Stephen M. Colangelo is a partner in the Litigation Department of Morrison & Foerster LLP. Currently, Mr. Colangelo is resident in the firm’s Washington, D.C. office.

For over twenty-five years, Mr. Colangelo has concentrated his practice in complex commercial litigation, including cases involving securities, financial services and intellectual property issues. He is experienced in handling matters involving all types of securities litigation, including class actions, derivative suits, SEC and SRO enforcement actions, and individual private actions.

Mr. Colangelo’s clients have included public companies and their officers and directors, banks, broker-dealers and other financial institutions, professionals such as accountants and attorneys, and municipalities and public authorities.

Mr. Colangelo was a finalist in the Corporate Litigation category in the Washington Business Journal ’s 2005 Top Washington Lawyers issue.

Mr. Colangelo received his J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law in 1976 and his B.A. from the University of Virginia in 1970. He is a member of the Virginia and District of Columbia bars.

Representative Cases:

• Defense of broker-dealers and their registered representatives and officers in class actions and individual suits brought in federal and state courts in Virginia, Florida, California, Texas, New York, and other states alleging violations of federal and state securities laws and common law causes of actions relating to the sale of securities.
• Representation of a high tech company in a putative class action in Maryland state court and in a related action in federal court in Virginia relating to the issuance of dividends and the voting rights of the company’s publicly-owned preferred stock.
• Defense of a public limited partnership, its corporate general partner, and the principal officers and directors in two class action lawsuits in federal court in Virginia alleging violation of the federal securities laws.
• Defense of a major shareholder and former director of a public company in a class action in federal court in New York alleging violations of the federal securities laws and common law fraud.
• Defense of a public company and its president and director in multiple class and individual actions consolidated in federal court in Florida and in a related action for damages in Ohio and SEC civil injunctive action in Florida alleging violations of the federal securities laws and RICO.
• Defense of the president and chief executive officer of a public company in multiple class actions in federal court in Missouri alleging violations of federal securities laws.
• Defense of a mutual fund, its management company, and its officers in a putative class action in federal court in New York alleging claims under Sections 11 and 12 of the Securities Act of 1933, the Investment Company Act and state law claims of breach of fiduciary duty.
• Defense of a broker-dealer in a putative class action in Florida state court alleging that the practice known in the securities industry as “payments for order flow” violated state law.
• Defense of the principal shareholder of a public company in an action in federal court in New York alleging violations of the federal securities laws, RICO, and common law fraud.
• Representation of franchisor in federal court in Virginia in litigation against a breakaway franchisee for breach of the franchise agreement, trademark infringement, and misappropriation of trade secrets.
• Representation of an investment banker before the American Arbitration Association in a fee dispute in connection with a merger valued in excess of $100 million, which raised issues concerning whether the investment banker was required to be registered as a broker dealer under state and federal securities laws.
• Defense of an insurance company in an action in the Superior Court for the District of Columbia under a disability policy alleging that the insurance company should have provided a policy with “Own Occupation” coverage
• Representation of the holder of a famous mark in one of the first cases tried under the Federal Trademark Dilution Act.
• Defense of an attorney in a suit filed in federal court in the District of Columbia for malpractice relating to work performed by the attorney in connection with a public offering of securities.
• Defense of an insurance company and its broker dealer subsidiary in an action in state court in Virginia alleging fraud in connection with the sale of securities and life insurance products.
• Representation of the holders of famous trademarks in actions against the registrants of Internet domain names
• Defense of a public authority in a multi-district patent infringement action in Delaware.