CURRICULUM VITAE OF PETER B. ZLOTNICK. ESQ.
Peter B. Zlotnick, Esq., is an attorney, duly admitted and in good standing to practice law before the courts of the State of New York. Mr. Zlotnick is also admitted to practice law before the United States District Courts for the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York, the District of Colorado, as well as before the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.
Mr. Zlotnick is currently a partner in the Litigation Department of Moritt Hock & Hamroff LLP (“MHH”). Prior to joining MHH Mr. Zlotnick was a shareholder of Farrell Fritz, P.C. (“FF”) and served as a member of FF’s Commercial Litigation Practice Group from April 2014 through May 2019. From July 2012 through April 2014, Mr. Zlotnick was a partner and the head of the Litigation Department of the law firm of Kagan, Lubic, Lepper, Finkelstein & Gold, LLP (“KLL”). From 2002 through June 2012, Mr. Zlotnick spent the prior ten years as a member of Mintz Levin Cohn Ferris Glovsky & Popeo, P.C. (“Mintz Levin”). While at Mintz Levin, Mr. Zlotnick served in numerous management capacities, including as in-house ethics counsel for the firm’s New York Office, as well as the administrative and case management partner of the firm’s New York Litigation Practice Group. Before joining Mintz Levin, Mr. Zlotnick led the litigation group of Duval & Stachenfeld LLP from 2000 through 2002. From 1997 through 2000, Mr. Zlotnick was a member of Olshan Grundman Frome Rosenzweig & Wolosky LLP (“Olshan”). Mr. Zlotnick had previously been associated with the firm of Whitman Breed Abbott & Morgan LLP, and its predecessor, Whitman & Ransom, from 1990 through June, 1997.
Mr. Zlotnick practices in the area of complex commercial litigation, real estate and construction litigation, healthcare, corporate and securities litigation, and bankruptcy litigation, including corporate restructuring, workouts and management disputes. In addition to his general practice, Mr. Zlotnick also has extensive experience in the area of federal equity receiverships, particularly in the context of consumer fraud actions brought by the Federal Trade Commission (the “FTC”) and other federal and state enforcement agencies.
Mr. Zlotnick’s experience with federal equity receiverships first began more than 25 years ago in January 1994. At that time, he and the law firm with which he was then associated, WBAM, were retained to represent Daniel R. Goodman, Esq., a court-appointed equity receiver, who at the time was one of the firm’s bankruptcy partners. Mr. Goodman had been appointed by the Hon. John F. Keenan, United States District Judge for the Southern District of New York, to serve as an equity receiver in connection with a massive wireless telecommunications scheme uncovered by the FTC in connection with the action captioned, FTC v. Metropolitan Communications Corp., et al., 94 Civ. 0142 (JSR) (S.D.N.Y. 1994) (JFK). Metropolitan Communications involved a fraudulent scheme to sell wireless telecommunication license application services to approximately 4,000 consumers for a fee of $7,000, which fee the defendants misled consumers into believing was sufficient to construct and build a commercially viable wireless telecommunications system, called a specialized mobile radio (“SMR”) system.
Ultimately, the Metropolitan Communications receivership team was able to preserve the consumers’ SMR licenses. These unique SMR telecommunications licenses had been issued by the Federal Communications Commission (the “FCC”) on a first-come, first served basis, but, pursuant to certain FCC rules and regulations, those licenses expired after eight months if the licensee did not properly construct a legitimate cellular system. The actual construction costs for these kinds of systems was several hundred thousand dollars, but the Metropolitan Communications consumers were led to believe that, for the service fee of $7,000, they could comply with all applicable FCC rules and regulations concerning the construction of their telecommunications systems. That was not true, and at the time that the Metropolitan Communications receivership team took possession of the receivership estate, many of these SMR licenses had either already expired or were about to expire.
The receivership team, however, petitioned the FCC and was able to obtain a four month extension of this eight month construction period, thereby enabling it to revive expired licenses, elongate the construction time for the ones that were about to expire and bundle together each of the consumers’ SMR licenses for sale to the Nextel Corporation (“Nextel”). Nextel purchased all of the licenses for a purchase price of approximately $35 million, and, ultimately, after a claims distribution process, each Metropolitan Communications consumer received a recovery of virtually 100% of his, her or its original investment.
A few years after Metropolitan Communications, Mr. Zlotnick was recommended by the FTC and the Office of the Attorney General of the State of New Jersey to serve as the temporary examiner of National Scholastic Society, Inc. d/b/a University Society Publishers Periodicals (the “Temporary Examiner”) in an action filed in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey, captioned FTC v. National Scholastic Society. Inc. et al., 97 Civ. 2423 (WHW). In National Scholastic Society, the Hon. William H. Walls, United States District Judge for the District of New Jersey, appointed Mr. Zlotnick, pursuant to an Ex Parte Temporary Restraining Order, which was entered on or about May 14, 1997, to serve as the Temporary Examiner, having the full powers of a special master, pursuant to Rule 53 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, authorizing him, inter alia, to conduct an investigation and, if he deemed necessary or advisable, to conduct hearings, concerning the telemarketing practices of the defendants.
On or about April 1, 1999, the Hon. Colleen McMahon, United States District Judge for the Southern District of New York, entered an Order, appointing Mr. Zlotnick to serve as the temporary receiver of Five Star Auto Club, Inc., together with each of its subsidiaries and affiliates, in connection with another action commenced by the FTC. That action was entitled, FTC v. Five Star Auto Club, Inc., et al., 99 Civ. 1693 (CM). In Five Star Auto Club, the FTC alleged that Five Star and its principal officers and shareholders defrauded thousands of consumers by operating an automobile leasing pyramid scheme primarily over the Internet. After a bench trial, the Court issued findings of fact and conclusions of law, determining that Five Star and the individual defendants did defraud consumers in violation of Section 5(a) of the FTC Act, 15 U.S.C. § 45(a). The Court thereafter continued Mr. Zlotnick's appointment, naming him the permanent receiver of Five Star. FTC v. Five Star Auto Club, Inc., 97 F.Supp.2d 502 (S.D.N.Y. 2000).
