Attorneys & Staff

P. Jay Wilker, Robert B. McKay, Joseph Hansen, Joseph Termini, Howard J. August,
and Dawn M. O'Connell

P. Jay Wilker

P. JAY WILKER has thirty-five years’ experience as a commercial litigator handling numerous complex disputes. He has tried numerous jury and non-jury cases and he has more than twenty years’ experience representing insurance and reinsurance companies in arbitrations and litigations.  He has handled approximately one hundred reinsurance arbitrations, of which more than thirty have gone to a full hearing on the merits.  He has been successful in recovering millions of dollars from various reinsurers and retrocessionaires, including those located in the London market and Central and South America.  He has spoken at industry seminars and has authored and co-authored a number of articles involving reinsurance issues. 

Trial and Arbitration Experience

Wilker won the first jury verdict in the U.S. rescinding a reinsurance agreement, in the case of Gerling Global Reinsurance Corporation -- U.S. Branch v. ACE Property & Casualty Company (S.D.N.Y. 2003).  In a related dispute that was arbitrated, he obtained rescission of several additional reinsurance agreements, resulting in a recovery for his client of almost $11 million.

Wilker tried the first case to hold that a bank is not subject to CFTC regulation for spot market foreign currency transactions, in the case of Bank Brussels Lambert, S.A. v. Intermetals Corp., 779 F. Supp. 741 (S.D.N.Y. 1991).

He headed a 12-lawyer trial team in a dispute involving copper foil for circuit boards resulting in a favorable settlement for his client; and in a “337” proceeding before the International Trade Commission involving electrical discharge machine (EDM) technology, Wilker headed up a 15-lawyer trial team that obtained a result that allowed his client to continue to import its EDM technology. Mr. Wilker has handled numerous intellectual disputes involving requests for injunctive relief.

Using arbitration and litigation strategically, Wilker collected approximately $6 million owed to a U.S. reinsurer, from numerous reinsurers located in Central and South America. His efforts resulted in the first decision of a federal court holding that the New York and Inter-American Conventions’ provisions on posting of security trump the U.S. Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act’s prohibition against pre-judgment attachments.

Skandia America Reinsurance Corporation v. Caja Nacional de Ahorro y Seguros, 1997 U.S. Dist. Lexis 7221 (S.D.N.Y. 1997).

In the case of Intertec Contracting A/S, et al. v. Turner Steiner International, S.A., 6 A.D.3d 1, 774 N.Y.S.2d 14 (1st Dept. 2004), after the firm obtained a reversal of a forum non conveniens dismissal, Wilker obtained, through mediation, a very favorable settlement for the firm’s client.

In addition to his extensive experience in the litigation and arbitration of reinsurance matters, Wilker has served as lead counsel in a variety of litigations and arbitrations involving corporate issues, ERISA and employment matters.  He successfully tried two products liability cases for Mercedes Benz, and was lead counsel in two antitrust preliminary injunction hearings, obtaining an injunction in both cases. He has also handled a number of securities disputes for corporate and individual clients.

Education

FORDHAM UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF LAW, New York, NY.  J.D., 1969.  Wilker served on the editorial board of The Fordham Law Review.

FORDHAM COLLEGE, Bronx, NY. B.A., 1966.

Prior Affiliations

Prior to founding the firm of Wilker & McKay, the successor firm to Wilker & Lenci, Wilker had practiced at a number of much larger law firms, including Skadden Arps Slate Meager & Flom, Mudge Rose Guthrie & Alexander, Marks & Murase (now Bingham McCutchen), Townley & Updike and Oppenheimer, Wolff & Donnelly, where he headed up the firm’s reinsurance practice.

After graduating from law school, Wilker served for three years in the United States Marine Corps, where he was a member of the JAG Corps, with the rank of captain.

Bar Admissions and Professional Organizations

Wilker is admitted to practice before the Courts of New York and California and the following federal courts: the United States Supreme Court, the U.S. Courts of Appeals for the Second and the Federal Circuits, the U.S. District Courts for the Southern, Eastern and Northern Districts of New York, the Court of International Trade, and the U. S. Court of Military Appeals.

Wilker is a Certified Arbitrator of ARIAS (AIDA Reinsurance and Insurance Society), and also is a member of the American Bar Association and the Association of the Bar of the City of New York, where he has served on various committees.

Publications

“The Aggravation of Aggregation and Allocation,” Mealey’s Lit. Rpt.: Reinsurance (2003)

“Travelers v. Lloyd’s:  Has New York’s Highest Court Made It Harder for Cedents to Settle With Their Insureds?”  Mealey’s Lit. Rpt.:  Reinsurance (2001)

Arbitration of Reinsurance Disputes in the United States (published in the U.K.)
“The Production of Documents in a Reinsurance Arbitration Proceeding,” ARIAS -- U.S. Quarterly (4th Qtr. 2002).

