Leonard Marsico

Leonard J. Marsico is the former chair of the firm’s Complex Commercial Litigation Department and a head of one of the firm’s energy industry team sectors. His work is principally focused on commercial litigation, with cases involving energy, transactional, securities, corporate control and general corporate matters.

He has litigated actions and arbitrations on behalf of clients in more than 30 states and before several foreign arbitration tribunals, and he provides general corporate counsel to many of his business clients.

As head of the energy industry’s coal sector, he coordinates the cross-departmental group of attorneys who provide integrated legal services to coal producers, coal transporters, utilities and service providers to the coal industry.

His litigation experience includes numerous cases involving the enforcement of long-term supply agreements, acquisition and divestiture agreements, the interpretation of insurance contracts providing coverage for business and industrial hazards, class action securities claims and general commercial litigation.

His clients include energy producers, publicly traded manufacturers, financial institutions, communications providers and corporate holding companies, as well as large family and trust-owned entities.

He has litigated and arbitrated numerous disputes over major supply agreements for utilities and coal and oil and gas producers, and he is one of a small group of attorneys nationwide who regularly arbitrate high-stakes fuel price redetemination proceedings.

In the area of mergers and acquisitions, he has frequently represented clients in disputes arising from the purchase and sale of businesses, including cases involving the enforceability of letters of intent for the sale of businesses, post-closing claims of breached representations and warranties and corporate control disputes.

Leonard is a Vice President of the American Coal Council, was appointed by the US Secretary of Energy to sit on the National Coal Council that advises him on coal policy matters, has served on the advisory board of the Little Sisters of the Poor for over 15 years and acts as a hearing officer for attorney discipline cases in Pennsylvania.

EXPERIENCE :

• Regularly represents parties to  long term fuel supply agreements in complex price redetermination proceedings involving tens of millions of dollars.
• Arbitrated to final award that a utility had breached a coal supply agreement by refusing to purchase more than $80 million in fuel.
• Secured the appellate affirmance of the dismissal of multi-million dollar class action claims of unfair pricing of electricity by a retail energy supplier.
• Secured the complete dismissal of a municipality’s multimillion-dollar RICO claim against a national waste disposal company.
• Trial counsel for a steel manufacturer’s business interruption claim against an insurer to jury verdict for more than $1 million.
• Defense of a department store’s $100+ million claim against a national retailer and shopping mall developer for terminating an agreement to purchase the chain. Settled on favorable terms.

Education :

• University of Pittsburgh School of Law, JD, Member, Law Review, 1980
• University of Virginia, BA, 1977

Admissions :

• Pennsylvania
• District of Columbia
• U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit
• U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania
• U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio
• U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia

Affiliations :

• Member, National Coal Council
• Member, Board of Directors, American Coal Council
• Advisory Board, Little Sisters of the Poor, 10+ years