Shivani Poddar, Partner

Shivani Poddar is a partner with a successful track record in litigation, arbitration and mediation of high-profile cases on a broad range of complex commercial, employment, insurance and real estate disputes. Shivani’s clients include public and private companies, institutional investors, fin-tech firms, healthcare companies and start-ups. She counsels clients in all phases of the dispute, taking into account the client’s business goals, often obtaining favorable results before litigation.

Shivani has received numerous professional awards and recognitions. For two consecutive years, she has been recognized in the Benchmark Litigation 40 & Under List, and in 2024 in Lawdragon’s 500 X – The Next Generation. She was named to the 2021 Crain’s New York Business’ 40 Under 40 list, honoring accomplished New York-based business professionals under 40 years of age. The New York Law Journal recognized her as a Rising Star for 2020, an accolade given to New York City’s most promising lawyers under 40 for their contributions to the law and the legal community. She also ranked among New York Super Lawyers for the last several years and previously received the New York Legal Services Pro Bono Recognition Award for her commitment to pro bono work.

Shivani is a driver of diversity and inclusion at Herrick and within the legal community. She has taken active leadership roles in numerous organizations and programs designed to increase diversity in the legal field, including in the Leadership Council on Legal Diversity (“LCLD”)— an organization of more than 400 corporate chief legal officers and law firm managing partners, who have pledged themselves to creating a truly diverse U.S. legal profession. Her work has resulted in numerous awards and accolades in this area. She was named to Crain’s New York Business Notable Diverse Leaders in Law for 2022 and was recognized as a Woman Worth Watching® and a Diverse Lawyer Making a Difference by Profiles in Diversity Journal.

Complex Commercial Litigation

As an avid angel investor in start-ups, Shivani is keenly aware of issues that arise from investing in private and public companies. Shivani is often called upon to represent sophisticated investors in disputes arising from complex financial transactions.

Shivani’s representations include representing 95 investors (individuals and institutions), who invested over $100 million into now-defunct hedge funds, in an action against the funds’ auditors and administrator, asserting claims for breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty and negligence; representing the offshore liquidator of the largest Madoff feeder fund to recover billions paid out to investors; defending an investment advisor against fraud claims arising from investments in collateralized debt obligations; defending a Canadian hedge fund against breach of contract claims asserted by its placement agent; and defending a home healthcare agency in a partnership dispute related to valuation.

Shivani frequently handles complex bankruptcy litigation matters as well, including representing a debtor ice cream brand in Chapter 11 proceedings (during the COVID pandemic); representing over 100 investors in a fraudulent conveyance action, arising from a $2 billion leveraged recapitalization; representing the bankruptcy trustee in a fraudulent transfer action, stemming from one of the largest leveraged buy-out transactions on record; and representing a mortgage originator in an adversary proceeding, stemming from the Lehman bankruptcy, related to breach of warranties in the sale of mortgage loans.

Employment Litigation

Shivani frequently represents employers in individual, class and collective actions involving claims of federal and state wage and hour laws, the Fair Labor Standards Act, the New York Labor Law, discrimination, harassment, retaliation, wrongful termination and breach of contract, among others. She is well-versed in legal issues surrounding minimum wage, overtime, spread of hours, 13/24-hour rule for home health care aides, tip credit, tip misappropriation, misclassification, unlawful deductions, exemptions, off the clock time/on the clock time, lunch breaks, fluctuating work week and joint employer liability.

Shivani also helps clients minimize and manage exposure to wage and hour-related risks. This includes performing preventative audits, developing and implementing best practices, responding to inquiries from government agencies such as the Department of Labor, ensuring clients’ compliance with current laws and regulations, and drafting employment policies, handbooks and employment agreements.

Shivani’s clients span several industries, including healthcare (hospitals, home health care agencies, nursing centers, rehabilitation centers), consumer products, hospitality and real estate.

The American Arbitration Association (“AAA”) recently asked Shivani to join their roster of employment arbitrators, which is generally reserved for attorneys that have been practicing for multiple decades.

Insurance Litigation

Shivani Poddar has vast experience litigating in the insurance arena.  She routinely represents global insurance companies in complex insurance coverage litigations, arbitrations and mediations arising from contribution/indemnification claims and priority of coverage disputes between insurance companies. Shivani’s insurance work involves a variety of lines of insurance, including commercial general liability, commercial property, directors' and officers’ liability, employment practices liability and fiduciary liability insurance policies.

Real Estate Litigation

Shivani also has extensive experience representing clients in disputes related to real estate transactions, representing owners, developers, commercial tenants and title insurers in litigation involving breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty, negligence and fraud claims.