Robert Shulman

Robert Shulman

Principal, Paley Rothman
  • Arbitration & Mediation, Business Law, International Law
  • District of Columbia, Louisiana, New York
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Claimed Lawyer Profile
Biography

For 35 years, Robert has specialized in insurance recovery on behalf of policyholders. As Chair of the Insurance Recovery group and a member of the firm’s Litigation practice, Robert litigates complex disputes against insurance companies on behalf of corporations seeking coverage for all manner of claims involving every form of risk and exposure such as those arising out of products, securities, directors & officers, energy, automotive, financial institutions, medical devices and health, among others.
Robert has successfully argued precedent-setting appeals in the second, third, and fourth U.S. Courts of Appeals, as well as the California Court of Appeal, San Francisco Division. Among other noteworthy representations, in MBIA, Inc. v Federal Ins. Co., 652 Fed. 3rd 152 (2nd Cir. 2011), Robert obtained a sweeping first impression decision requiring insurance companies to pay defense costs from the initiation of government investigations before suit was filed. This decision allowed companies to access vast amounts of insurance that routinely are contested by the insurance industry. The MBIA decision also granted coverage for Special Litigation Counsel, a cost incurred in the defense of derivative actions that insurance companies also regularly contest. Robert also led a team on behalf of International Paper Company through a series of trials, mediations and arbitrations that recouped nearly $1 billion in costs including damages, class counsel fees, notice programs and administrative costs. Robert’s team also achieved a $90mm verdict against the primary insurance company that failed to defend International Paper in bad faith. The International Paper Company underlying litigation began as a potentially ruinous last of its kind “drive-by” class certification in which Robert initially led a court-mandated mediation that settled the dispute prior to the resolution of the coverage litigation.
Robert’s practice is national and international in scope.

Education
Tulane University School of Law
J.D. (1979)
cum laude
Honors: cum laude
Tulane University School of Law Logo
Cornell University
B.A
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Professional Experience
Principal
Paley Rothman
- Current
Partner
Howrey LLP
Awards
Best Lawyers in America (2006-2018)
Best Lawyers
Previously ranked nationwide and in New York in Insurance: Dispute Resolution: Policyholder
Chambers USA
One of America's Leading Business Lawyers in Insurance Recovery
Who's Who Legal
Professional Associations
District of Columbia Bar
Member
- Current
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Jurisdictions Admitted to Practice
District of Columbia
District of Columbia Bar
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Louisiana
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New York
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U.S. Supreme Court
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United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit
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United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit
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United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
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United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
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United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
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United States District Court for the District of Columbia
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United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana
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Practice Areas
Arbitration & Mediation
Business - Arbitration/Mediation, Consumer - Arbitration/Mediation, Family - Arbitration/Mediation
Business Law
Business Contracts, Business Dissolution, Business Finance, Business Formation, Business Litigation, Franchising, Mergers & Acquisitions, Partnership & Shareholder Disputes
International Law
Human Rights, Imports & Exports
Additional Practice Areas
  • Commercial Litigation & Trial
  • Global Litigation
  • Insurance Recovery
  • International Arbitration & ADR
Languages
  • English: Spoken, Written
Websites & Blogs
Website
Paley Rothman
Contact & Map
Paley Rothman
4800 Hampden Lane
6th Floor
Bethesda, MD 20814
Telephone: (301) 656-7603
Fax: (301) 654-7354