“What Reinsurers Can Do To Collect Their Reinsurance,” Reinsurance Law & Practice (PLI 1998).

Co-author, "For Whom Bellefonte Tolls," Mealey's Lit. Rpt.: Reinsurance (5/29/98).

Co-author, "Utmost Good Faith and Rescission," Reinsurance Law & Practice (PLI 1997).

Co-author, "Curiale v. AIG Multi-Line Syndicate, Inc., et al.: New York Makes Reinsurance Fraud Potentially Risk-Free," Mealey's Lit. Rpt.: Reinsurance (2/26/97).

Co-author, "Uberrimae Fidei Under New York Law," Mealey's Lit. Rpt.: Reinsurance (1/15/97).

Co-author, "Arbitrating Reinsurance Disputes in the Years of the Cats," Journal of Reinsurance (Fall 1994).

Robert B. McKay

ROBERT B. MCKAY is a highly experienced trial lawyer who has successfully litigated numerous jury and bench trials in federal and state courts in the New York area.  His experience and know-how encompass the corporate and commercial fields, including matters involving banking, entertainment, insurance, securities, products liability, and estates. He has also taught seminars in ethics at his alma mater, Columbia Law School. McKay has also served for a number of years as an arbitrator for the National Arbitration Forum.

Trial and Arbitration Experience

McKay has represented both customers and broker-dealers in securities arbitrations, and obtained the only two monetary awards ever granted to Stratton Oakmont.  He also represented a syndicate of thirty-nine banks in a successful suit against three government-owned Costa Rican banks, resulting in a landmark ruling by the Second Circuit on the act of state doctrine.  See Allied Bank International v. Banco Credito Agricola De Cartago, 757 F.2d 516 (2d Cir. 1985). He also represented six U.S. companies, including CBS Records and Security Pacific National Bank, in arbitrations before the Iran-U.S. Claims Tribunal in The Hague against the Iranian Government, all of which concluded successfully. 

McKay also has considerable experience with the litigation and arbitration of disputes involving intellectual property and the entertainment industry.  Of particular note:

He represented Beatle George Harrison in a copyright infringement suit involving the song “My Sweet Lord,” which resulted in an award to Harrison of the rights to “He’s So Fine”, after persuading the District Court that Allen Klein, the former manager of The Beatles, had breached his fiduciary duties to Harrison by interfering with settlement negotiations and by effectively becoming the plaintiff in the suit against Harrison.

McKay represented Al Brodax, the producer of "The Yellow Submarine," in a suit against The Hearst Corporation for royalties, which resulted in a very favorable settlement for Brodax.

He also defended Al Brodax in a copyright infringement action, obtaining a favorable jury verdict as well as one of the largest awards of Rule 11 sanctions ever made.  Calloway v. Marvel Entertainment et al., 854 F.2d 1452 (2d Cir. 1988)

He represented The William Morris Agency in a major arbitration against Wayne Newton, resulting in a favorable settlement.

He represented a Parisian watchmaker in an arbitration brought against it by Calvin Klein, in which the arbitrators dismissed Klein's claims and granted McKay’s client’s counterclaims.

Education

COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF LAW, New York, NY.  J.D., 1969.
McKay was on the Dean’s List.  He was the recipient of a partial scholarship, and he was research assistant to Professor Monrad Paulsen.

FORDHAM COLLEGE, Bronx, NY.  B.A., 1966.
McKay was on the Dean’s list.  He participated in intramural sports and was a member of the Glee Club.

ST. JOSEPH’S COLLEGE, Princeton, NJ.  Attended 1962-64.
McKay was ranked first in his class.  He participated on the Speech and Debate team, the basketball team and intramural sports.

Prior Affiliations

McKay has been a partner of Carney & McKay for many years and, before that, was a partner in several boutique firms.

He was associated with Hardee Barovick Konecky & Braun from 1973 to 1978, where he represented The William Morris Agency and other clients, involving such personalities as George Harrison of The Beatles, Sidney Poitier, Wayne Newton, David Susskind, Barbara Mandrell and Charlie Rich.

McKay began his legal career at Simpson Thacher & Bartlett, with which he was associated from 1969 to 1972, and there his experience included product liability defense work for General Motors, banking litigation for Manufacturers Hanover Trust Company, and securities and antitrust litigation.

Bar Admissions and Professional Organizations

McKay is admitted to practice before the Courts of New York and the following federal courts: the United States Supreme Court, the U.S. Courts of Appeals for the Second Circuit and the Federal Circuit, the U.S. District Courts for the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York, the U.S. District Court for the Central District of Illinois, and the Court of International Trade.

