Jeffrey Grubman, Esq. is a veteran ADR professional who has served as a mediator in over 2,000 cases in 36 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico in a wide variety of complex cases, including class actions and high impact, multi-party matters. Mr. Grubman works tirelessly to settle every case he mediates, employing a variety of creative settlement techniques.

Mr. Grubman is known for his ability to connect with parties through a thorough understanding of the merits of their case while effectively addressing and managing the emotions involved.  He has been praised by clients for getting to resolution on particularly contentious and complex matters.

Mr. Grubman regularly lectures and publishes articles on a local and national level regarding timely ADR issues, including continuing legal education presentations to law firms. Before he became a full time neutral, Mr. Grubman was a litigator with Manatt, Phelps & Phillips and Morgan, Lewis & Bockius and subsequently became a partner in two boutique South Florida law firms.

ADR Experience and Qualifications

• Handled thousands of mediations across the country, specifically class action disputes and matters in securities, employment, entertainment, insurance, intellectual property and complex commercial, with a notable settlement rate
• Served as sole arbitrator and as a member of tripartite arbitration panels in a variety of business, securities, entertainment, banking and commercial disputes
• Mediated settlement of nationwide class action involving claims related to allegedly improper fuel surcharges against Fortune 100 company
• Mediated $500 million plus class action against large insurance company by 70,000 policy holder class across 30 states involving alleged overcharging of cost of insurance for variable life policies
• Mediated class action against Fortune 100 company related to alleged overcharging of consumers in leases for office copiers
• Mediated $10 million plus dispute regarding the corporate control of a large telecommunications company
• Mediated complex international dispute involving the sale of patents and trademarks between two large South American companies and encompassing claims of tortious interference and breach of non-compete agreement
• Mediated action with pending motion for class certification related to the propriety of a national bank’s process for instituting force-placed property insurance
• Arbitrator in dispute between television production company and talent working on a reality TV show
• Arbitrator in dispute between international television programmer and television station regarding interpretation of termination provision in programming agreement
• Mediation of music copyright case involving alleged unauthorized use of an internationally known recording artist’s song in a national television advertising campaign by a Fortune 100 company
• Mediated dispute between two independent record companies regarding their claim to rights concerning a superstar recording artist, which included causes of action for trademark infringement and tortious interference
• Mediated multi-million dollar life insurance dispute involving premium financing and allegations of STOLI (Stranger Originated Life Insurance)
• Arbitrator on multi-million dollar case against investment advisor related to feeder fund investment in Madoff ponzi scheme
• Fraud claims by investors of long standing NYSE broker dealer against the principal and control persons claiming that the principal’s actions put the firm out of business
• $10 million plus securities fraud action against the principals of a closely held limited liability company involving corporate waste and theft
• Mediated 8 figure defamation and national origin discrimination claims brought by senior executive against large banking institution
• Successfully navigated parties through pre-suit mediation of Sarbanes-Oxley and Dodd Frank whistleblower claim by CEO of joint venture owned by two Fortune 100 companies
• Mediated gender, age and national origin discrimination claim against large financial services company
• Mediated a seven figure Florida Whistleblower claim pre-suit by former Chief Operating Officer and President of a subsidiary against multi-national company
• Mediated action initiated by independent record label against a major international record company challenging the method of calculating royalties for permanent digital downloads
• Mediated right of publicity claim relating to unauthorized use of world known athlete’s name and likeness on in-store displays in national retail chain
• Mediated a series of Lanham Act trademark infringement and unfair competition claim by national security system company against competitors
• Mediated trademark infringement claim pending before the International Trade Commission and in federal court by Fortune 100 company related to design of famous sneakers