During the Fall of 2006, Mr. Zlotnick was appointed permanent receiver in a mortgage fraud dispute, entitled Artis v. Mount Moriah Church of God, et al.; 98 Civ. 4247 (BAF) (E.D.N.Y.). In Mount Moriah, Mr. Zlotnick was ordered to marshal and liquidate for the benefit of the creditors of the defendants all of the assets of the defendant church, as well as those of individual defendants.
Most recently, on or about June 2, 2014, the Hon. Jesse M. Furman, United States District Judge for the Southern District of New York, appointed Mr. Zlotnick the liquidating receiver of the corporate defendants in connection with the settlement of a $140 million consumer fraud action commenced by the FTC and the States Attorneys General of New York and Florida, captioned, FTC v. The Tax Club, Inc. et al. 13-CV-210 (JMF) (S.D.N.Y.), with the full power and authority of an equity receiver. The Stipulated Judgments and Orders, appointing him, authorized Mr. Zlotnick, inter alia, to manage, operate and sell numerous multi-family residential, commercial and mixed-use real properties that were acquired by certain of the defendants during the period that they allegedly conducted their fraudulent scheme.
Since January, 1994, Mr. Zlotnick has also actively represented other federal equity receivers, including Mr. Goodman., Jay I. Borow and Hernan Serrano, Jr., each of whom have been appointed receiver in connection with other actions brought by federal and state enforcement agencies in federal court, including, but not limited to, the FTC, pursuant to Sections 5 and 13(b) of the FTC Act, 15 U.S.C. § 45 and 53(b). Mr. Goodman, Mr. Borow and Mr. Serrano were appointed receiver in the following actions: (a) FTC v. Metropolitan Communications Corp., et al., 94 Civ. 0142 (JSR) (S.D.N.Y.); (b) FTC v. Micom, Corp., et al., 96 Civ. 0472 (SS) (S.D.N.Y.); (c) FTC v. Student Aid, Inc., et al., 96 Civ. 6548 (LMM) (S.D.N.Y.); (d) FTC v. Trans-Asian Communication. Inc., et al., 97 Civ. 5764 (MBM) (S.D.N.Y.); (e) FTC v. Fighting Back. Inc., et al., 98 Civ. 1461 (RPP) (S.D.N.Y.); (f) FTC v. World Interactive Gaming Corp. et al., 98 Civ. 5115 (JS) (E.D.N.Y.); and (g) FTC v. Better Budget Financial Services, Inc., et al., 1:04-CV-12326 (WGY) (D. Mass.).
In connection with the above-captioned actions, Mr. Zlotnick has been involved in all phases of the examinership and receivership activities from the inception of the matters through judgment, settlement and/or claims distribution. In each case, Mr. Zlotnick has coordinated the receiver’s activities with representatives of the FTC and other regulatory agencies and interested parties. Additionally, he has worked closely with teams of legal professionals, forensic accountants and financial advisors, as well as forensic IT and business professionals retained by the receiver for the principal purpose of ensuring that receivership assets are preserved, marshaled and frozen and the status quo ante is maintained.
Mr. Zlotnick has also provided legal counsel and advice to the receivers with whom he has worked on a wide range of issues affecting the receivership, including, but not limited to, substantive issues concerning the powers, duties, liabilities and rights of the receivers to investigate, preserve, freeze and take custody of the business records and assets of the defendant companies. Mr. Zlotnick has also taken discovery, examined witnesses under oath, conducted forensic investigations and asset tracing, drafted and argued motions and prepared and presented verbal and written reports on behalf of the receivers he has represented to the courts that have appointed those receivers.
In connection with receivership matters, he has also negotiated and reviewed contracts and settlements on behalf of himself, as examiner or receiver, and on behalf of the receivers he has represented. Prior to the commencement of and during the course of each receivership or Rule 53 proceeding, Mr. Zlotnick, together with the receivership teams with which he has worked, has investigated the activities and transactions of the subject companies and their principal shareholders, officers, directors and control persons. In accordance with the court orders governing his or the other receivers’ respective appointments, Mr. Zlotnick has also communicated with the appointing courts, regulatory agencies and to consumers allegedly injured by the activities of the defendants in connection with a myriad of matters related to the receivership activities.
As mentioned above, Mr. Zlotnick has also appeared in court in connection with numerous collateral actions, hearings and proceedings, related to the foregoing receiverships and has participated in the liquidation and claims distribution process of one or more of those estates. In sum, Mr. Zlotnick has extensive experience in the administration of all phases and aspects of the equity receiverships and examinerships in which he has participated.
Mr. Zlotnick received his Juris Doctorate from the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, Yeshiva University in 1990. In addition to his law degree, Mr. Zlotnick holds a Master’s in Public Policy from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, which he received in 1988. Prior to receiving his M.P.P. from Harvard, Mr. Zlotnick graduated with honors from Colgate University, earning a Bachelor of Science degree with a dual concentration in International Affairs/Political Science in 1985.
Mr. Zlotnick has been a member of the National Association of Federal Equity Receivers since 2013 and is a member of the International Association of Independent Private Sector Inspectors General. He has also written and spoken extensively on the subject of federal equity receiverships.
References and further information concerning Mr. Zlotnick are available upon request.