Daniel E. Katz is a Founding Partner of Rich, Intelisano & Katz, LLP. He specializes in construction law, commercial law and securities and employment arbitrations. Mr. Katz has received the highest designation (A-V) from the Martindale-Hubbell Peer Rating Review. He was recognized as a "Super Lawyer" in the field of Construction Litigation every year since 2006. Mr. Katz has been named in "Best Lawyers in America" as one of the top construction lawyers in the country. He is a Charter Fellow in the Construction Lawyers Society of America, which is a nationwide organization of leading practitioners in the field. Mr. Katz has also been listed in the Chambers USA: America’s Leading Business Lawyers Guide as an outstanding lawyer in the field of Construction Law.
Mr. Katz was named “Construction Lawyer of the Year” in New York City for 2023 by the U.S. News & World Report / Best Lawyers publication.
Mr. Katz has extensive experience within the areas of construction, real estate and commercial litigation, as well as securities arbitrations. Prior to Rich, Intelisano & Katz, LLP, Mr. Katz was a founding partner of the boutique litigation law firm of Bauman Katz & Grill LLP. He has also served in the Commercial Litigation Division for the Corporation Counsel of the City of New York where he was responsible for numerous actions in the areas of construction, real estate, civil rights and general commercial law. As an Associate at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, Mr. Katz also handled securities and class action litigation. While he was a partner at the law firm of Ross & Cohen, Mr. Katz handled construction, surety, commercial, real estate, employment and lien law litigation. He has also handled numerous securities and employment-related arbitrations.
Mr. Katz obtained his Juris Doctor magna cum laude from Brooklyn Law School. He graduated from the University of Michigan with a Master of Arts degree in American History. Mr. Katz completed his Bachelor of Arts degree summa cum laude in History-Political Science at the State University of New York at Buffalo. He is a member of the Bar of the State of New York, and is admitted to practice before the United States District Court for the Northern, Southern and Eastern Districts of New York and the Second Circuit Court of Appeals. Mr. Katz is a member of the Association of the Bar of the City of New York, the New York State Bar Association and the American Bar Association.
Mr. Katz has successfully litigated many important commercial and construction cases. In Leavitt Enterprise Inc. v. Two Fulton Square LLC, 181 A.D.3d 662, 120 N.Y.S.3d 363 (2d Dep’t 2020) the Second Department upheld a motion to dismiss a complaint and enforced an access/cooperation agreement entered into by the parties. In Minelli Construction Co., Inc. v. WDF Inc, 134 A.D.3d 508, 20 N.Y.S.3d 530 (1st Dep’t 2015), the First Department sustained Mr. Katz’s argument that a termination for convenience clause could not be challenged because it was allegedly exercised in bad faith. In Federal Insurance Co. v. County of Westchester, 921 F. Supp. 1136 (S.D.N.Y. 1996), the District Court denied the County of Westchester’s attempt to obtain a stay on appeal without posting a bond. The County’s appeal, which it eventually abandoned, related to a judgment that Mr. Katz’s client obtained, entitling it to a multi-million dollar award for its damages claim arising from the construction of a sewage treatment plant. The judgment was entered after Mr. Katz and his team conducted a ten week trial. In Diamond v. EFCO, 179 A.D. 420, 578 N.Y.S.2d 553 (1st Dep’t 1992), the First Department sustained Mr. Katz’s arguments and vacated a mechanic’s lien which was filed against a condominium because it was a “blanket lien.” In M. Viaggio v. City of New York, 114 A.D.2d 939, 495 N.Y.S.2d 680 (2d Dep’t 1985) the Second Department upheld for the first time the validity of the City of New York’s termination for convenience clause in construction contracts. Mr. Katz also had conducted the trial in the lower court. In Koch v. Consolidated Edison, 62 N.Y.2d 548, 479 N.Y.S.2d 163 (1984) the New York Court of Appeals upheld Mr. Katz’s arguments and applied offensives collateral estoppel to preclude Consolidated Edison from disputing they were the cause of a major city-wide power black out. It was one of the first instances in New York where offensive collateral estoppel was upheld on appeal. The case also sustained Mr. Katz’s arguments raising important issues regarding third party beneficiary and tort foreseeability law.
Mr. Katz's other reported cases include Pizzarotti, LLC v. CabGram Developer, LLC, 219 A.D.3d 1352, 196 N.Y.S.3d 125 (2nd Dep’t 2023); 361 Broadway Associates Holdings, LLC v. Blonder Builders, Inc., 178 A.D.3d 494, 114 N.Y.S.3d 337 (2nd Dep't 2019); Ferrara Bros. Building Materials Corp. v. FMC Construction, LLC, 138 A.D.3d 685, 30 N.Y.S.3d 157 (2d Dep't 2016); Board of Managers of Hester Gardens v. Well-Come Holdings LLC, 128 A.D. 3d 601, 10 N.Y.S. 3d 72 (1st Dep't 2015); Verizon New York Inc. v. Case Construction Co. Inc., 63 A.D.3d 521, 880 N.Y.S.2d 476 (1st Dep't 2009); Verolla v. Beechwood Carmen Building Corp., 43 A.D.3d 913, 841 N.Y.S.2d 610 (2nd Dep't 2007); Walter H. Poppe General Construction Inc. v. Ramapo, 280 A.D.2d 667, 721 N.Y.S.2d 248 (2nd Dep't 2001); Casa Redimix Concrete Construction Corp. v. National Union Fire Insurance Co. of Pittsburgh, PA, 277 A.D. 2d 95, 716 N.Y.S.2d 19 (1st Dep't 2000); York Hunter Construction, Inc. v. Avalon Properties, Inc., 104 F. Supp.2d 211 (S.D.N.Y. 2000); Fred Tuck & Company, Inc. v. Bronxville Properties Inc., 267 A.D.2d 423, 701 N.Y.S.2d 107 (2nd Dep't 1999); West Realty v. Foster & Kleiser, 212 A.D.2d 458, 622 N.Y.S.2d 948 (1st Dep't 1995); Federal Savings and Loan Insurance Corp. v. 52 Park Associates, 710 F. Supp. 490 (S.D.N.Y. 1989); Fleet Aerospace Corp. v. Holderman, 637 F. Supp. 742 (S.D. Ohio), aff'd, 796 F.2d 135 (6th Cir. 1986), vacated and remanded, 481 U.S. 1026 (1987); Burns v. Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Co., 633 F. Supp. 77 (S.D. Iowa 1986), aff'd, 820 F.2d 246 (8th Cir. 1987); and Alberts v. City of New York, 549 F. Supp. 227 (S.D.N.Y. 1982).