Representative Matters

• Business & Commercial
• Mediated a wide array of business, banking, and commercial disputes including actions among partners/members/shareholders in closely held companies, shareholder derivative claims and direct claims for fraud, breach of fiduciary duty, usurpation of corporate opportunities, corporate waste, dissolutions, forced buyout of one party’s shares, non-compete and non-solicitation claims, attempts by purchasers of businesses to undo transactions on the basis of fraud, breach of contract and business torts among a broad range of industries, and a variety of commercial claims under the Uniform Commercial Code including banking matters
• Employment
• Mediated wage-and-hour claims; Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) disability claims; Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) claims; non-compete and non-solicitation matters; whistleblower actions; race, gender, age and national origin discrimination claims; harassment; disability discrimination, including Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA); Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) claims
• Entertainment and Sports
• Mediated numerous entertainment litigation matters involving the music, media, television and film industries
• Substantial experience representing parties in entertainment litigation, including major record companies, independent record companies, recording artists, songwriters, personal managers, producers, actors, and actresses
• Insurance
• Mediated many first-party insurance and bad faith claims, including hurricane claims related to large commercial losses, claims of fraud against insurance companies and agents involving life insurance and annuities, and a wide variety of insurance coverage disputes
• Intellectual Property
• Mediated many trademark, unfair competition, trade secret, and copyright infringement claims involving a wide variety of industries and products
• Substantial experience representing parties in intellectual property matters, including trademark infringement, copyright infringement, and trade secret disputes. Among other industries, Mr. Grubman has litigated many cases involving the entertainment industry
• Probate/Trusts
• Utilized the knowledge acquired from litigating probate and trust matters to assist parties and their counsel in mediating probate and trust disputes
• Real Property
• Mediated a wide variety of real estate related disputes, including commercial foreclosure actions, actions to quiet title, actions by purchasers to obtain the return of their condominium deposits, actions between condominium associations and country clubs and their residents, and commercial landlord-tenant disputes
• Securities
• Mediated countless Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) arbitration cases throughout the country involving customer-broker disputes and disputes among broker dealers and between broker dealers and registered representatives
• Mediated securities class actions
• Mediated shareholder derivative actions
• Mediated claims under the Securities Act of 1933, the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934, and the Investment Advisor’s Act of 1940
• Mediated claims under a variety of state blue sky laws 
• Mediated a wide variety of hedge fund cases
• Mediated numerous Ponzi scheme cases
• Mediated and arbitrated clawback claims

Honors, Memberships, and Professional Activities

Presentations

• Non‐FINRA Arbitrations ‐ A Look at RIA Issues, Public Investors Advocate Bar Association, 28th Annual Meeting, October 2019
• Settlements and Mediation from the Defense Perspective, Public Investors Advocate Bar Association, 27th Annual Meeting, October 2018
• Alternative Dispute Resolution for Litigaion and Transactional Attorneys, 9th Annual Miami Entertainment Law Symposium, April 2018
• Mediation Panel Speaker, Public Investors Advocate Bar Association, 26th Annual Meeting, October 2017
• Mediation: Making Sense of the Unknown, ABA Section of Labor and Employment Law, 2016 Midwinter Meeting, February 2016
• Managing the Complex Business Case in ADR, ABA Section of Dispute Resolution 16th Annual Spring Conference, 2014
• Expanding the Use of ADR in the Media and Entertainment Industries, JAMS & NY Bar Entertainment Section, September 2014
• The Good, the Bad and the Ugly of ADR in Intellectual Property Cases, JAMS, March 2014
• Best Practices in Employment Mediation, JAMS Mediation Week, October 2014
• Ethics in IP and Entertainment ADR, North American Sports, Entertainment and IP Association, November 2013
• Moderator, Mediation Panel, Public Investors Advocate Bar Association Annual Meeting, 2012
• Conducted Mock Mediation, hosted by Caitlin, Inc. before an audience of independent broker dealers in Phoenix, AZ, 2007

Professional Activities

• Completed Virtual ADR training conducted by the JAMS Institute, the training arm of JAMS
• Selected as one of the "Top Three Mediators" in the Daily Business Review's "Best of" survey three years in a row (2013-2015)
• Steering Committee, Legal Aid Society of Palm Beach County, Inc.

Publications

• Author, "Whistleblower Cases are Custom Tailored for ADR," Law.com, August 2015
• Author, “Why are Attorneys Afraid of Conflict in Mediation?,” Law.com, May 2015
• Author, “ADR is on the Rise in Employment Cases,” Law.com, April 2015
• "Lawyer Limelight: Jeffrey Grubman," Lawdragon, ADR Profile, October 2014
• Author, "Raging Bull" Decision Highlights Importance of ADR in Entertainment Disputes," Law.com, June 2014
• Author, "Securities Litigators Who Do Not Understand Insurance Coverage Could Pay Dearly," Law.com, March 2014
• Author, "Taking Advantage of ADR in the Entertainment Industry," Inside Counsel, April 2013 
• Author, “Achieving Excellent Results for Your Clients in Mediation,” Palm Beach County Bar Association Bulletin, April and May 2011
• Author, Mediation: A Roadmap to Success for Counsel and Client, Conflict Management Newsletter, American Bar Association, Summer 2008
• Author, Chapter on Mediation, PLI Securities Arbitration, 2006
• Author, Securities Mediation, PIABA Bar Journal, Winter 2006

Background and Education

• Jeffrey Grubman, P.A, focusing on Mediation and Arbitration, 2005-2012
• Litigation Partner, at two boutique law firms (Herman & Grubman, Miami and Stollman & Grubman, Boca Raton), 1994-2005
• Morgan, Lewis & Bokius LLP, 1991-1994
• Ruden McClosky, 1990-1991
• Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP, 1989-1990
• J.D., University of Southern California, 1989 (Hale Moot Court Honors)
• B.S., Finance (with High Honors), University of Florida, 1986