< Directory Brian S. Fraser

Brian S. Fraser has 25 years of experience representing and advising clients in complex commercial and financial matters. In financial litigation, Mr. Fraser represents clients in capital markets, derivatives, securities, including asset-backed securities, corporate governance and insurance litigation. Mr. Fraser represents hedge funds, fund managers, institutional investors, insurers, investment banks, and other clients involved in disputes arising from transactions or investments in the equity, debt, structured finance, and derivatives markets.

In commercial litigation, Mr. Fraser has extensive experience representing manufacturing and other commercial clients in tort, antitrust, breach of contract, and intellectual property matters.

Mr. Fraser has successfully represented plaintiffs and defendants, in state and federal courts across the country and in arbitrations and mediations.

He also frequently advises clients on litigation risk and avoidance in connection with transactions and has often been called upon to evaluate likely litigation outcomes. Illustrative representations include:

• The Boeing Company in wrongful death and tens of billions of dollars in property damage claims arising from the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001;
• Financial Guaranty Insurance Company in litigation with municipalities throughout the United States arising from the insurer’s credit ratings downgrade during the financial crisis;
• Institutional investors including a university endowment in an involuntary winding up proceeding against a hedge fund in the Cayman Islands; 
• A Chinese government-owned corporation in civil litigation in the U.S. and a multi-jurisdictional criminal investigation arising from a Ponzi scheme that cost the company’s U.S. subsidiary tens of millions of dollars;
• A fitness equipment manufacturer in antitrust and patent infringement litigation against its largest competitor;
• A significant investor in a group of hedge funds that defaulted on credit default swap protection providing "pay as you go" protection on notes issued by a CDO; and 
• A large investment bank in substantial broken trade litigation against a foreign bank.

In addition, Mr. Fraser is a regular speaker and writer on a variety of topics, most recently including municipal bonds, securities, bank debt and trial practice.

He is a member of the Association of the Bar of the City of New York (Antitrust and Trade Regulation Committee, 1991 to 1994), the American Bar Association (Sections on Antitrust, Litigation, Securities and Intellectual Property and the Committee on Trade Secrets and Interference with Contracts), the International Bar Association, and the Federal Bar Council. He is a Fellow of the Litigation Counsel of America and has been recognized as a New York Super Lawyer for Business Litigation.

Mr. Fraser is a member of the New York bar and is admitted to practice before the United States District Courts for the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit and the United States Supreme Court and has been admitted to practice before numerous federal and state trial courts around the country on a pro hoc vice basis.

Honors & Awards

• Named as Fellow, Litigation Counsel of America, 2009
• Recognized as a New York Super Lawyer for Business Litigation, 2007
  

News

• Brian Fraser quoted in the Palm Beach Daily News
• Litigation Counsel of America Fellow and RK&O partner Brian Fraser featured in Litigation Commentary and Review
• Brian Fraser quoted in Time
• "Are You Sure Your Settlement Negotiations Are Confidential?" by Brian Fraser and Patricia O'Prey published in the New York Law Journal
• Brian Fraser quoted in Bloomberg
• Brian Fraser authors chapter in recently published book, Inside the Minds: New Developments in Evidentiary Law in New York
• Litigation Counsel of America Fellow and RK&O partner Brian Fraser featured in Litigation Commentary and Review
• "Big Boys Don't Cry: How "Big Boy" Provisions Can Help Hedge Fund Managers Avoid Liability for Insider Trading Violations" by Brian S. Fraser and Tamala Newbold published in The Hedge Fund Law Report
• "When Do Hedge Fund Managers Have a Duty to Disclose Material, Nonpublic Information?" by Brian S. Fraser and Tamala Newbold published in The Hedge Fund Law Report
• Ruling in 9/11 Property Damage Litigation May End Larry Silverstein's Pursuit of Billions in Damages
• New York Court of Appeals hears oral argument regarding an amicus curiae brief filed by RK&O Partners Brian Fraser and Lucinda McConathy on behalf of the LSTA
• New York Court of Appeals grants application to file an amicus curiae brief submitted by RK&O Partners Brian Fraser and Lucinda McConathy on behalf of the LSTA
• RK&O Partners, Brian Fraser and Lucinda McConathy, submit an amicus curiae brief on behalf of the LSTA to the New York Court of Appeals
• Federal Court Limits Aviation Defendants’ Potential Liability in 9/11 World Trade Center Litigation
• Richards Kibbe and Orbe Attorneys Named Super Lawyers

Seminars & Speaking Engagements

• Webcast: "What Litigators Need to Know About Dual Representation and Potential Conflicts of Interest During Internal Investigations - Understanding the Impact of United States v. Nicholas"
• Compliance Roundtable: The Loan Syndication and Trading Association
• Webcast: Distressed Loan Trading and Collateral Loan Obligations: How to Buy, Sell and Finance Individual Loans and Portfolios
• Lessons from Recent Derivatives Debacles: Examining the Effect on Buyer and Seller

Publications

• Distress in the United States Public Finance Market?
• New York Court Enforces "Big Boy" Disclaimers in Credit Default Swap Transaction but Permits Novel Credit Rating Claim to Proceed
• Court Tests a Borrower's Ability to Block Loan Transfers to Competitors
• The Dustbin of History? Second Circuit Makes Clear that Champerty Won't Impede the Rights of Secondary Purchasers
• New York's Highest Court Relieves Debt Trading Market From Uncertainty Regarding The Application Of Champerty
• Who's a Big Boy II: Superior Knowledge and the Duty to Disclose
• Seventh Circuit Court Slams Bankruptcy Trustee for Asserting Frivolous Claims
• Equity and Debt Decoupling: Derivative Instruments Challenge Fundamental Assumptions of Corporate and Bankruptcy Law
• Who's a Big Boy? Non-Reliance Provisions and Claims of Insider Trading in Securities and Non-Securities Markets

Professional & Community Affiliations

• Member, Association of the Bar of the City of New York (Antitrust and Trade Regulation Committee, 1991 to 1994)
• Member, American Bar Association (Sections on Business Law,  Antitrust Law, Dispute Resolution-International Committee, Litigation, Securities and Intellectual Property)
• Member, International Bar Association
• Member, Federal Bar Council