Eric Rieder has more than twenty years of broad experience as a litigator in securities and other commercial cases and as an adviser on the duties of directors and officers of both public and private companies.

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Mr. Rieder has successfully tried important securities and business cases in both arbitration and court, and has also litigated many cases to resolution through successful motion practice and favorable settlement. He has extensive experience as well in handling investigations by Special Committees and receivers and defending SEC investigations.

Among other matters, he

• Represented the chairman of a publicly traded company in winning dismissal of federal securities fraud claims arising out of the sale of two subsidiaries.
• Represented a corporation and its directors in successfully resolving class action breach of duty lawsuits in Delaware and North Carolina seeking to block the $575 million sale of the company to a private equity fund.
• Represented a corporation in defense of federal class and derivative actions relating to alleged fraudulent accounting and other financial fraud.
• Represented an Audit Committee in examining securities transactions by company executives.
• Represented a hedge fund manager in connection with an investigation by the SEC.
• Represented a corporate monitor in investigating the possible use of derivatives and structured financial transactions in violation of GAAP.
• Represented a hedge fund manager in successfully resolving derivative actions and direct lawsuits seeking in excess of $30 million.
• Represented the court-appointed receiver for a family of hedge funds in pursuing litigation on behalf of the funds and in distributing the funds’ remaining assets.
• Represented defendants in winning dismissal of federal securities fraud claims arising out of a private equity investment in a public company, a case that involved claims of market manipulation by short selling.
• Represented a corporation in connection with resolving an accounting dispute with the SEC over whether the corporation was required to restate prior years’ financial statements based on the legal interpretation of its largest contracts with third parties.
• Represented a corporate seller in winning a trial verdict  against a would-be purchaser who breached an agreement to buy a U.S. and European manufacturer for $135 million, in a dispute over a “material adverse change” clause.
• Represented a broker-dealer in winning a complete defense award following an NASD arbitration of a customer’s suitability claim arising out of a $9 million leveraged bond arbitrage investment.
• Represented a company in winning a $6 million settlement of breach of duty claims arising out of the financial collapse of a group of related international companies.

Mr. Rieder also has experience representing non-profits, including private foundations.  He has represented business people in partnership disputes and struggles for control of closely held corporations.  In the communications/media field, he has represented companies in copyright and related licensing disputes over television rights, as well as defendants in defamation actions.  He has also represented companies in disputes with information technology providers.

In the non-profit area, Mr. Rieder has regularly provided both counseling and litigation services on private foundation issues, among other non-profits.  He also has maintained an active pro bono practice in a variety of areas, with a particular focus on the rights of the mentally disabled and residents of adult homes and nursing homes.  He has been recognized by MFY Legal Services as member of the Pro Bono Honor Roll and served on the Disability Rights Task Force of New York Lawyers for the Public Interest.

He has contributed to publications as editor and author.  He served for 10 years on the editorial board of Litigation, the journal of the American Bar Association’s Litigation Section. His work on securities law, arbitration, and other legal issues also has been published in the New York Law Journal, the Los Angeles Times and the Wall Street Journal.  As leader of the securities practice group, he has also authored many of Bryan Cave’s Client Alerts relating to securities law matters.

Bar and Court Admissions

New York, 1987

United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit

United States District Courts for the Eastern and Southern Districts of New York

Education

Columbia University, J.D., 1985

Columbia University, B.A., 1976

Publications

• "Shifting Tides for SEC Settlements: A Sea Change in the Making?," Business Law Today, March 2012 (with Paul Huey-Burns and Nikki A. Ott)
• "Appeals Court Rejects Privilege For Client Communications Intended To Be Shared With Auditors," Bryan Cave Client Alert, October 9, 2009
• "Charities Face Greater Threat From Ponzi Schemes Than Lost Investments," The Huffington Post, June 30, 2009 (with David Donnell)
• "Court Decision Highlights Risks Of Dual Representation In Corporate Investigations And Litigation," Bryan Cave Client Alert, April 22, 2009
• “Tellabs’ Impact Varies By Judicial Circuit,” Securities Law  360, August 25, 2008 (with Rosemarie Blasé)
• “SEC Recommends Compliance Program,” Bryan Cave Client Alert, April 29, 2008 (with J. Mark Klamer, William L. Cole and Thomas J. Schell)
• “New Decision Underscores Risks For Parties Of Parallel Investigations By SEC And DOJ,” Bryan Cave Client Alert, April 21, 2008 (with Therese Pritchard and James DeVita)
• “Eeek! E-Discovery! A Practitioner’s Guide to Tackling This Foreign and Intimidating Process,” New York Law Journal, March 28, 2005 (with Mark W. Brennan)
• “Standard for Granting Injunctions and Attachments,” New York Law Journal, Dec. 14, 1995
• “Evidence from the Opposition,” Litigation, Vol. 22, No. 1, Fall 1995.  Reprinted in The Litigation Manual, Third Edition: Pretrial
• “Arbitration Update: High Court Decisions Leave Questions Unanswered,” New York Law Journal, March 30, 1995
• “There May Be a Chill Factor in the Winans Case,” Los Angeles Times, Nov. 27, 1987
• “The Right of Self-Representation in the Capital Case,” 85 Col. L. Rev. 130, 1985

Speeches and Seminars

• “Doing Business With An Eye Toward Governance, Risk And Compliance,” CEO Trust, September 18, 2008, New York, New York
• “Hedge Fund Liability Risks,” FI 360 Conference for fiduciaries, May 9, 2008, Charlotte, North Carolina

Professional Affiliations

• Bar Association of the City of New York – Council on Judicial Administration, 1998-2000
• American Bar Association – Litigation Section, Special Publications Committee, 1988-1998
• Litigation Magazine – Associate Editor, 1989-1999

Civic Involvement and Honors

• Columbia Law School – Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar
• Columbia Law Review – Senior Editor, 1984-1985
• Law Clerk to the Honorable Arlin M. Adams, of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, 1985-1986