Tortious Interference with Contracts & Economic Expectations: Tools for Attorneys to Navigate Claims, Defend Clients, and Avoid Pitfalls

Hon. Edward A. Jerejian | Cleary Giacobbe Alfieri Jacobs, LLC

Hon. Edward A. Jerejian, P.J.Ch. (Ret.), Chair, of the Firm’s Alternative Dispute Resolution Practice, serves as a neutral mediator and arbitrator, helping attorneys and individual parties resolve disputes more efficiently and cost-effectively than through traditional litigation. Judge Jerejian is known for his business acumen and his ability to simplify complex legal issues by leveraging nearly two decades of judicial experience to empower the parties to find common ground in their disputes, fostering fair, cost-effective, and timely solutions.

Judge Jerejian mediates and arbitrates all aspects of general equity, probate, civil litigation. He is also available as a special adjudicator for complex case management. During his tenure on the bench, he resolved hundreds of cases, many involving complicated multi-party disputes, and presided over countless trials, including some of the most complex and noteworthy cases in the state. He has also authored numerous opinions that are frequently cited.

The Judge was a distinguished member of the New Jersey Judiciary for nineteen years. He served nine of those years in the Bergen County Chancery Division, including almost seven years as Presiding Judge. He also served in the Family and Criminal Divisions and was designated by the New Jersey Supreme Court Assignment Order as Acting Assignment Judge.

Judge Jerejian has extensive experience handling business and real estate litigation, including oppressed shareholder suits, dissolution of LLCs, partnerships, and closely held corporations, buyouts, restrictive covenants, trade secrets, breach of contract, legal and equitable fraud, unjust enrichment, quantum meruit, tortious interference with prospective economic advantage, specific performance of real estate contracts, partition of real estate, environmental litigation, construction defects, easements, condos and co-ops, and commercial foreclosure.

Adam E. Witkov | Michael Best & Friedrich LLP

Adam is an experienced litigator, business attorney, and equity partner at the national law firm Michael Best & Friedrich LLP. Clients call upon Adam to resolve their most pressing needs inside and outside of the courtroom. Adam also serves as outside general counsel to businesses, providing a one-stop concierge solution for all their legal needs.

Adam regularly represents businesses, financial institutions, healthcare clients, and high-net worth individuals on a wide range of legal matters. Adam has successfully litigated, mediated, arbitrated, and settled matters concerning breach of contract, breach of warranty, negligence, misappropriation of trade secrets, breach of fiduciary duty, tortious interference with business expectancy, breach of employment agreement, shareholder disputes, the Lanham Act, false advertising, fraud, misrepresentation, and real estate and land use.

Adam also regularly counsels and represents businesses and individuals involving tortious interference claims throughout the country. Adam has written on topics relating to tortious interference and is called upon to advise businesses and individuals on this issue at various stages of their disputes, including pre-litigation, mediation, arbitration, and litigation.

Session I – Tortious Interference: Strategies to Protect Clients and Prevent Legal Missteps | 1:00pm -3:10pm

• Core legal elements of tortious interference
• Protective strategies for clients

Break | 2:00pm – 2:10pm

• Avoiding legal pitfalls
• Litigation tactics and remedies

Break | 3:10pm – 3:20pm

Session II – Tortious Interference with Contract and Prospective Economic Advantage: A Judicial Perspective | 3:20pm – 4:20pm

• Legal distinctions between contractual and prospective interference
• Differentiating between fair competition and tortious conduct
• Pleading standards, evidentiary burdens, and dispositive motion strategy types of damages and available equitable remedies
• Common defenses and practical litigation considerations