Stephen M Sinaiko
Partner, New York
Stephen M Sinaiko
Partner, New York
Stephen M. Sinaiko is a partner in the firm’s Litigation & Arbitration and White Collar Defense groups. He represents public and private companies, including broker-dealer firms, investment advisers, and other financial institutions, as well as individuals, in complex civil and criminal litigation. For more than 25 years, Steve has litigated securities-related and commercial disputes, including shareholder class actions, derivative actions, corporate control disputes, partnership disputes, trusts and estates issues, business divorce cases, and disputes related to securitization. He also has experience in insurance coverage matters and employment-related disputes. He represents clients at trial and on appeal in state and federal courts and in commercial arbitration, as well as in grand jury investigations and in regulatory matters before the Securities and Exchange Commission, the United States Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), and other self-regulatory organizations.
Steve has been recognized by The Legal 500’s U.S. guide for his work in securities litigation and corporate investigations and white collar criminal defense, and has been described as “technically excellent, very responsive, with a ‘can do’ approach” and additionally that “anyone who hires him will not be disappointed.” Steve has also been included in the New York Super Lawyers list each year since 2017.
Recent highlights of Steve’s practice include representing special purpose vehicles established in connection with the multi-billion dollar securitization a of portfolio of aircraft and related assets in litigation with senior noteholders concerning the establishment of reserves. He also defended an investment adviser against more than a dozen customer claims arising from the 2007 collapse of two hedge funds, two of which resulted in defense awards after lengthy trials before FINRA arbitration panels, and represented a publicly-traded broker-dealer firm and its chief executive officer in connection with a whistle-blower claim by a former employee that, after more than 40 days of trial before a FINRA arbitration panel, was resolved successfully. Steve also represented the nation’s largest equipment rental company in shareholder litigation arising from a failed merger transaction, resulting in a dismissal of all claims that was affirmed on appeal in the Second Circuit.
In addition, Steve maintains an active pro bono practice, handling criminal appeals in the New York state courts on behalf of indigent defendants. His recent notable work in that area included a representation in which he successfully argued, before the New York Court of Appeals, for the unanimous reversal of a defendant’s conviction of a controlled substance offense and for clarification of the circumstances under which New York’s disorderly conduct statute can be the basis for warrantless arrests.
Steve previously was a litigation partner at Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel, where he was an inaugural recipient in 2015 of the Marvin Frankel Award for Outstanding Pro Bono Contributions. He also served as a Law Clerk to the Honorable Henry A. Politz of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. Steve graduated magna cum laude from the New York University School of Law, where he was elected to the Order of the Coif and was an editor of the New York University Law Review, and earned an A.B. with distinction in all subjects from Cornell University. He is proficient in French and Italian.
Stephen M. Sinaiko is a partner in the firm’s Litigation & Arbitration and White Collar Defense groups. He represents public and private companies, including…
Education
New York University School of Law, (J.D.,magna cum laude, 1992); Cornell University (A.B., with distinction, 1989).
Bar Admissions
New York State; U.S. District Courts for the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York; U.S. Courts of Appeals for the Second and Fifth Circuits; U.S. Supreme Court
Activities and Affiliations
Member, American Bar Association
Member, New York State Bar Association
Member, New York City Bar Association (Securities Litigation Committee)
Represented special purpose vehicles established in connection with the multi-billion dollar securitization of a portfolio of aircraft and related assets in litigation with senior noteholders concerning the establishment of reserves.
Represented special purpose vehicle established in connection with the securitization of a portfolio of jet engines in disputes with noteholders and the indenture trustee.
Defended an investment adviser against various customer claims arising from the collapse of two hedge funds with total capital exceeding $1.5 billion, obtaining favorable settlements in a number of cases and proceeding to trial in others. Served as co-lead counsel in one of those cases, which resulted in dismissal of all claims.
Defended a broker-dealer firm and its chief executive officer against Sarbanes-Oxley Act whistleblower claims based on allegations of insider trading that were resolved successfully after more than 40 days of trial before a FINRA arbitration panel.
Defended a publicly traded equipment rental company and certain of its directors and officers against purported class action securities fraud claims arising from a failed LBO transaction, resulting in a dismissal of all claims that was affirmed on appeal.
Represented a major investment bank in litigation arising from the collapse of Enron, including negotiating the favorable settlement of a fraudulent transfer action relating to a complex derivative transaction and arguing successfully for the application of Bankruptcy Code safe harbor provisions to obtain the dismissal of the avoidance claim relating to the unwind of a structured finance transaction.