Joseph Hansen

JOSEPH HANSEN has more than twenty-five years’ experience representing the interests of companies, boards of directors and individuals in complex matters, both transactional and non-transactional. His experience includes partnership at two very prominent law firms, White & Case and Kaye Scholer.  At Kaye Scholer, he was head of the firm’s Corporate and Finance Department

Transactional and Dispute Resolution Experience

Hansen has handled more than two hundred transactions involving corporate mergers, restructurings, financings, and the issuance of securities.  Additionally, he has supervised, or consulted on, numerous commercial dispute situations and governmental regulatory investigations.  He brought to bear a deep, insightful understanding of the business and commercial world in a variety of litigation matters that constituted an integral part of his practice for many years.  Such disputes related to, among other areas, contract interpretation, tender offers, securities investigations, including broker-dealer defense, restructuring proceedings, and board of director liability claims.  His clients have included United States Steel, General Electric Capital, Kidder Peabody and Westergaard & Co.

His transactional matters included project and unsecured financings for Prudential Insurance, acquisitions and acquisition financings for General Electric Capital, business combinations for more than sixty public companies, and numerous public offerings. His experience enables him to provide invaluable assistance and insights in the litigation context, including analysis of commercial and corporate documentation, and the formulation of strategy in the preparation and trial of a case.

Education

FORDHAM UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF LAW, New York, NY.  J.D., 1970.

FORDHAM COLLEGE, Bronx, N.Y.  B.A., 1966.

Prior Affiliations

Prior to joining the firm, Hansen was a partner for more than twenty years at White & Case and then at Kaye Scholer, where, as noted, he was head of the Corporate and Finance Department.   Before that, he clerked for U.S. District Judge Edward R. Neaher.

Bar Admissions and Professional Organizations

Hansen is admitted to the bar of the State of New York.

Joseph Termini

JOSEPH TERMINI joined the firm as Of Counsel after 29 years of distinguished service with the New York State Insurance Department (1973-2002). His tenure culminated as Special Deputy Superintendent of Insurance in charge of the Liquidation Bureau. He served also as the Bureau’s General Counsel, among other posts.

Professional Experience

Mr. Termini has been a prominent participant in shaping the law and practice of insurer insolvency as we know it today.  In the course of his career, he had full managerial responsibility for the Insurance Superintendent’s receivership of sixty-three insolvent insurance companies, with an aggregate asset base of over $3 billion.  He had administrative responsibility also for all New York Security Fund claims and claims outside of New York.

Mr. Termini’s work in liquidation and rehabilitation proceedings has produced a legacy of cutting edge decisions that are cited by jurists and legal practitioners in jurisdictions throughout the United States. His knowledge and experience in this important aspect of the insurance industry is recognized both here and abroad.

A lecturer before the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, he is also a member of the International Association of Insurance Receivers.

Education

ST. JOHN’S UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF LAW, Queens, NY. J.D.
THE CITADEL, Charleston, SC.  B.S.

Howard J. August

HOWARD J. AUGUST has worked on virtually all of the firm’s cases by conducting research and analysis and preparing briefs and other supporting documents. Mr. August has been associated with the firm since its formation in April 2001. He consistently, and efficiently, finds the most persuasive legal precedents that support the positions of the firm’s clients. He helps craft the arguments that present those positions in the most effective manner possible. His superior work product has contributed to the firm’s reputation for excellence and is a significant factor in the firm’s winning record.

Education

NEW YORK UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF LAW, New York, NY.  J.D., 1988.

August was a research assistant to Professor Rochelle Drefuss, and a staff editor for the Review of Law and Social Change.

NEW YORK UNIVERSITY, New York, NY. B.A. 1984
August graduated magna cum laude in Philosophy and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa.

Dawn M. O'Connell

DAWN M. O'CONNELL has over twenty (20) years experience in providing paralegal support and trial assistance on numerous complex litigation matters. During this period she was involved in the largest cases handled by the insurance practice of Townley and Updike, Oppenheimer, Wolff & Donnelly – New York Office, and most recently the firm of Wilker and Lenci.

Ms. O’Connell was on the litigation team that successfully represented Home Insurance Company in its dispute with Occidental Petroleum over the Love Canal disaster. In addition, she provided legal support in a number of other environmental and asbestos matters handled on behalf of the Home Insurance Company that were brought to a favorable conclusion.

Ms. O’Connell was the lead paralegal on the Gerling Global Reinsurance Corporation v. ACE Property & Casualty Insurance Company. This was a non-disclosure dispute that resulted in a rescission ruling in favor of Ms. O’Connell’s firm’s client. Most recently, she was involved in an arbitration resulting in another favorable rescission award on behalf of the firm’s client.

Ms. O’Connell is likewise highly experienced and knowledgeable in the field of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) methods. She has been involved in numerous procedures providing back-up support and client assistance in matters that have been resolved through an ADR process. In this area, she and her firms have specialized in bringing matters before arbitration and mediation forums.