Trying a case has to be among the most demanding things you can do, except maybe neurosurgery. You walk into a place that is full of enemies, and you have to convince them all that you are their friend. It’s incredibly demanding and takes a lot of preparation, but it’s also a lot of fun.
Mr. Rowe concentrates his practice primarily on complex and high profile litigation, with a particular focus on sophisticated corporate and business disputes and complex matrimonial matters. He is recognized throughout New Jersey and nationally for his significant accomplishments and success as a litigator and trial lawyer.
Mr. Rowe’s experience spans a diverse range of practice areas, including partnership and corporate disputes, antitrust cases, professional malpractice defense, stock fraud, intellectual property, construction cases, complex chancery litigation and high profile matrimonial matters.
Throughout the years, Mr. Rowe has represented clients in some of the most prominent and highly publicized litigations in New Jersey. His portfolio of noteworthy achievements, which includes both jury and non-jury trials, is the hallmark of a career that continues to be characterized by shrewd legal judgment and sharp-sighted natural instincts as a litigator.
Mr. Rowe is the original author of New Jersey Business Litigation, the primary resource on how New Jersey courts have dealt with business issues in litigation, and has co-authored the book since 2014. He is also the co-author of Guidebook to Chancery Practice in New Jersey, the standard textbook utilized by judges and equity lawyers throughout the state.
Honors & Awards
- American College of Trial Lawyers Fellow
- International Academy of Trial Lawyers Fellow
- American Bar Foundation Fellow
- Recipient of the Lifetime Achievement in Litigation Award from the New Jersey Law Journal (2014)
- Recipient of the Robert J. Cirafesi Chancery Practice Award (2014)
- Recipient of the National Judge Learned Hand Award (2013)
- Recipient of the Trial Bar Award from the Trial Attorneys of New Jersey (1993)
- Listed in Chambers USA (a publication of Chambers and Partners) in the Litigation: General Commercial practice area (2003 – present)
- Listed in The Best Lawyers in America© (a trademark of Woodward/White, Inc.) in six practice areas: Appellate Practice, Bet-the-Company Litigation, Commercial Litigation, Family Law, Litigation - Construction, and Litigation - Real Estate (1989 – present)
- Selected by Best Lawyers® (a trademark of Woodward/White, Inc.) as Newark "Lawyer of the Year" in Bet-the-Company Litigation (2011); as Woodbridge "Lawyer of the Year" in Appellate Practice (2013); as Woodbridge "Lawyer of the Year" in Litigation – Real Estate (2014)
- The only attorney to ever receive the number one ranking for peer votes in the annual New Jersey Super Lawyers (a Thomson Reuters business) selection process for four consecutive years (2012 - 2015)
- Mr. Rowe was featured on the cover and profiled in the 2013 edition of New Jersey Super Lawyers magazine (click here to view) and appeared on the publication’s Top Ten list for the 11th consecutive year in 2017
- Listed in New Jersey Super Lawyers (a Thomson Reuters business) in the Business Litigation, Family Law, Construction Litigation: Business, and Appellate practice areas (2005 – present)
- Listed as a Local Litigation Star in New Jersey in Benchmark Litigation (a publication of Euromoney Institutional Investor PLC) in the Construction and General Commercial practice areas (2013– present)
- Martindale-Hubbell® Peer Review Rated AV® Preeminent (a trademark of Internet Brands, Inc.) (2001 – present)
- Selected for inclusion in the Who’s Who Legal 2017 - Compendium Edition (a publication of Law Business Research Ltd.)
Please visit our Award Methodology page for a description of the standard or methodology on which these accolades are based. Attorney Advertising: No aspect of this advertisement has been approved by the Supreme Court of New Jersey.
Representative Matters
- In a seven month jury construction trial in which his client was sued for $200 million for construction defects and consumer fraud, the jury returned a verdict against Mr. Rowe’s client of less than eight million dollars.
- Mr. Rowe was lead trial counsel for the general creditors in the rehabilitation and liquidation of Mutual Benefit Life Insurance Company, the largest life insurance company liquidation in United States history, which resulted in his clients, the general creditors, receiving at the end of the seven year rehabilitation period 125% of their claims.
- Mr. Rowe was lead trial counsel for the defense in a ten month breach of contract, anti-trust and malicious interference trial involving Atlantic City casinos in which, at the conclusion, the plaintiffs' $2 billion anti-trust claim and all of its other claims were dismissed.
- Mr. Rowe procured the largest known equitable distribution award in New Jersey at the conclusion of a three month trial.
Uniquely NJ
- New Jersey State Bar Association; Fee Arbitration Committee (past Chair)
- Essex County Bar Association (past President)
- Middlesex County Bar Association
- Legal Services Foundation of Essex County; Trustee and past President
- New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education (former Trustee)
- New Jersey Supreme Court Committee on Masters and Hearing Officers (former member)
More Activities & Experience
- American Bar Association; Litigation Section; Family Law Section
Presentations & Speaking Engagements
- Moderator and Lecturer, Hot Topics in Chancery Practice in New JerseySponsor: New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education, January 26, 2022
- Speaker, 2019 Family Law Summer InstituteSponsor: New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education, July 23-24, 2019
- Moderator/Presenter, The Definitive Guide to Chancery Practice in New JerseySponsor: New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education, March 20, 2018
- Featured Speaker, The Indispensable Guide to Chancery PracticeSponsor: New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education presented in cooperation with the NJSBA Equity Jurisprudence Committee, October 23, 2014
- Mr. Rowe has lectured for NJICLE, the New Jersey Law Journal, and other organizations frequently throughout the years. He has addressed a variety of topics including complex litigation, chancery practice, matrimonial law, oppressed minority stockholder litigation, restrictive covenants and trade secrets.
Publications & Alerts
- Co-Author, New Jersey Business LitigationNew Jersey Law Journal Books, (2019 Edition)
- Co-Author, Guidebook to Chancery Practice in New JerseyNew Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education, 2018 (10th Edition)
News
- March 26, 2024
- August 17, 2023
- June 9, 2023
- August 18, 2022
Departments
Education
Columbia Law School, LL.B., 1961
Tufts University, B.A., 1958
Bar Admissions
- New York, 1961
- New Jersey, 1962
- U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York
- U.S. District Court, Eastern District of New York
- U.S. District Court, District of New Jersey
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Third Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit
- U.S. Tax Court
- Chambers USA 2023 -
(a publication of Chambers and Partners)
Editorial Excerpt: "Adept at handling high-profile and complex business disputes, including those with cross-border elements."
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Please visit our Award Methodology page for a description of the standard or methodology on which these accolades are based. Attorney Advertising: No aspect of this advertisement has been approved by the Supreme Court of New Jersey.