Lew is a litigator with over 32 years of experience in prosecuting and defending actions involving complex business, contract, employment, entertainment, securities fraud, RICO, and real estate disputes. He has more than 20 reported opinions in state and federal courts, at both the trial and appellate levels. Prior to joining WSMB, Lew was a partner for more than 10 years in the prominent New York boutique litigation firm Coblence & Warner, whose clients included the New York Yankees, Yves St. Laurent, Patricia Duff, Princess Yasmin Aga Khan and the Andy Warhol estate. Lew has handled or participated in a number of arbitrations before FINRA and the AAA, and has handled a number of mediations before JAMS and the Supreme Court, New York County. He has developed a particular expertise in employment related matters, including involvement in one of the highest profile disputes in Wall Street's history. Lew was a key member of the Coblence & Warner defense team that was successful in obtaining the dismissal of claims by Kidder Peabody against Joseph Jett in an arbitration in which Kidder sought $83 million in damages for Mr. Jett's bond trading activities at the firm. The team also succeeded in obtaining the return of $5.7 million that Kidder had frozen in Mr. Jett's cash management account.

Lew has also been very successful in avoiding the time and expense that can be associated with litigation or arbitration by favorably settling employment related matters for his clients. A few recent examples include: (i) a $1.6 million settlement of bonus, SOX and New York Labor Law claims asserted by a managing director in the fixed income division of a major New York investment bank; (ii) a $940,000 settlement of bonus and sex discrimination claims asserted by a managing director in the flow credit sales department of a major New York investment bank following two months of negotiations with the bank prior to arbitration, where the bank originally declined to go much above its initial offer of $640,000; (iii) a $675,000 settlement of bonus, wrongful termination, SOX and New York Labor Law claims of a former proprietary trader in the statistical arbitrage group of a major New York investment bank following two months of negotiations with the bank prior to arbitration, where the bank’s initial offer was $175,000, and (iv) a $700,000 settlement of lawsuits for breach of contract and a declaratory judgment against a major New York bank where the bank’s initial offer was $200,000.

Lew has also handled very high-profile media and entertainment matters, including obtaining affirmation on appeal of a post-trial judgment awarding music publishing companies $5 million in compensatory and punitive damages against a record company and its president for fraud and breach of contract in concealing royalty payments due under licensing agreements.

Lew has served as an adjunct professor of business law at NYU's Stern Business School. He graduated in 1975 from NYU Law School and in 1972 from Columbia College at Columbia University, where he was a Bodman Scholar.