Represented publicly traded equipment rental company in purported securities fraud class action and attendant shareholder derivative actions arising out of alleged accounting improprieties.
Defended publicly traded collectibles dealer in purported securities class action and related shareholder derivative actions arising from criminal investigation in Spain.
With the financial assurance of a multi-year take-or-pay contract that obligated BTS to make minimum monthly payments regardless of the services it used, Eddystone spent about $170 million to build a transloading facility that transferred oil from railcars to boats. Soon after the Eddystone transloading facility went into operation, BTS and many of its corporate affiliates were sold to Ferrellgas. At the time, BTS’s value was well over $200 million. Within months, though, the transloading arrangement became uneconomical for BTS’s corporate affiliates, so Ferrellgas stripped all of BTS’s assets and sold BTS for $10, causing BTS to default on its remaining obligations to pay Eddystone about $140 million. Eddystone brought an action in Philadelphia in 2017 to recover the fraudulent transfers involved in stripping BTS’s assets.
While the Philadelphia initial transfer action was pending, C&G filed an action for Eddystone in the Southern District of New York in 2019 alleging that Ferrellgas used former BTS assets to pay two groups of lenders, making the lenders subsequent transferees of the fraudulently transferred assets. Significantly, a protective order in the Philadelphia action barred Eddystone from using documents produced in that action in drafting its initial complaint against the lenders.
The Southern District granted the lenders’ initial motions to dismiss the complaint, finding that the complaint did not sufficiently demonstrate that the assets used to pay the lenders derived from former BTS assets. However, the court also rejected all of the lenders’ many additional arguments that the complaint was legally insufficient.
Following the dismissal of the initial complaint in September 2021, Eddystone overcame hard-fought opposition to get the protective order in the Philadelphia action modified in March 2022 to permit it to use discovery from that action to amend its Southern District complaint against the lenders. Eddystone then prepared a proposed amended complaint in April 2022 with charts showing specific cash transfers from BTS to one set of lenders through Ferrellgas and its subsidiaries. The proposed amended complaint also detailed how other specific BTS assets were assigned to corporate affiliates for no consideration at all and how the proceeds from later sales of those assets were transferred to another set of Ferrellgas lenders.
The Southern District nevertheless denied Eddystone leave to file the proposed amended complaint, finding that it would be futile because the factual allegations were still insufficient to show that assets from BTS reached the lenders. The court also found that the three years between Eddystone’s filing of its initial complaint and its request to amend was an undue delay that prejudiced the lenders.
Following oral argument that Judge Gerard Lynch of the Second Circuit called “great,” the Second Circuit reversed the District Court on both of its bases for denying Eddystone’s request to file an amended complaint. First, the Second Circuit found that Eddystone had alleged sufficient details to show that it was plausible that BTS’s assets were later transferred to the lenders. Then, the Second Circuit ruled that the District Court had exceeded its discretion in finding that undue delay and prejudice barred Eddystone’s effort to amend its complaint, finding that the District Court had not identified any prejudice to the lenders and that “Eddystone cannot be penalized for waiting until it received the District Court’s decision granting the motions to dismiss before determining what it needed to do to amend its Complaint, including modifying the protective order in the Pennsylvania litigation.”
The victorious C&G team includes Dan Tabak, Steve Sinaiko, Marvin Lowenthal, Ben Zhu, and Camille Delgado. Melissa Maxman was also part of the team that obtained the modification of the Pennsylvania protective order.
Super Lawyers named C&G cofounder Mark S. Cohen one of the Top 10 lawyers in the New York metropolitan area. Partners Jonathan S. Abernethy and Karen H. Bromberg have also been named to the Super Lawyers list of the Top 100 lawyers in the New York metropolitan area. Additionally, Karen has been recognized as one of the Top 50 women lawyers within the same region.
Super Lawyers and Rising Stars are annual lists of outstanding lawyers who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement. Only 5 percent of the lawyers in each state are selected as Super Lawyers, and only 2.5 percent are selected as Rising Stars.
