Gabriel Levinson

Real Estate Litigation Practice Leader

Gabriel is the Real Estate Litigation Practice Leader and a member of the Complex Litigation group.

Gabriel Levinson

Gabriel is a strategically aggressive litigator who has successfully challenged and defeated adversaries in a broad spectrum of high-profile legal matters in state and federal jurisdictions across the United States. His practice focuses on litigating complex and general commercial business disputes, including corporate, business tort, and breach of contract claims, as well as a broad array of commercial real estate disputes, including commercial lease and development disputes, business divorces, partnership disputes, cooperative and condominium matters, and construction disputes. 

Gabriel also represents major players in high-stakes corporate litigations, both prosecuting and defending claims arising from acquisitions, mergers, corporate governance disputes, proxy contests, joint venture disputes, emergency injunctive actions, shareholder disputes, derivative actions, and breach of contract disputes. He has achieved a strong record of success for clients in state and federal trial courts across the country. In addition to representing clients in all aspects of corporate and commercial litigation, Gabriel regularly counsels clients on pre-dispute situation management, managing risk, and high-exposure transactions. He also navigates clients through arbitration and mediation across the United States before multiple alternative dispute resolution tribunals, including the American Arbitration Association and Judicial Arbitration and Mediation Services.

Client Work

Gabriel’s representative experience includes:

  • Representing asset management firms ranging from $500 million to $16 billion under management, and other financial companies, in matters involving institutional lenders and investors, as well as actions concerning the enforceability of financial and commercial real estate documents. Noteworthy matters include reducing a fund’s liability by several million dollars for breaches of an advisory agreement; defending claims and defeating a motion for summary judgment for a breach of a commercial lease/guaranty on behalf of a high-profile investment firm; and preventing the foreclosure of a casino operated by a client’s fund. 
  • Representing private companies in disputes with their affiliates and subsidiaries, including prosecuting claims for fraud, fraudulent inducement, breach of fiduciary duty, and conversion on behalf of the majority members of five affiliated limited liability companies, resulting in a multimillion-dollar settlement and successful partition of the companies. 
  • Handling shareholder and partnership issues and disputes, including counseling minority shareholders and other institutional entities against an Israeli defense corporation; successfully negotiating a multimillion-dollar settlement for limited partners of one of the nation’s leading real estate development and investment firms; and preventing the elimination of minority investors’ and shareholders’ rights and ownership interests of a conglomerate by obtaining an injunction against the majority shareholder. 
  • Representing public and private companies and high-net-worth individuals in disputes concerning commercial real estate and financial matters, including preventing the sale and demolition of a New York church’s 100-year-old building. 
  • Representing real estate owners and developers in complex commercial real estate issues, including prosecuting claims for a high-profile developer against a condominium board to prevent the board from taking portions of the developer’s multimillion-dollar health club unit. 
  • Representing corporations in multijurisdictional disputes, including negotiating the settlement and reduction of multimillion-dollar water contamination claims on behalf of a petroleum corporation. 
  • Representing restaurant businesses in capitalization and conversion disputes, including limiting the exposure and liability of a restaurant partnership through the successful resolution of claims accusing the partnership of conversion and fraud. 
  • Advising and counseling companies to mitigate or eliminate legal exposure under Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act and state-level human rights laws and successfully defending and resolving brick-and-mortar accessibility lawsuits. 

Matters were handled prior to joining ArentFox Schiff.

Publications & Recognitions

Publications

  • Quoted, “U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and retired justice Sandra Day O’Connor has sparked a fight over adaptation rights,” The Hollywood Reporter, August 14, 2020. 
  • Mentioned, “RBG-O’Connor Author Says Atty Sank Alyssa Milano Film Deal,” Law360, August 12, 2020. 
  • Mentioned, “KidZania Franchisee Wants Co. Barred From Axing $3M Deal,” Law360, April 28, 2020. 
  • Quoted, “Hemp Buyer Can’t Dodge Suit Seeking $4.6M For Pot Plants,” Law360, March 31, 2021. 

Recognitions

  • New York Super Lawyers, Thomson Reuters (2013–2020, 2024–2026).

Memberships & Certifications

Memberships

  • American Bar Association 
  • New York State Bar Association 
  • Association of the Bar of the City of New York 
  • Association of Certified Fraud Examiners 

Certifications

  • Certified Fraud Examiner 

Insights