Profile
Sylvia Simson, a shareholder in Greenberg Traurig’s New York office, is a litigator with a diverse practice focused on a broad range of complex commercial litigation. Ms. Simson has deep experience with contract and deal-related litigation (specifically on those governed by New York or Delaware law), class action defense, financial services litigation, energy litigation, multi-district litigation, litigation and investigations involving sensitivity and/or crisis management components, and mass tort/products liability litigation, including in the pharmaceutical/medical device, chemicals, energy, consumer products, and cosmetics contexts. Experienced in both trials and appeals, Ms. Simson is well-known for her collaboration with her clients and for her brief-writing skills. She works with clients to develop tailored strategies with the goal of winning cases at the early dispositive motion stage (when possible, without the need for any discovery) and, where a case proceeds to discovery, limiting the scope of large-scale litigation, avoiding class certification, and winning on summary judgment. Ms. Simson has also successfully defended clients in both jury and bench trials and on appeal in both federal and state courts.
Ms. Simson has counseled and litigated on behalf global and national corporations, financial institutions, hedge funds, private equity firms and their portfolio companies, privately-held companies, LLCs, partnerships, executives and board members, start-up entities, and high-net-worth individuals in federal, state, and bankruptcy adversary proceeding cases across the country. Ms. Simson has litigated, among other things, disputes relating to M&A transactions, stock or membership interest purchase agreements, collaboration and licensing agreements, royalties, bankruptcy and/or financial restructuring, corporate governance, alleged fraud and/or breach of fiduciary duty claims, purported false advertising and deceptive trade practices claims, various forms of financial transactions and products, SPACs, alleged privacy violations (including under the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act), purported toxic exposure claims (including chemicals, dust, and asbestos), indemnity and insurance, various environmental statutes and regulations, and alleged False Claims Act violations. Her experience spans a wide range of industries and Ms. Simson works to become deeply familiar with the subject matter relevant to the dispute at hand, and where necessary, works alongside expert witnesses in various scientific and professional fields.
In addition, Ms. Simson has experience with large-scale and individual arbitration and mediation, complex investigations brought by government agencies or authorities, negotiating and drafting complex settlement agreements, providing counsel in transactional and regulatory contexts, advising on risk mitigation and preparedness, and developing coordinated defense strategies integrating business, media, regulatory, and litigation dimensions.
Concentrations
- Commercial litigation, including both trials and appeals
- Products liability litigation, including MDLs and the coordination of related cases in federal and state courts
- Class actions in federal and state courts
- M&A disputes and deal-related litigation
- Energy litigation
- Financial litigation
- Life sciences and healthcare litigation
- Environmental litigation, including alleged exposure litigation
- Investigations
Capabilities
Experience
- Successfully represented national bank in various putative class actions across the country arising out of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act and the Paycheck Protection Program, resulting in dismissals with prejudice on dispositive motion practice and without the need for any discovery.
- Represent global pharmaceutical company in a complex contractual dispute pending in the Southern District of New York arising out of a Collaboration and License Agreement and significant royalties owed with respect to sales of licensed pharmaceutical products.
- Represent global cosmetics company in four putative class actions alleging violations of the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act. Won several motions to dismiss for failure to state a claim, including being named as “Legal Lion of the Week” by Law360 for one such decision.
- Represent national bank in putative class actions and individual claims across the country relating to allegedly unauthorized digital payment and other electronic fund transfers. Won motion to enforce arbitration and class action waiver provisions of consumer agreements and to compel individual arbitrations for all named Plaintiffs in both the Southern District of New York and the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
- Represent national bank in putative class action filed in the Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York alleging violations of the automatic stay.
- Represent national bank in putative class action filed in the Eastern District of New York concerning a service malfunction resulting in duplicate transactions. Won motion to enforce arbitration and class action waiver provisions of consumer agreements and to compel individual arbitrations for all named Plaintiffs.
- Represented national bank in complex interpleader litigation in the Southern District of New York involving counterclaims ranging from civil conspiracy to tortious interference with business relations. Won a motion to dismiss all counterclaims with prejudice as well as motion for traditional interpleader relief, including to interplead the funds and for a full discharge of liability.
- Represented national battery manufacturer in putative class action in the Eastern District of New York relating to allegedly misleading advertising and asserting, among other things, General Business Law violations. Won motion to dismiss all claims with prejudice, including reconsideration motion.
