David P. Friedman

David Friedman is the former Chair of the Firm’s Litigation Department and serves as General Counsel and Loss Prevention Counsel to the Firm. He represents a diverse variety of corporate and individual clients in complex commercial and other civil litigation matters. He has conducted numerous arbitrations and mediations, both as an advocate and as a mediator and arbitrator, and has litigated cases in state and federal courts in Connecticut and New York at both the trial and appellate levels involving a wide variety of disputes including:

• Claims of attorney malpractice;
• Claims and grievances against attorneys for alleged ethical violations;
• Allegations of fraud, theft, breach of fiduciary duties, conspiracy and other alleged improprieties;
• Insurance coverage disputes;
• Corporate and partnership dissolutions and disputes;
• Class action lawsuits;
• Contract disputes;
• Commercial lease evictions and breaches;
• Commercial and residential mortgage foreclosures;
• Environmental enforcement actions and other environmental disputes;
• Land boundary claims and other real property disputes;
• Enforcement of easements and other covenants restricting the use of real estate;
• Mechanics lien foreclosures;
• Manufacturing and distribution disputes;
• Claims for contribution and indemnification;
• Claims for breach of non-competition covenants, non-solicitation agreements, confidentiality restrictions and a wide variety of employment matters;
• Trade secret claims;
• Civil RICO litigation;
• Claims due to exposure to mold and other toxic and hazardous substances;
• Construction litigation; and
• Claims alleging unfair trade practices and violations of consumer protection laws.

A significant portion of David’s practice has involved the representation of attorneys in defense of claims of legal malpractice, breach of fiduciary duties, fraud and other alleged improprieties. He has also represented attorneys in grievance proceedings before the Statewide Grievance Committee, in administrative proceedings before state agencies, in lawsuits concerning attorney departures from their law firms, in fee disputes with clients and other lawyers and in claims seeking to enforce the terms of attorneys’ professional liability insurance policies. He has worked with a variety of commercial carriers, such as the Hartford and CNA, and with Attorneys Liability Assurance Society, Inc. (ALAS) and has been retained directly by law firms and attorneys who have sought out his services for representation and advice.

David is the immediate past President and current member of the Board of Directors of Statewide Legal Services of Connecticut, a James W. Cooper Fellow with the Connecticut Bar Foundation, a fellow of the American Bar Foundation, a former attorney trial referee in the Connecticut Superior Court and a former member of the Board of Trustees of the Long Ridge School in Stamford, Connecticut.

David is listed as a leading commercial litigator in Chambers, USA and holds an AV rating with Martindale-Hubbell. He has been listed in Best Lawyers of America® in the area of Commercial Litigation Law and Connecticut Super Lawyers® in the areas of Professional Liability: Defense, Business Litigation and Appellate from 2007 - 2009 and 2013 - 2018.

Upon graduation from law school, David worked for the Legal Aid Society, Criminal Appeals Bureau, in New York City (1983-1986), where he briefed and argued approximately 50 appeals before the New York Court of Appeals and the New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division and Appellate Term. He subsequently served for two years as a law clerk to the Honorable Judith S. Kaye, Associate Judge (later Chief Judge) of the New York Court of Appeals. From 1988 to 2009, he worked at Zeldes, Needles and Cooper, P.C., in Bridgeport, Connecticut, where he served on the firm’s management committee and maintained a vibrant and diverse commercial litigation practice. He has continued and enhanced that practice since his arrival at Murtha Cullina in 2009.

• Business Litigation
• Community Banking
• Environmental Law
• ERISA Litigation
• Insurance Recovery
• Insurance Risk Management
• Intellectual Property Litigation
• Probate and Trust Dispute Resolution
• Tort and Product Liability
• Attorney Professional Liability
• Appellate Practice
• Litigation
• Construction

• Fellow, American Bar Foundation
• Member of the Board of Directors, Fairfield County Bar Association
• Immediate Past President and current member of the Board of Directors, Statewide Legal Services of Connecticut, Inc.
• Connecticut Bar Association
• American Bar Association
• Former Member, Connecticut Bar Association, House of Delegates
• Former Member of the Board of Trustees, Long Ridge School, Stamford, Connecticut

• Order of the Coif (1983)
• James W. Cooper Life Fellow of the Connecticut Bar Foundation
• Listed as leading commercial litigation lawyer in Chambers USA, Chambers & Partners-Publishing (Chambers.com)
• Listed in The Best Lawyers in America® in the area of Commercial Litigation Law, 2018 (Copyright 2015 by Woodward/White, Inc., Aiken, SC)
• Holds an AV® Preeminent™ Peer Rating from Martindale-Hubbell
• Listed in Connecticut Super Lawyers® in the areas of Professional Liability: Defense, Business Litigation and Appellate from 2007 to 2009 and 2013 to 2018 (Super Lawyers is a registered trademark of Key Professional Media, Inc.)

• Clerk to the Honorable Judith S. Kaye, Associate Judge of the New York Court of Appeals (1986-1988)
• Legal Aid Society, Criminal Appeals Bureau, New York City, NY (1983-1986)

• May 17, 2019 - Murtha Cullina LLP Wins Third Consecutive Litigation Department of the Year Award From Connecticut Law Tribune
• April 25, 2019 - Murtha Cullina LLP Recognized by Chambers USA
• February 5, 2019 - David P. Friedman Completes His Service as President of the Board of Statewide Legal Services of Connecticut
• August 15, 2018 - 32 Murtha Cullina Attorneys Receive “Best Lawyers in America” Recognition; Two Named Lawyer of the Year
• May 3, 2018 - Murtha Cullina LLP Recognized by Chambers USA
• October 18, 2017 - 38 Attorneys Receive Super Lawyers Recognition
• October 3, 2017 - Appellate Practice Group Recognized as Litigation Department of the Year by Connecticut Law Tribune
• August 15, 2017 - 35 Murtha Cullina Attorneys Receive “Best Lawyers in America” Recognition; Three Named “Lawyer of the Year”
• May 26, 2017 - Murtha Cullina LLP Recognized by Chambers USA
• August 16, 2016 - Attorneys Receive "Best Lawyers" Recognition
• May 27, 2016 - Murtha Cullina Recognized by Chambers USA
• February 24, 2016 - David P. Friedman Elected President of the Board of Statewide Legal Services of Connecticut
• November 17, 2015 - David P. Friedman Named Fellow of American Bar Foundation
• Murtha Cullina's Stamford Office Continues to Grow
• David P. Friedman Joins Murtha Cullina LLP

• September 19, 2018 - 2nd Circ. Gives Church, Insurer Partial Wins In Abuse Row
• September 19, 2018 - Insurer Loses Appeal Over Pedophile-Priest Settlements
• March 2018 - Book Review: Business and Commercial Litigation in Federal Courts, Fourth Edition
• January 24, 2018 - Diocese Slams Insurer In Sex Abuse Claims Row At 2nd Circ.
• June 30, 2014 - Stamford Case Could Set Precedent As Postal Service Downsizes

• February 22, 2018 - 2017 Connecticut Supreme Court Developments for Businesses
• Mediating Insurance Coverage Disputes

• Connecticut
• New York
• U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
• U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
• U.S. District Court, District of Connecticut
• U.S. District Court, Eastern District of New York
• U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York

• New York University School of Law (J.D., cum laude, 1983)
• Stanford University (B.A., 1979)