David Valicenti is an accomplished trial lawyer and experienced neutral with more than 30 years of complex litigation experience in Massachusetts and New York. His reputation for technical skill, sound judgment, and creative problem-solving has been developed over three decades of trying and resolving sophisticated disputes. His experience includes business and commercial disputes, construction, real estate, employment, securities, and personal injury matters.
Drawing on his extensive experience in the trial courts, David has repeatedly been appointed by judges of the Massachusetts Superior Court to serve as an arbitrator, mediator, receiver, and trustee in complex cases. He has also been selected to serve as a member of the American Arbitration Association’s National Roster of Arbitrators, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) Roster of Public Arbitrators, and presides over private arbitrations throughout the region.
David practiced in New York before relocating to the Berkshires in 2002 and remains active in both Massachusetts and New York. His litigation experience includes favorable decisions in the federal courts in New York and multiple successful appeals before the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. He has also argued significant matters before the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court and the Massachusetts Appeals Court.
David’s decades of courtroom experience, combined with his judicial appointments and service on national arbitration rosters, inform a practical, disciplined, and efficient approach to resolving complex disputes.
Experience Highlights
- In 2024, secured a victory on behalf of an Israeli medical robotics company after a week-long trial.
- In 2023, won a dismissal of a case at trial in favor of a property owner in a land dispute.
- In 2022, appointed as a Receiver by the Berkshire Superior Court to oversee the liquidation of a real estate partnership.
- In 2022, secured a victory at the Massachusetts Appeals Court on behalf of a solar energy company in a real property lease dispute.
- In 2021, settled a commercial case involving multiple lawsuits for $1,000,000 after winning hearings in four courts in two states (Massachusetts and New York).
- In 2021, settled a construction case involving multiple state projects for $840,000.
- In 2021, won a judgment in the Berkshire Superior Court in a commercial lease dispute, including an award for attorneys’ fees.
- In 2020, won a judgment in excess of $400,000 for an investor/employee based on a company’s deceptive business practices after a trial in the Berkshire Superior Court.
- In 2019, obtained a $1.6M settlement in a Boston-based arbitration.
- In 2016, won a victory in the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in New York, on behalf of a publicly traded company based in the Berkshires.
- In 2014, won a judgment in excess of $250,000 on behalf of a physician in a case against a former employer, including triple damages and attorney’s fees under the Massachusetts Wage Act.
- In 2013, obtained a $900,000 judgment in a real estate–related litigation in the federal court in Albany, New York.
- In 2013, obtained a preliminary injunction in the Berkshire Superior Court prohibiting competition by former employees who engaged in computer-based theft of trade secrets.
- In 2013, obtained a judgment after trial of more than $500,000 in a construction matter, including treble damages and attorney’s fees under M.G.L. c. 93A.
- In 2012, successfully obtained a reversal in the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in a business litigation matter involving shareholder rights under Delaware law. Click here to read the decision.
- Obtained a judgment in 2012 on behalf of a printing company against an equipment dealer, including double damages and attorney’s fees under the Massachusetts unfair and deceptive business practices statute (M.G.L. Chapter 93A).
- Represented a foreign dignitary and recovered over $500,000 in a Florida-based securities arbitration.
- Recovered six-figure investment losses, plus attorney’s fees, from Morgan Stanley Smith Barney in an arbitration in Tucson, Arizona.
- Won an affirmative injunction in the Berkshire Superior Court in an environmental litigation, resulting in payment of significant environmental clean-up costs in favor of a local property owner.
- Instrumental in obtaining a favorable arbitration award against a Credit Suisse affiliate, including recovery of nearly $1 million in attorney’s fees and costs.
- Recovered $3.9 million in a pre-suit settlement of a complex securities fraud claim.
- Obtained numerous favorable jury verdicts for individuals and business clients in Berkshire County.
Education
- University of Massachusetts, B.A.
- Hofstra University School of Law, J.D.
Areas of Practice
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Business Litigation
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Construction Litigation
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Contract Disputes
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Employment Litigation
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Securities Litigation
Bar Admission
- Commonwealth of Massachusetts
- State of New York
- U.S. District Court, District of Massachusetts
- U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York
- U.S. District Court, Eastern District of New York
- U.S. District Court, Northern District of New York
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
Memberships
- Member, American Arbitration Association (AAA) National Roster of Arbitrators
- Public Arbitrator for the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) with Chairperson Certification