- Represent national bank in putative class action in the Southern District of New York relating to the imposition of allegedly usurious interest rates and automatic billing processes associated with car leases. Won motion to enforce arbitration and class action waiver provision of lease and to compel individual arbitration.
- Represent national bank in putative class action filed in the Southern District of New York relating to fees levied in connection with check deposit returns.
- Represent private equity firms and their portfolio companies in a wide range of commercial disputes.
- Represent national banks and hedge funds as third parties in deal-related litigation and securities putative class actions across the country, including in Delaware, Texas, Pennsylvania, and New York.
- Represented national bank in complex litigation in New York Supreme Court, Kings County Commercial Division, involving the entitlement to multimillion-dollar proceeds under a promissory note exchanged in connection with a luxury car dealership sale. Won summary judgment without the need for any discovery, with the court finding the underlying contracts to be clear and unambiguous in the client’s favor.
- Represented LIPA and PSEGLI in a complex dispute and purported class action pending in New York Supreme Court, Suffolk County, arising out of the installation of electric utility poles, with allegations involving alleged property damage and purported environmental exposure. Argued and defeated class certification demand by Plaintiffs and ultimately obtained complete dismissal of the litigation.
- Represented Seacor Holdings, Inc., O’Brien’s Response Management, and National Response Corporation in connection with various claims stemming from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, including in the largest multidistrict litigation to date, MDL 2179. Won motion to dismiss negligent firefighting class action as well as the related Fifth Circuit appeal. Won summary judgment motion dismissing tens of thousands of exposure claims on derivative immunity and preemption grounds.°
- Represented former shareholders of a chemical company and a special purpose entity in a complex dispute in Delaware state court arising out of a $3.2 billion stock sale involving breach of contract, fraud, and contribution claims under the New Jersey Spill Compensation and Control Act.°
- Represented Davol, Inc. and C. R. Bard, Inc. in connection with various federal and state court claims relating to its hernia mesh products and inferior vena cava (“IVC”) filters. Part of trial team that obtained full defense verdict in key IVC filter trial in New Orleans.
- Represented Pfizer in thousands of actions alleging that Lipitor caused claimants to develop type 2 diabetes. Successfully excluded Plaintiffs’ general causation experts and won summary judgment motion dismissing all claims, both upheld on appeal.°
- Represented Standard Industries and its affiliates in a complex declaratory judgment and breach of contract case relating to responsibility for the remediation of a Superfund site.
- Represented Express Scripts in a seminal breach of contract jury trial in St. Louis, Missouri and won a full defense verdict.°
- Represented private equity firm Crestview in a contractual dispute involving its exit from an investment in a portfolio company.°
- Represented KCBX Terminals Company and Koch Carbon, LLC in a class action relating to the handling of petroleum coke and coal at transfer terminals in Chicago.°
- Represented Colgate in alleged asbestos exposure personal injury actions in New Jersey.°
- Represented Toyobo in False Claims Act litigation relating to fiber used to manufacture ballistic fabric in bullet-resistant vests.
°The above representations were handled by Ms. Simson prior to her joining Greenberg Traurig, LLP.
- Judicial Intern, Hon. Jerome Feller, U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of New York, 2007
Recognition & Leadership
- Listed, Benchmark Litigation, “40 & Under - U.S. Edition,” 2024
- Shortlisted, Euromoney, "Women in Business Awards - Litigation Rising Star," 2024
- Listed, Thomson Reuters, "Stand-Out Lawyers," 2024
- Team Member, a Law360 “Product Liability Practice Group of the Year,” 2021-2022
- Team Member, a Law360 “Environmental Practice Group of the Year,” 2022
- Fellow, American Bar Foundation
- Member, Personal Care Products Council (PCPC)
- Executive Council Member, GlamourGals, 2024-Present
- Member, Board of Directors, Savvy Ladies, 2023-Present
- Mentor, Leadership Council on Legal Diversity (LCLD) Mentoring Program
Credentials
-
J.D., Brooklyn Law School, 2009
- Executive Articles Editor, Brooklyn Journal of International Law
- Moot Court Honors Society
- B.A., cum laude, New York University, 2006
- New York
- Supreme Court of Texas
- U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York
- U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York
- U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York
- U.S. District Court for the Central District of Illinois
- U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas
- U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
- French, Fluent