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Steven H. Holinstat

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Steven Holinstat is a senior counsel in the Litigation Department. Over the past two decades, he has handled complex, high-profile litigations that have resulted in hundreds of millions of dollars in recoveries.

Steve has a broad and diverse background in all aspects of high-stakes commercial litigation and is the vice-Chair of the firm’s Fiduciary Litigation Group, is the lead litigator in a number of high-net-worth trust and estate matters, and has developed a reputation for being adept at intervening and resolving challenging interfamily disputes before they escalate into full-blown litigation.

When litigation is unavoidable, Steve is an aggressive and experienced trial lawyer. He has handled cases before federal and state courts around the country and numerous arbitrations before JAMS, the American Arbitration Association, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (formerly the National Association of Securities Dealers, or NASD) and the International Chamber of Commerce.

Recognitions

  • 2019 Unsung Hero Award for defending the rights of people with autism to live in their communities without discrimination
  • 2019 Lawyers of Distinction Award for Civil Litigation
  • 2019 U.S. News & World Report Rankings gave Proskauer’s New York Office Tier One rankings for Litigation -- Trusts & Estates
  • 2017 U.S. News Rankings gave Proskauer's New York Office Tier One rankings for Litigation -- Trusts & Estates

Lectures and Articles

  • Steve has and continues to conduct lectures and webinars on various Fiduciary Litigation-Related Issues, including:
    • Anticipating and Preparing for Estate Litigation
    • Mitigating the Risks of Fiduciary Litigation: Guidelines for Institutional Trustees
    • Legal & Ethical Challenges in Assessing Your Client’s Mental Capacity and Ability To Exercise Free Will
    • Managing Fiduciary Duties Regarding Investment in Today's Economic Environment
    • Estate Planning: Anticipating and Preparing for Estate Litigation
      Estate and Trust Administration Disputes
    • Identifying and Addressing Potential Issues Involving Clients With Diminished Mental Capacity and/or Who May Be Unduly Influenced by Others
  • Steve has also been the Chair of and a Panelist at a CLE for Taking & Defending Depositions that was held at the NYC Bar Association
  • April 24, 2018 article in the New York Law Journal, titled “The Family Office Conundrum”
  • August 29, 2016 article in the New York Law Journal, titled “Who Can Recant a Decant? Who is the ‘Creator’ of a Decanted Trust?

Published Decisions

  • Discover Property & Cas. Co. v. Nat’l Football League, 2019 WL 5067918 (N.Y. Sup. Ct. Oct. 9, 2019)
  • In Re Platinum-Beechwood Litig., 390 F. Supp.3d 483 (S.D.N.Y. 2019)
  • In Re Platinum-Beechwood Litig., 2019 WL 2569653 (S.D.N.Y. June 21, 2019)
  • In Re Platinum-Beechwood Litig., 378 F. Supp.3d 318 (S.D.N.Y. 2019)
  • In Re Platinum-Beechwood Litig., 377 F. Supp.3d 414 (S.D.N.Y. 2019)
  • Slifka v. Slifka, 2019 WL 1771261 (N.Y. Sup. Ct. Apr. 19, 2019)
  • Slifka v. Slifka, 80 N.Y.S.3d 13 (1st 2018)
  • Oasis Therapeutic Life Ctrs., Inc. v. Wade, 198 A.3d 1015 (N.J. App. Ct. 2018)
  • Senior Health Ins. Co. of PA. v. Beechwood Re Ltd., 345 F. Supp.3d 515 (S.D.N.Y. 2018)
  • JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. v. Loutit, 2013 WL 497329 (N.Y. Sup. Ct. N.Y. Co. Jan. 12, 2013)
  • Felty v. Felty, 969 N.Y.S.2d 557 (2d Dep’t 2013)
  • Mera v. Rodriguez, 904 N.Y.S.2d 83 (2d Dep’t 2010)
  • Mera v. Rodriguez, 899 N.Y.S.2d 893 (2d Dep’t 2010)
  • Rogers Street, LLC v. BMR-Rogers Street LLC, 2009 WL 3644730 (Mass. Super. Aug. 19, 2009)
  • Rosenberg v. MetLife, Inc., 8 N.Y.3d 359 (N.Y. 2007)
  • Abbott Labs. v. Church & Dwight, Inc., 2007 WL 3120007 (N.D.Ill. 23, 2007)
  • Moscow Dynamo v. Ovechkin, 412 F. Supp.2d 24 (D.D.C. 2006)
  • Eli Lilly & Co. v. Emisphere Tech., Inc., 408 F.Supp.2d 668 (S.D.Ind. 6, 2006)
  • Hartog Rahal Partnership v. Am. Motorists Ins. Co., 359 F. Supp.2d 331 (S.D.N.Y. 2005)
  • In re Llewellyn, 2014 WL 7337462 (N.Y. Surr. Ct. Dec. 23, 2014), aff’d 135 A.D.3d 499 (1st 2016)
  • Bayerische Landesbank v. v. John Street LLC, 2011 WL 11166187 (N.Y. Sup. Ct. Aug. 1, 2011), aff’d, 960 N.Y.S.2d 64 (1st Dep’t 2013)
  • Church & Dwight Co., Inc. v. Abbott Labs., 2008 WL 2566193 (D.N.J. June 24, 2008)
  • Church & Dwight Co., Inc. v. Abbott Labs., 2008 WL 2565547 (D.N.J. June 24, 2008)
  • Church & Dwight Co., Inc. v. Abbott Labs., 2008 WL 2565349 (D.N.J. June 24, 2008)
  • Church & Dwight Co., Inc. v. Abbott Labs., 2007 WL 1101446 (D.N.J. 11, 2007)
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The New Jersey Appellate Division, in a landmark ruling — Oasis Therapeutic Life Centers, Inc. v. Wade et al., (December 10, 2018) — upheld a real estate purchaser’s right to assert a claim under New Jersey’s Law Against Discrimination (the LAD) against the purchaser’s prospective neighbors who discriminated against the purchaser because of the disability of the person intending to live on the premises, even if the purchaser (e.g., a charitable entity created to assist members of the protected class) does not fall within the protected class itself.

The decision paves the way for Proskauer lawyers Alychia Lynn Buchan, Maryssa A. Mataras, Evelyn Pang and I to continue litigating this matter, which was previously dismissed.

Our client, Oasis Therapeutic Life Centers, Inc. (Oasis), is a nonprofit organization providing residential and vocational opportunities and training to autistic individuals. Oasis also creates temporary and long-term group homes in farm-like settings for autistic young adults, where these individuals can live and work.