Mr. Banks is a partner in Weil’s Appellate Litigation practice group, where he litigates appeals in the state and federal appellate courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court and the New York Court of Appeals. In 2018, Mr. Banks was shortlisted for Euromoney’s “Rising Star” award for Appellate Litigation, and he is recognized as a recommended lawyer for Appellate: Court of Appeals by Legal 500.
His recent matters include:
- Securing two significant victories for Morgan Stanley, when the Second Circuit affirmed a complete defense verdict in a rare private insider trading jury trial, and the Appellate Division, New York Supreme Court, affirmed the dismissal of all claims on summary judgment in a related state-court fraud case.
- Obtaining the dismissal, and affirmance on appeal, of all claims brought against Lehman Brothers and several former executives in a complex fraud, breach of contract, and breach of fiduciary duty action in New York state trial and appellate courts stemming from commercial real estate investments made on the eve of the financial crisis.
- Winning a significant victory for Marsh & McLennan before the Second Circuit which affirmed the grant of summary judgment on claims arising from a 2004 New York Attorney General investigation, and provided important guidance to companies regarding their rights to terminate employees who do not cooperate in an internal investigation.
- Successfully representing Lehman Brothers and the Archstone-Smith REIT among 20 other defendants in securing summary judgment on the eve of trial – later affirmed on appeal – on all claims in a $4 billion investor class action arising from one of the largest REIT going-private transactions in history.
- Successfully representing the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey in litigation involving the 1993 World Trade Center bombing in New York’s highest court. Also successfully defended the Port Authority in litigation seeking hundreds of millions of dollars in damages arising from marine terminal leases, including securing victory in the Third Circuit on plaintiff’s novel and complex constitutional claims.
- Securing a victory for Schindler Elevator Corporation in the United States Supreme Court in a case interpreting the public disclosure bar of the False Claims Act.
Mr. Banks also has an active pro bono practice, including successfully vacating a capital defendant’s death sentence after an appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, and representing another death row inmate in post-conviction appeals to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, in certiorari petitions to the U.S. Supreme Court and in the Supreme Court of Florida.