Brian L. Gardner

PROFESSIONALS

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TEL: 646.563.8937 / MOBILE: 646.675.2518 / FAX: 646.563.7937 / bgardner@coleschotz.comLegal Practice Assistant: Megan Valvano TEL: 212-752-8000 Ext. 3010 mvalvano@coleschotz.com

Brian Gardner is chairman of the Construction Services Department and a member of the Litigation Department. Brian is a former federal prosecutor, who, while an attorney at the United States Attorney’s office in the Eastern District of New York, tried numerous federal cases and was honored for his work by the Justice Department and commended by District Court Judges.

He has engaged in a complex civil and criminal litigation practice, including commercial, construction, regulatory, environmental and white collar criminal litigation.

Brian joined the firm in 2014 and has played a prominent role in the representation of a variety of clients, including:

Numerous developers, construction managers, general contractors, trade contractors and sub-contractors, in all areas of construction including residential and commercial structure, high rise builders, interior contractors, site and demolition contractors, waste management and recycling, trucking, and concrete producers, as well as Heavy Construction contractors including utility and road builders
Represented construction companies prosecuted by the NY District Attorney’s Office Construction Fraud Task Force, indeed, has represented almost every sizable entity involved in such a prosecution
Represented the trucking industry in its litigation against the MTA’s imposed bridge limitations, successfully defended the first large-scale environmental prosecution brought by a District Attorney’s office
Obtained relief for construction entities owed funds regarding their heroic work at the World Trade Center
NYS Labor Department against a construction related entity
Representation of a president of one of the largest New York labor unions
Representation of a trustee of one of the largest construction labor organizations and trade associations in a federal criminal prosecution

Brian also regularly acts as New York litigation counsel for a multinational public oil services company and numerous individuals in both federal and state court matters. He has extensive knowledge of construction litigation, construction contracts, construction related corporate transactions, government regulation, environmental law, heavy construction, waste and debris, immigration detention, fraud, tax, RICO and general commercial law.

Brian tries and argues matters in both federal and state trial and appellate courts, in addition to his representation of clients before the numerous government agencies. A significant portion of his practice is before the appellate courts. Indeed, Brian was featured on the front page of the New York Law Journal regarding his successful representation of an individual in overturning a longstanding judgment and conviction. This case was successfully argued by him before the New York State Court of Appeals.

Brian’s work has been the subject of numerous news stories in both the legal and general press. He is the attorney in countless published opinions before the Appellate Courts, and Trial courts. Brian also served as an Assistant District Attorney in Queens County, where he tried many cases and handled and argued a large number of appeals.

Brian is a member of the Construction Lawyers Society of America and is a member of numerous construction related organizations, such as the New York Building Congress. In 2021, The National Law Journal listed Brian as a Trailblazer, an accolade given to innovators and thought leaders in Real Estate and Construction Law. Brian is also recognized as a 2021 NY Metro Super Lawyer. See Award Methodology.

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Services

Education

Rutgers Law School- Newark, J.D., 1990

State University of New York, Stony Brook, B.A., 1987

Bar & Court Admissions

New York, 1991U.S. District Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, 1992U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York , 1995U.S District Court for the Eastern District of New York, 1995U.S District Court of Appeals Third Circuit , 2004U.S District Court for the Western District of New York, 2008U.S District Court of Appeals Fourth Circuit , 2012