Mark has a broad litigation practice representing both national corporations and smaller companies in a wide range of disputes involving complex litigation, commercial disputes, financial institution litigation and insurance coverage disputes. Mark's responsiveness to his client's interests and business needs has enabled him to obtain successful results in cases he has litigated in the state and federal courts throughout New England and across the country. In recent years, Mark has represented financial institution clients in dozens of lawsuits involving allegations of fraud, unfair business practices and related claims. Mark also is a key member of the Firm's electronic discovery team, handling e-discovery in numerous complex lawsuits and writing frequently on civil procedure and discovery-related topics.
Before joining Pierce Atwood in 2001, Mark was an attorney with Covington & Burling in Washington, D.C. for three years, where he handled a range of insurance coverage, administrative and pro bono litigation in federal and state courts. Previously Mark also served as a law clerk to Judge Norma Shapiro for the U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Pennsylvania for a year after graduating from law school.
Recent Experience
- Serving as trial counsel in a four-week jury trial in federal court in Boston in a qui tam action under the False Claims Act
- Serving as lead trial counsel for two financial institutions in a jury trial in state superior court involving tort and punitive damage claims, where he prevailed at trial and successfully defended the verdict on appeal to the Maine Supreme Judicial Court
- Responsibility for overseeing a two-year long discovery process in a case pending in federal court in Massachusetts that involved the production of millions of pages of electronic data and records
- Serving as lead defense counsel for a local property preservation company and obtained summary judgment on all tort and punitive damage claims. Briefed and argued the case on appeal to the Maine Supreme Judicial Court
- Serving as defense counsel for a national mortgage company in a case alleging fraudulent misrepresentations about the terms of a loan program subsequently prohibited by federal regulators and obtained summary judgment on all claims
- Represented national telephone service provider in multiple lawsuits in Massachusetts involving challenges to the fairness of the rates and related fraud claims
- Retained to represent national financial institution on appeal filed by borrower in the New Hampshire Supreme Court, and successfully upheld the trial court's dismissal of the borrower's complaint
Honors & Distinctions
Mark is included in
The Best Lawyers in America for Administrative Law and is listed as a Rising Star in Business Litigation by
New England Super LawyersProfessional Activities
Member of the DRI Commercial Litigation Committee
Publications
Mark is the author of the blog, New England Litigation.
The Blurring of the Line Between Contract and Restitution Remedies: Section 39 of the Restatement (Third) of the Law of Restitution and Unjust Enrichment, The Business Suit (DRI June 2012)
A Refresher on the Use of Summary Exhibits at Trial, Trials and Tribulations (DRI April 2011)
Developments and Trends in the World of Electronic Discovery, chapter included in Inside the Minds: Electronic Records Management and E-Discovery (Aspatore 2010) (co-author with Catherine R. Connors)
Prevention & Litigation of False Claims Under the New Healthcare Reform Legislation, Maine State Bar Association Summer Meeting Presentation (June 2010)
The Importance of Juror Notebooks in Complex Trials, Trials and Tribulations (DRI April 2010)
Expanding an Already Expansive Remedy: The 2009 Amendments to the False Claims Act, The Business Suit (DRI Dec. 2009)
The Availability of Interest on a Delayed Payment of Benefits Due Under a Group Long-Term Disability Plan, Tort Trial & Insurance Practice Committee News, Health and Disability Insurance Law Committee (ABA Fall 2009)
Is Your Expert Your Ally or Your Enemy?, 17 PP&D 6 (ABA Summer 2009)
Ethics and Metadata: The Pitfalls of Digging Too Deeply, 24 Maine Bar Journal 86 (Spring 2009)
The Dilemmas of Metadata: Think Twice Before Mining, For the Defense (May 2009)
The Ethical Dilemmas of Metadata: Think Twice Before Mining, Professionalism Perspectives (DRI Feb. 2009)
Civic Activities
Falmouth Memorial Library Board of Trustees, 2012-present
Falmouth Board of Assessment Review, 2009-present
Scarborough Planning Board, 2002-2006
Scarborough Parks and Conservation Land Advisory Board, 2002