation concerning management rights in real estate partnerships.

 

International matters consistently have been a significant part of Tom’s practice.  Tom has represented international clients in complex litigation in the United States, as well as U.S.-based clients in foreign proceedings.  Recently, for example, Tom has represented a U.K.-based energy company in U.S. proceedings to obtain evidence for litigation in the High Court, provided an opinion letter concerning New York law for use in an Italian criminal proceeding and represented a senior executive in parallel proceedings in the United States and Europe.

 

Tom has also appeared regularly as appellate counsel after adverse rulings from trial courts:  he has won full or partial reversals of unfavorable rulings from the First Department, the Second Circuit, the New York Court of Appeals and the Supreme Court of the United States.

 

Tom began his legal career at Cravath, Swaine & Moore, where he worked on cases involving claims ranging from monopolization of technology markets to infringement of biotech patents, including several significant jury trials, a New York Stock Exchange arbitration and an International Chamber of Commerce arbitration.

 

Before attending law school, Tom worked as foreign policy analyst in Washington, D.C.  His work has appeared in the Washington Post, the Wall Street Journal and the Congressional Record, and he has been featured on CNN, Bloomberg and Fox News.

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From 2016 - 2023, Chambers USA has recognized Tom as a highly regarded lawyer for General Commercial Litigation in New York. According to Chambers Tom has “a diverse litigation practice which sees him handle court and arbitration proceedings such as contract disputes and shareholder actions. Tom Dewey is a ‘superior tactical and strategic thinker, a quick study of the client’s business operation and a clear and concise communicator,’ reports a source, adding: ‘He has excellent judgment and presence in dealing with judges and arbitrators.’ He is recognized for his expert commercial disputes practice, which sees him act for domestic and multinational clients in a range of cross-border mandates.” He is highlighted for his broad commercial litigation practice, while also offering significant experience in securities disputes.

 

Tom was named to the New York Super Lawyers list for each of the past nine years, and is recommended for Civil Litigation, Business Litigation and Appellate. Tom was also selected by his peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America. Tom was recognized as a leading practitioner in the area of Litigation - Securities in New York. He was also recognized as an Elite Boutique Trailblazer by the National Law Journal in 2019.

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Recent matters Tom has handled include:

 

• Representing a committee of the Board of a financial services company, Tom led a DPK team investigating issues concerning marketing and sale of complex financial products;

• Representing the former CEO of a European bank, Tom conducted a jury trial on the CEO’s contract and tort claims—the case settled before summations;

• Representing a real estate firm, Tom led the defense of five consolidated class actions seeking hundreds of millions of dollars in damages, as well as related litigation brought by other investors;

• Representing a leading private equity firm, Tom won summary judgment on an expedited basis on a $38 million claim for breach of a guarantee relating to a contractual put option;

• Representing a family office, Tom provided advice and counsel relating to parallel litigation concerning rights to investment vehicles and real estate in four different jurisdictions;

• Representing a real estate investment vehicle, Tom defeated a motion for a preliminary injunction intended to stop the buy-out of a minority investor’s interests;

• Representing a global pharmaceutical company, Tom significantly restricted the scope of claims against the firm, leading to resolution of the matter;

• Representing a senior executive of a public company during a wide-ranging SEC investigation, Tom persuaded the SEC not to pursue any charges;

• Representing an equipment manufacturer as appellate counsel, Tom secured a complete reversal of an unfavorable trial court ruling.

 

Tom also serves on the boards of several educational and philanthropic organizations in New York City. 

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