Overview
(September 28, 2020, New York) — Steptoe partner Charles Michael has been named to the New York Law Journal's 2020 list of New York Trailblazers. The list is featured in a supplement in the September issue of the legal publication.
A commercial litigator, Michael defends clients in high stakes disputes and arbitrations. He is the founder and editor of Steptoe's widely read SDNY Blog, which covers civil litigation and trial practice in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York.
Most recently, Michael co-led the team that won a $50.75 million arbitration award after a contested hearing in a breach of contract action on behalf of the global satellite company, Inmarsat Global Limited.
Michael also secured a pro bono win for the operator of a website called Quackwatch that exposes medical frauds. Two multimillionaire practitioners of "anti-aging" medicine sued Quackwatch for defamation over an article they did not like, and wanted taken down. The case was not only dismissed, but Michael successfully moved for sanctions, resulting in a $10,000 fine for opposing counsel having filed a baseless complaint.
In addition, Michael led the Steptoe litigation team in a win for diamond and real estate magnate Lev Leviev's company, LGC USA Holdings Inc., over a dispute with LGC's former business partner Julius Klein Diamonds LLC. A judge in the SDNY confirmed an arbitration award worth more than $200 million to LGC.
Michael works on various white collar and regulatory matters and is currently defending the largest Bitcoin exchange in Martin Act related litigation brought by the New York Attorney General.
Before going into practice, Michael clerked for Judge Clement on the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit and then for Judge Marrero on the US District Court for the Southern District of New York.
About Steptoe
In more than 100 years of practice, Steptoe has earned an international reputation for vigorous representation of clients before governmental agencies, successful advocacy in litigation and arbitration, and creative and practical advice in structuring business transactions. Steptoe has more than 500 lawyers and other professional staff across offices in Beijing, Brussels, Chicago, Hong Kong, London, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, and Washington. For more information, visit www.steptoe.com.
