Mediator Resume

An experienced international and domestic arbitrator with more than 35 years of experience resolving complex commercial disputes. A member of the AAA and ICDR panels, Mr. Leshaw has served as a neutral in more than 1,000 proceedings, including as sole arbitrator, panel chair, and party-appointed arbitrator. He is known for proactive case management, legal rigor, and a business-savvy approach. Prior to serving full-time as a neutral, he spent more than two decades as a commercial lawyer handling high-stakes litigation and complex domestic and complex domestic and cross-border transactions, including M&A, financings, and restructurings, and served as a director of a NYSE-listed multinational airline holding company, providing a practical, com

Leshaw Law, P.A. – Arbitrator and Mediator

Arbitrator and Mediator

Arbitrator and Mediator, Leshaw Law P.A., 2013 – Present; Shareholder, Greenberg Traurig (Miami, Florida), 1991 – 2013; Associate, Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom (New York, New York), 1989 – 1991. Member of the Board of Directors of Avianca Holdings S.A. (NYSE: AVH), the Colombian based airline holding company, 2018-2022. Served on Audit Committee, Human Talent and Compensation Committee, three member Executive Committee, Corporate Governance and Nomination Committee, Independent Equity Committee and Restructuring Committee.

Prior to dedicating his practice to arbitration and mediation, Mr. Leshaw spent more than twenty years as a commercial lawyer representing domestic and international clients in complex litigation, restructurings, and transactions throughout the United States, Latin America, the Caribbean, and Europe. His practice involved high-stakes matters for private equity sponsors, financial institutions, airlines, shipping companies, real estate developers, entertainment companies, technology companies, and closely held businesses. Mr. Leshaw’s legal experience included leading litigation strategy and managing complex, multi-party disputes involving breach of contract, fraud, securities, corporate governance, fiduciary duty, valuation, tax matters, and business torts. He also represented clients in sophisticated transactions, including mergers and acquisitions, asset purchases and sales, financings, workouts, and cross-border insolvency proceedings. His work frequently required advising on risk allocation and dispute avoidance in complex commercial structures. In addition to his legal practice, Mr. Leshaw served from 2018 to 2022 as a director of a NYSE-listed multinational airline holding company. In that role, he participated in board-level decision-making concerning corporate governance, fiduciary oversight, strategic transactions, and enterprise risk management. This experience provides additional perspective in disputes involving shareholder rights, governance, fiduciary obligations, and M&A-related issues. This combined background in litigation, transactions, and board service informs Mr. Leshaw’s work as a neutral. It provides a practical understanding of how commercial disputes arise, how cases are litigated and evaluated by counsel, and how business and governance considerations influence party decision-making and resolution strategy. As a result, he is particularly attentive to procedural efficiency, evidentiary focus, and proportionality in complex commercial arbitrations.

Mediated hundreds of domestic and international commercial disputes with dollars at issue ranging from less than $100,000 to hundreds of millions of dollars, including contract disputes, partnership and shareholder disputes, business dissolution, valuation, business torts, viatical transactions, employment and workplace disputes, intellectual property disputes, real estate and property disputes, supplier and vendor disputes, merger and acquisition issues, valuation disputes, accounting issues, professional liability disputes, franchise disputes, business insurance claims, bankruptcy and insolvency disputes, breach of duty claims, fraud claims, securities and investment disputes, technology and IT disputes, and non-compete and confidentiality disputes. Have handled many multi-party mediations. Significant experience helping parties mediate domestic and international disputes and transactions.

Commercial and corporate matters have included a variety of industries including aviation, banking, commercial finance, private equity, venture capital, manufacturing and industrial, general business law, shareholder agreements, telecom, mergers & acquisitions, e-commerce, high tech, real estate, leasing, franchise, energy, entertainment, intellectual property, licensing, entertainment, fraud and Ponzi schemes, healthcare, international, valuation, Latin America, cruise ships and casino gaming ships, bankruptcy and insolvency issues. Mediations have included multiple parties from different parts of the World.

I am a proactive mediator. I help parties to constantly evaluate and re-evaluate their positions and the likely range of outcomes, as well as the time and expense (dollars, loss of business, reputational risk, loss of sleep, etc.) in getting to those outcomes. I have significant business experience which helps me to understand issues and seek creative solutions. I prepare thoroughly for all mediations, trying to understand the facts, legal issues, emotions and other impediments to conflict resolution. I also try to understand what motivation or interest is truly driving each of the parties to the mediation and what can be done to reach a win-win solution. I expect all participants in the mediation process, including counsel and party representatives, to prepare for the mediation rather than to simply show up at the mediation hoping for a successful outcome. I work with counsel in advance of the mediation to address key preparation issues, including facts or arguments to focus on, issues to address in exchanged or confidential mediation submissions and the identity of mediation participants. I typically hold separate telephone or video calls with counsel to each party after reviewing mediation submissions but before the mediation session. I find this helps to understand issues and dynamics as well as to stream-line the mediation session. I am tenacious. I will not give up so long as the parties are continuing to participate in good faith. I will also aggressively help the party representatives to understand the down-side of their cases. I have often heard from the parties at mediation that they were satisfied not only with the process, but also the result. I am comfortable conducting mediations by Zoom or other remote platforms and find that remote mediations are often more productive than in-person mediations. I am also comfortable continuing to work with parties to resolve issues after conclusion of the scheduled mediation session. I have significant experience in commercial transactions and litigation and can often provide insights or out of the box ideas and proposals which help difficult matters to settle at mediation. I am a quick learner and have significant experience with complex commercial transactions and litigation.

Proficient in major video-conferencing platforms including Zoom and Microsoft Teams. Comfortable conducting evidentiary and non-evidentiary hearings remotely and generally prefers to hold preliminary conferences and many hearings by video. Proficient in Microsoft Office applications and knowledgeable regarding legal technology issues, including document management, e-discovery and ESI, data privacy and security, cybersecurity, digital evidence, regulatory compliance, and artificial intelligence.

New York University School of Law (JD-1989) Tufts University (BA-1986)

Admitted to the Bar: New York (1990), Florida (1992). Holder of USCG 100 Ton Master License.

Florida Bar; New York Bar; American Bar Association; Multiple Federal District Courts and Circuit Courts of Appeal. Founding Member of Key Biscayne Bar Association. Florida Bar International Law Committee

Written articles and lectured on multiple topics including mediation and arbitration, international legal issues, securities law, and bankruptcy and insolvency issues. Has written multiple articles on maritime related issues for leading boating magazines.

Does not charge for travel time. Will not charge for travel expenses in Miami, Florida or Bogota, Colombia.

Hourly Rate: $800.00 Daily Rate: Not provided Study Rate: $800.00/hr Cancellation: Not provided Cancellation Period: Not provided Comment: No cancellation fee but fees due for services such as preparation completed before cancellation. Travel applies only to out of town travel.

English

United States of America

Key Biscayne, Florida