Litigation

Dorf Nelson & Zauderer's Litigation Department handles high-stakes, bet-the-business disputes in federal and state courts across the United States. Led by Partners Jonathan B. Nelson and Mark C. Zauderer, the department comprises more than thirty attorneys across six practice groups, representing corporations, executives, boards, and institutional clients in the most consequential disputes they will ever face. The department is ranked by Chambers and Partners in the 2026 New York Spotlight Guide as a leading firm in Commercial Litigation.

When a corporation, a board, or an executive faces a dispute that threatens the enterprise, the choice of litigation counsel is as consequential as any business decision they will make. Get it wrong and the consequences are irreversible. These are bet-the-business matters and bet-the-business matters demand a litigation team that is fully committed, deeply experienced, tenacious, and personally accountable for the result. That is what Dorf Nelson & Zauderer's Litigation Department delivers. Our attorneys have tried and won high-stakes cases in federal and state courts across the country. When the stakes are highest, we are at our best.

Jonathan Nelson and Mark Zauderer lead the department from the front. Both are hands-on from intake through verdict on every significant matter in which the firm is involved. That is a structural commitment that distinguishes this department from large institutional firms where senior partners may be visible at the pitch but absent in the courtroom.

Our attorneys bring a combination of courtroom skill, legal knowledge, and business acumen that is rare in private practice. Mr. Nelson prosecuted felonies as a Senior Prosecutor and then crossed to the other side of the table, serving as Assistant General Counsel at a publicly traded multinational corporation — giving him a perspective on litigation strategy and risk that few litigators at any firm can match. Mr. Zauderer has represented major corporations, prominent individuals, and a Presidential cabinet secretary in significant business and financial litigation. The attorneys they lead include former prosecutors, former in-house corporate counsel, and litigators trained at prominent national firms.

We are tenacious trial lawyers. We try cases. We argue appeals. We negotiate from positions of strength. When settlement serves our client's interests, we pursue it with the same discipline and preparation we bring to trial — because the best settlements are won by lawyers who are ready to win at trial.

Corporations, private equity-backed companies, family-owned businesses, and executives facing high-stakes disputes come to Dorf Nelson & Zauderer for the depth of a major litigation department and the direct, senior-level accountability that comes with it.