James Grippando

James has more than three decades of experience in both litigation and transactions involving complex commercial matters. 

His recent litigation and appellate experience includes trademark and copyright infringement arbitration, trade secret disputes, and a major victory at the U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals in a class action lawsuit involving Madoff investors. He regularly provides antitrust, intellectual property, and other advice to a wide range of clients, from Tony Award-winning Broadway producers to the world's largest sanctioning body for stock car racing. He has lectured at various conferences for the American Bar Association and the American Intellectual Property Law Association, published editorials on timely legal issues in the National Law Journal and other major newspapers, and provided legal insights on national TV programs, such as MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.” 

James also is a New York Times bestselling author of 25 novels published by HarperCollins, which are enjoyed worldwide in 28 languages. Leapholes, his novel for younger readers, was published by the American Bar Association and is used by middle schools across the country to teach children about law and lawyers. His numerous scholarly articles have appeared in law reviews at the nation’s top law schools and are frequently cited with approval by state and federal courts.

James’ representative matters include:

• Earned national acclaim as lead counsel in a seven-year class action battle against the largest privately held corporation in the world, a case that the Wall Street Journal called "[t]he catalyst for wholesale change in the $15billion-a-year poultry industry"
• Advised a major grocery chain in connection with Federal Trade Commission’s investigation into compliance with divestiture order and led extensive internal post-acquisition risk analysis
• Provided antitrust counseling, risk analysis and advice to the most successful fashion mall in America regarding joint ventures and other business opportunities
• Provided intellectual property advice to, and negotiated on behalf of, Broadway producers in connection with acquisition and licensure of worldwide rights to musical and dramatic works   

How a Boies Schiller Lawyer Found Time to Double as a Best-Selling Author, The American Lawyer (January 2018)

James Grippando – the recipient of the 2017 Harper Lee Prize for Legal Fiction for his novel “Gone Again” – was recently published in The American Lawyer with tips for attorneys who might consider writing a book. In the piece, Mr. Grippando writes:

A dual career has gotten easier to manage over the years, due in no small measure to changes in the legal profession.  “Flex time” and “telecommuting” were unheard of when I wrote my first novel. Changing attitudes and better technology, however, are not the entirety of it. I don’t have all the answers, but this article offers some guidance to any lawyer whose goal is not just to write but to create published works that will appeal to a mainstream market and actually sell to readers outside the immediate family.