TEL: 201-525-6222
FAX: 201-489-7055
mmeisel@coleschotz.com
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Legal Secretary: Pat Boyko
TEL: 201-489-3000, ext. 5005
pboyko@coleschotz.com

Clients view Mike as a problem-solver who also knows how to produce results in the courtroom.  His peers selected Mike as one of the country’s elite “Bet-The-Company” trial lawyers.  Mike is perennially recognized in the Best Lawyers in America for his trial abilities and appellate advocacy.  A certified civil trial lawyer, Mike’s noteworthy cases in the federal and state courts include the $12 billion Mutual Benefit Life Insurance Company reorganization, where he was lead litigator and special advisor to the New Jersey Insurance Commissioner and the Attorney General.

Chairman of the firm's Litigation Department, Mike  tries business cases of every variety—shareholder disputes, directors & officers liability and corporate/insurance reorganization. Mike also has successfully tried many arbitration cases, mediated disputes, serves as special master, mediator and arbitrator. In all these fields, Mike has earned professional distinction among his colleagues and with the courts.

Mike also has over 20 years of experience in surety and construction, including performance and payment bond litigation, surety claims, negotiation of takeover, completion and workout agreements, bid protests, as well as construction litigation and arbitration.  He combines trial and work-out savvy with the substantive knowledge of surety and construction law.  As a bar leader, Mike chaired the New Jersey State Bar Association Surety Law Committee and the Bankruptcy Law Section.

Versatility, creativity, practicality, toughness, persistence, and the ability to persuade judges, juries and opponents describe Mike’s litigation style.

Mr. Meisel's current and past service and distinctions include:

• Best Lawyers in America, “Bet the Company” Litigation
• Best Lawyers in America, Commercial Litigation
• Best Lawyers in America, Appellate Law
• Top 100 New Jersey Lawyers
• "Litigation Star," Benchmark Litigation 2010: The Guide to America's Leading Litigation Firms and Attorneys 
• The New York Area's Best Lawyers, Commercial Litigation
• The New York Area's Best Lawyers, Appellate Law
• Executive Board, Law Firm Alliance
• President, Passaic County Bar Association
• Chairman, New Jersey State Bar Association, Surety Law Committee
• Chairman, New Jersey State Bar Association, Bankruptcy Section
• Lawyer Member, Advisory Committee for the Third Circuit
• Trustee, Association of the Federal Bar of New Jersey
• Trustee, Historical Society, District of New Jersey
• Lawyer Member, New Jersey Supreme Court Civil Practice Committee
• Mediator, the United States District Court, District of New Jersey
• Arbitrator, United States District Court, District of New Jersey and New Jersey Superior Court
• Arbitrator, International Chamber of Commerce, Court of Arbitration
• Member, Board of Bar Examiners and the Supreme Court Committee on Bar Admissions
• Lecturer, litigation technique and surety law for the Institute of Continuing Legal Education, Surety Claims Institute, and International Association of Defense Counsel
• Ethics and Fee Arbitration Committees and charitable boards 
• Mr. Meisel has been awarded an AV rating for his professionalism and the quality of his legal work from Martindale-Hubbell, the premier directory of legal professionals.

His mediation and arbitration experience includes a broad array of disputes, examples of which are: surety, insurance and construction law [Safeco Insurance Companies of America; Kemper Insurance Group]; trade secret and unfair competition [AEP Industries v. Intertape Polymer Group]; termination of distributorship [Pittra v. Ybbstaler]; commercial real estate/development [Lehigh Housing v. Cofi Hopewell]; estate administration and accountings [Estate of Julius Kropf; Estate of William Boschen]; employment [Velleman v. L-3 Communications; West v. IDT]; franchises [Dunkin Donuts Incorporated v. Double D., LLC]; will contests [Estate of Piccolo]; vendor/retailer disputes [Land N Sea v. United Retail Group]; transportation and tariffs [Canadian National Railway v. Vulcan Materials Corp.]; securities fraud [Washington Group v. Bear Stearns]; private capital/joint venture [iPoint Ventures, LLC v. Pequot Capital Management, Inc.]; gasoline distributorship/supply contracts [Newport Mobil Service, Inc. et. al. v. Conocophillips Co., et al.]; national distributorship/convenience stores [Century Distributors, et. al. v. Quality Distribution Network, Inc.], corporate financing/private equity [Cornell Capital Partners, L.P., v. Bad Toys, Inc., et al.]; performance bond claims [Geodis USA v. Travelers Insurance Co.]; real estate financing [Cargill Global v. Applied Development], products liability/specialty manufacture [SPL Performance Parts, Inc. v. Sturm, Ruger & Co., Inc.]; hotel franchise [Ramada Worldwide v. Four J.S. et al.]; insurance coverage dispute [International Specialty Products vs. National Union Ins. Co. (AIG)]; construction/products liability [Turner Construction Company vs. Brian Trematore Plumbing].

Mr. Meisel's reported cases span a wide range of commercial law, including: insurer reorganization [Mutual Benefit Life Ins. Co., 609 A.2d 768 (1992)]; attorney's liens [Mandlebaum, Salsburg v. General Ins. Company of America, 799 A.2d 672 (2002)]; commercial bribery/trade slander [Printing Mart v. Sharp Electronics, 563 A.2d 31 (1989)]; business brokerage [Kazmer-Standish Consultants, Inc. v. Schoeffel Instruments Corp., 445 A.2d 1149 (1982)]; real estate commissions [Snyder Realty v. BMW of North America, 558 A.2d 28 (1989)]; suretyship [V. Petrillo & Sons, Inc. v. American Const. Co., 371 A.2d 799 (1977)]; trade secret [Bay State Lighting Co. v. Voight Lighting Industries, Inc., 1984 W.L. 1450]; local government [Miller v. Municipal Council of Wayne Township, 354 A.2d 658 (1976)]; attorney fraud/recovery fund [Matter of Kampelman, 398 A.2d 152 (1979)]; equitable liens [UFJ Bank Ltd. v. J & A Intern. Corp., 808 A.2d. 173 (2002)].

• Complex Litigation: Attorney-Client Privilege, New Jersey Law Journal