Lauren has had a long history of litigating many and varied issues on behalf of large and small corporations, partnerships and individuals, which has given her an understanding of issues from both the plaintiffs’ and defendants’ points of views and the legal issues attendant to both.

In 1994, Lauren was a founding partner of the boutique New York City commercial litigation firm of Montclare & Wachtler, where she had an opportunity to try dozens of cases to verdict for a major insurance carrier involving construction claims, Labor Law issues, design defects, and personal injury. The firm also simultaneously operated a modest mediation company for several years called “Cadre.”

In 2008, Montclare & Wachtler was asked to join Mitchell Silberberg & Knupp LLP, (MSK) a major California- based entertainment and commercial law firm.  Lauren was a partner in the New York City office of  MSK from 2008-2018 . While at MSK, Lauren appeared regularly in State and Federal Court, most frequently in the Commercial Division in New York State Supreme Court and argued a number of appeals in both State and Federal courts. Her work included participating in mediations and other alternative resolution matters.

In 2018 Lauren was asked to join the law firm of Phillips Nizer, LLP and to co-chair its Litigation Department. While at Phillips Nizer, Lauren litigated numerous cases in both State and Federal Courts, engaged in significant motion practice on behalf of clients and participated in mediations and arbitrations.

In 2018, Lauren was added to the Commercial Division panel of mediators. Since that time, she has mediated more than a dozen cases assigned by the Commercial Division, and continues to be selected as a mediator in the Commercial Division Program. She has  acted and continues to act as a Court-appointed fiduciary as a receiver, and referee in a number of commercial and real estate matters.

Before founding her own firm in 1994, Lauren was with the law firm of Shea & Gould. In 1988 she became the first woman partner in the history of Shea & Gould’s litigation department and tried no less than 10 state and federal court jury and non-jury trials to verdict. She also took an active role in the settlement of many cases through both mediation and arbitration.

During the course of her career, Lauren has represented many high-profile clients including Leona Helmsley and Stanley Stahl; Brotherhood, America’s Oldest Winery; L. Knife and Sons, one of the largest beer distributors in the Northeast; and Pratesi Linens. She has represented famous graphic designers, artists, record producers, internationally famous singer-songwriters and other high-profile clients in disputes involving labor and employment law, real estate, contracts, business disputes, fraud, and breach of fiduciary duty, as well as members of the judiciary for whom she performed commercial litigation work.

In 2022, Lauren was chosen as the recipient of the Hon. Shira A. Scheindlin Award for Excellence in the Courtroom by the New York State Bar Association, Commercial & Federal Litigation Section, awarded to an attorney who has demonstrated superlative trial and litigation advocacy skills, and has also demonstrated a devotion to mentoring the next generation of attorneys.

She has been a member of the faculty of the New York State Bar Association Trial Academy and has presented programs for the New York State Bar Association. In 2005, she chaired the Commercial & Federal Litigation Section of the New York State Bar Association, where she played an active role in developing the rules for the Commercial Division. She has served in the House of Delegates and other leadership positions in the New York State Bar Association.

Lauren has been an adjunct professor of law at Touro Law School since 2022, teaching an immersive course on pretrial litigation. Her curriculum includes a segment on alternative dispute resolution (ADR), and the importance of ADR in our changing litigation landscape. She is the author of several publications and has lectured extensively and participated as a faculty member in numerous CLE programs.

Lauren is available to mediate or arbitrate cases virtually or at any of our offices.