The C&G lawyers recognized on the New York Metro Super Lawyers list are:
- Jonathan S. Abernethy, Criminal Defense: White Collar
- Kwaku Andoh, Mergers & Acquisitions
- Luke Appling, Civil Litigation: Defense
- Elizabeth Bernhardt, Business Litigation
- Colin C. Bridge, Criminal Defense: White Collar
- Karen H. Bromberg, Intellectual Property
- Jason Brown, Criminal Defense: White Collar
- Joanna K. Chan, Securities Litigation
- Mark S. Cohen, Business Litigation
- S. Gale Dick, Business Litigation
- Christian R. Everdell, Criminal Defense: White Collar
- Robert J. Gavigan, Mergers & Acquisitions
- Lawrence T. Gresser, Business Litigation
- Oliver S. Haker, Business Litigation
- Johannes Jonas, Mergers & Acquisitions
- Nicholas J. Kaiser, Real Estate
- Jeffrey I. Lang, Civil Litigation: Defense
- David F. Lisner, Business Litigation
- Ellen Paltiel, General Litigation
- Douglas J. Pepe, Business Litigation
- Matthew V. Povolny, Business Litigation
- Nathaniel P. T. Read, Business Litigation
- Bonnie J. Roe, Securities & Corporate Finance
- Stephen M. Sinaiko, Business Litigation
- Mark Spatz, Civil Litigation: Defense
- C. Evan Stewart, Securities Litigation
- Daniel H. Tabak, Business Litigation
- Scott D. Thomson, Business Litigation
- Alexandra Wald, Business Litigation
The C&G lawyers recognized on the New York Metro Rising Stars list are:
- Sharon L. Barbour, Criminal Defense: White Collar
- Randall W. Bryer, Business Litigation
- Shannon A. Daugherty, Business Litigation
- Drew S. Dean, General Litigation
- Jesse Greenwald, Criminal Defense: White Collar
- Christine M. Jordan, General Litigation
- William Kalema, Business Litigation
- Sri Kuehnlenz, Civil Litigation: Defense
- Marvin J. Lowenthal, Criminal Defense: White Collar
- Barbara K. Luse, Criminal Defense: White Collar
- Benjamin Zhu, General Litigation
Super Lawyers ranks outstanding lawyers who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement. Only five percent of the lawyers in each state are selected as Super Lawyers, and only 2.5 percent are selected as Rising Stars.
Super Lawyers
Jonathan S Abernethy: Criminal Defense: White Collar
Kwaku Andoh: Mergers & Acquisitions
Elizabeth Bernhardt: Business Litigation
Thomas E Bezanson: Personal Injury – Products: Defense
Colin C Bridge: Criminal Defense: White Collar
Karen H Bromberg: Intellectual Property
Jason Brown: Criminal Defense: White Collar
Joanna K Chan: Securities Litigation
Mark S Cohen: Business Litigation
S Gale Dick: Business Litigation
Christian R Everdell: Criminal Defense: White Collar
Lawrence T Gresser: Business Litigation
Oliver S Haker: Business Litigation
Johannes Jonas: Mergers & Acquisitions
Nicholas J Kaiser: Real Estate
Jeffrey I. Lang: Business Litigation
Melissa H Maxman: Antitrust Litigation
Ellen Paltiel: General Litigation
Nathaniel P T Read: Business Litigation
Bonnie J Roe: Securities & Corporate Finance
Stephen M Sinaiko: Business Litigation
C Evan Stewart: Securities Litigation
Daniel H Tabak: Business Litigation
Scott D Thomson: Business Litigation
Alexandra Wald: Business Litigation
Ronald F Wick: Antitrust Litigation
Rising Stars
Luke Appling: Civil Litigation
Sharon L Barbour: Criminal Defense: White Collar
Drew S Dean: General Litigation
William Kalema: Business Litigation
Sri Kuehnlenz: Civil Litigation
Winnifred A Lewis: Securities Litigation
Marvin J Lowenthal: Criminal Defense: White Collar
Barbara K Luse: Criminal Defense: White Collar
Matthew V Povolny: Business Litigation
Benjamin Zhu: Criminal Defense: White Collar
- Corporate Investigations and White Collar Criminal Defense: Advice to Individuals
- Corporate Investigations and White Collar Criminal Defense: Advice to Corporates
- General Commercial Disputes
- Securities Litigation: Defense
- Corporate Investigations/White Collar
- Corporate Investigations/White Collar – Advice to Individuals
- General Commercial Disputes
- Securities Litigation Defense
- Corporate Investigations/White Collar – Advice to Corporates
- Corporate Investigations/White Collar – Advice to Individuals
- General Commercial Disputes
- Securities Litigation Defense
Law360's coverage of Cohen & Gresser's newest partner, Steve Sinaiko.
Cohen & Gresser is pleased to announce the expansion of the firm's litigation and arbitration and white collar defense practice groups with the addition of partner Stephen Sinaiko to our New York office.