Margaret L. Shaw, Esq.

T: 212-751-2700
F:212-751-4099

Locations

Available to hear cases nationwide.
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Business/Commercial
Margaret Shaw is widely respected for her persistence and creativity in reaching settlement. She has participated in the resolution of thousands of disputes nationwide.

A former civil litigator, Ms. Shaw has maintained an active ADR practice for almost thirty years. She joined JAMS when ADR Associates, a firm she co-founded, merged with JAMS in 2004.

Ms. Shaw is a Fellow of the College of Labor and Employment Lawyers and the author of numerous articles on a variety of aspects of the ADR field. For twenty-five years she was also an Adjunct Professor of Law at NYU Law School where she taught ADR and negotiation.

Representative Mediations

  • Representative business/commercial disputes mediated by Ms. Shaw include the following:
    • Action for breach of contractual and fiduciary duties arising out of a partnership formed to invest in bonds, bank debt and other financial instruments 
    • Action brought by financial holding company buyers of a business against sellers for commissions alleged to be due to seller’s former salespeople under the contract of sale
    • Action by a media company against a competitor and a former employee asserting breach of a covenant not to compete and an agreement not to disclose confidential information
    • A dispute between a bank and the holder of a Trust Account involving assets depleted by signatures alleged to have been forged
    • A large number of breach of contract claims, for example an action involving the applicability of force majeure provision to party’s failure to perform its supply obligations; a claim against a professional organization brought by its exclusive licensing agent alleging breach of its representation agreement; a suit brought by the wholesale distributor of pharmaceutical products against its supplier; a multi-million dollar claim between companies in the maritime industry; and a claim by the buyer of a business against the seller alleging breach and fraud in the inducement of an asset-purchase agreement
    • A libel claim brought against the writer and publisher of a book by an individual claiming to have been defamed by the book’s theme and a number of passages in which he was named
    • A libel claim brought by an individual against a newspaper and its columnist
    • A number of professional malpractice cases including cases involving law firms, an architectural firm, a psychiatrist, a dentist, a consulting and engineering firm, an accounting firm, and the executor of an estate
    • A mass of bankruptcy preference claims asserted under sections 547 and 550 of the Bankruptcy Code
    • Claims and counterclaims between multiple parties related to loan repayments, liens, and proceedings in bankruptcy
    • Claims and counterclaims involving losses arising out of alleged breaches and failures of duty under a letter of credit and related trust agreement between two entities in the financial services industry
    • Action brought by an institution against an environmental consulting and engineering firm alleging errors in characterization of hazardous material leading to inflated disposal costs
    • Breach of contract claim brought by a technology company against a high profile outdoor advertising company for monies alleged to be owing under a services agreement
    • Case brought by title insurance company against its agents alleging breach of contract, negligence, and aiding and abetting fraud
    • Claim against a professional organization by its licensing representative alleging invalid termination of licensing agreement and breach of fiduciary duty
    • Claim by a high-profile recording artist against a music company and its principal seeking damages for breaches and misrepresentations involving an exclusive recording agreement
    • Claims by owners of a trademark against a licensee alleging failure of the licensee to market product and make royalty payments
    • Claims by the trustee of deceased artist’s trust against the owners of a storage warehouse where certain works of art were lost
    • Claims by two individuals against alleged cult and cult leader claiming fraud in the inducement, undue influence, intentional infliction of emotional distress and deceptive business practices
    • Claims for damages resulting from failures to perform under exclusive worldwide license for marketing computer programs and from failure to return source code
    • Claim involving allegations that an insurance company breached its agreement with the excess carrier underwriters by unilaterally acceding to certain claims which altered the excess carrier’s payment obligations
    • Dispute based on quantum meruit arising out of third-party marketing service retained to locate investors for a hedge fund
    • Dispute involving claims and counterclaims by multiple parties related to loan repayments, liens, and proceedings in bankruptcy
    • Intellectual property dispute involving claims of copyright infringement, breach of licensing agreement, and misappropriation of trade secrets
    • Mediation involving a disbursement of funds from an escrow account which had been set aside as part of a business acquisition to cover indemnification claims
    • Mediation involving claims and counterclaims under an asset purchase agreement and a supply agreement related to performance of the terms and alleged violations of the non-compete clause
    • Mediation involving two actions, one a patent litigation and the other a contract dispute between an entity in the communications industry and its intellectual property holding company, and one of its service providers
    • Mediation involving real estate developer and banks related to alleged defaults under a credit agreement and an interest rate protection agreement
    • Mediation of breakup of a law firm partnership
    • Mediation of conflict involving rabbi, cantor, and board of synagogue
    • Placement agency claims against a competitor that hired several of its employees alleging, among other things, theft of trade secrets
    • Product liability cases against a pharmaceuticals manufacturer 
    • Suit seeking $9.5 million in damages arising from alleged breach of a release agreed to by the parties in a prior litigation

Representative Arbitrations

  • Representative business/commercial disputes adjudicated by Ms. Shaw include the following:
    • An arbitration involving multi-million dollar contract claims and counterclaims among companies in the communications industry
    • Arbitration involving claims for damages resulting from alleged breaches of a confidentiality agreement
    • Arbitration involving allegations of fraud in the inducement of the purchase of a business in the automobile industry
    • Arbitration involving dispute over monies allegedly owned by an investment bank to a departing partner including capital contributions, fees earned on specific transactions, and related expenses
    • Contract claims and counterclaims between manufacturer and retailer in the garment industry

Honors, Memberships, and Professional Activities

  • Recognized as a Best Lawyer, ADR Category, Best Lawyers in America, 2006-2010
  • Recognized as a New York Super Lawyer by Law & Politics Magazine, 2006-2010
  • Fellow, College of Labor and Employment Lawyers, 2003-present
  • Distinguished Service Award, Society of Professionals in Dispute Resolution, 1993
  • Practical Achievement Award, Center for Public Resources, 1992
  • Recent ADR articles authored by Margaret Shaw include:
    • Co-author, "The Past Present and Future of Mediation as Seen Through the Eyes of Some of its Founders," Negotiation Journal (April, 2010)
    • Co-author, “The Secrets of Successful (and Unsuccessful) Mediators Continued: Studies Two and Three,” Negotiation Journal, vol. 23 (October, 2007)
    • Co-author, “Old Wine in New Bottles? The Use of Baseball Arbitration in the Business/Commercial Context” ABA Dispute Resolution Magazine, 2007
    • Co-author, “Arbitrators Hold Significant Power Over Discovery,” National Law Journal, November, 2006
    • Co-author, “Mediating Class Actions,” ADR Handbook for Judges (Washington, D.C.: American Bar Association, 2004)

Background and Education

  • Mediator, District and Bankruptcy Courts, Southern District of New York, 1992-present
  • Litigator, Cravath, Swaine & Moore; Grand & Ostrow, 1972-1980
  • J.D., New York University School of Law, 1972, Order of the Coif
  • B.A., Smith College, Northampton, Massachusetts, 1966, Phi Beta Kappa