BONI, ZACK & SNYDER - Key Persons
Benjamin J. Eichel is an experienced commercial litigator and focuses his practice on cases involving the antitrust laws, complex breach of contract, arbitration, and international matters. Mr. Eichel litigates all types of commercial disputes, with both domestic and international implications, including, but not limited to, construction disputes, employee/employer disputes, shareholder or partnership agreements, commercial landlord and tenant disputes, RICO actions, and disputes relating to the ownership of intellectual property.
In antitrust and unfair competition matters, Mr. Eichel represents clients in litigation involving price-fixing, price discrimination, predatory pricing, monopolistic practices, group boycotts, and tying and exclusive deals, among other areas.
Mr. Eichel represents clients in all aspects of litigation, from initial pleadings through appeals, in both state and federal courts, as well as representing clients in alternative dispute resolution procedures, including arbitration and mediation. Mr. Eichel has represented clients before the American Arbitration Association, the International Centre for Dispute Resolution, Judicial Arbitration and Mediation Services, and the International Chamber of Commerce.
Before joining Boni, Zack & Snyder, Mr. Eichel was an associate and of counsel in the commercial litigation departments of Pepper Hamilton, LLP and Archer & Greiner, P.C., where his experience included working on antitrust matters, commercial litigation, and international arbitration.
Mr. Eichel has maintained an active pro bono practice throughout his career. His work in civil rights cases has included representing a Pennsylvania prisoner in a Section 1983 action relating to inadequate medical care while in state custody. He has also worked with the nonprofit organization Women Against Abuse, representing clients in court seeking protection from domestic abuse. He has also worked protecting Pennsylvanians' right to vote in recent elections.
Experience
Dettmering et al. v. VBit Technologies Corp. et al., No. 1:22cv1482 (D. Del.) (RICO action concerning fraud in the sale of Bitcoin mining packages pending).
Former Philadelphia Legal Services Executive Director Cathy Carr said of Ms. Zack, who volunteered for many years at CLS, that she was "an amazing combination of someone, both kind and generous, with lots of grace and someone who was an outstanding lawyer's lawyer."
Job Titles:
- Senior Partner With Spector Roseman Kodroff & Willis
Jeffrey J. Corrigan, a senior partner with Spector Roseman Kodroff & Willis, said that when his firm was the lead counsel in the Oriented Strand Board antitrust class action, he picked Ms. Zack out of all the lawyers from 30 firms involved in the case to depose an expert. The expert witness was highly respected by the plaintiffs' expert witness and the plaintiffs' counsel thought the expert was the best of all of the defense experts. Mr. Corrigan said that Ms. Zack's deposition "got enough dust on the expert" to bring that particular defendant to the settlement table. "In my business there are a lot of 'geniuses' and 'experts' and I put both of those terms in quotes," Mr. Corrigan said, but Ms. Zack, "despite her high competence and intelligence, never acted like a know-it-all."
"She spoke softly," Mr. Boni said. "There was no flourish. There was no sense of self in her work, no superlative. She didn't boast, no conceit. She was just a brilliant attorney."
Joanne Zack sadly passed away in October 2012. In her illustrious career, Ms. Zack represented clients in complex litigation in a variety of areas, including antitrust, copyright, ERISA, securities, breach of contract, and breach of fiduciary duty. She has tried cases and argued appeals in both federal and state court.
Ms. Zack was a shareholder at Kohn, Swift and Graf from 1988 to 2004, and was associated with Cleary, Gottlieb, Steen and Hamilton in New York from 1981 to 1986. She also served as Law Clerk to the Honorable Charles L. Brieant of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. She graduated from Carleton College and N.Y.U. Law School, where she was elected to Order of the Coif and served as Research Editor of the Law Review.
Ms. Zack was admitted to practice in the courts of Pennsylvania and New York, the Second, Third and Federal Circuit Courts of Appeals, the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, and the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York. She has served on the boards and executive committees of Community Legal Services of Philadelphia and Philadelphia VIP, and as a sponsor in Philadelphia Futures Sponsor a Scholar program. In 2001, she received the Champion of Justice Award from CLS.
Ms. Zack was held in the highest esteem by her colleagues.
John E. Sindoni is a seasoned commercial litigator, having worked on cases involving the antitrust laws, breach of contract, business torts, and intellectual property. He has also advised clients on compliance with antitrust and trade regulation laws.
In the area of antitrust law, he is currently involved in the firm's representation of the hospital plaintiffs in In re Da Vinci Surgical Robots Antitrust Litigation, No. 3:21-cv-03825-VC (N.D. Cal.),, the City of Philadelphia Board of Pensions in In re Foreign Exchange Benchmark Rates Antitrust Litigation, No. 13-cv-7789 (S.D.N.Y.), and an end-payer plaintiff in class action litigation involving an alleged conspiracy among generic drug manufacturers to reduce competition and fix prices for generic drugs, in In re Generic Drugs Antitrust Litigation, MDL No. 2724, 16-MD-2724 (E.D. Pa.). Prior antitrust matters include In re Interior Molded Doors Antitrust Litigation, Lead Civil Action No. 3:18-cv-00718-JAG (E.D. Va.), an antirust class action involving a conspiracy to fix the price of interior molded doors, where Mr. Sindoni was actively involved in all aspects of the litigation in connection with Boni, Zack & Snyder's appointment as co-lead counsel for the direct purchaser class, and In re Domestic Drywall Antitrust Litig., MDL No. 2437 (E.D. Pa.), an antirust class action involving a conspiracy to fix the price of domestic drywall, where Mr. Sindoni was responsible for the plaintiffs' third-party discovery of domestic and international trade associations and industry financial analysts.
Mr. Sindoni also handles class actions representing authors. In Keiler et al. v. Harlequin Enterprises Ltd. et al., No. 12-5558 (S.D.N.Y.), a class action challenging Harlequin's methodology for calculating e-book royalties, Mr. Sindoni was responsible for briefing an appeal in the Second Circuit Court of Appeals that reversed the trial court's order dismissing the complaint. After the case was remanded back to the trial court, he was involved in discovery and mediation, which led to a class-wide settlement. In connection with the firm's representation of a class of freelance writers in a class action against the leading electronic databases in In re Literary Works in Electronic Databases Copyright Litigation, MDL No. 1379 (S.D.N.Y.), Mr. Sindoni handled the dispute resolution process that resolved the claim disputes raised by hundreds of participating print publications submitted as part of the settlement.
Prior to joining Boni, Zack & Snyder, Mr. Sindoni was an associate in the trial department at Duane Morris LLP, where his experience included working on antitrust, commercial litigation, and antitrust matters, including American Express Travel Related Services, Inc. v. Visa U.S.A., Inc., No. 04-CV-08967-BSJ-DFE (S.D.N.Y.) (represented a credit-card issuer in defense of antitrust action related to Visa and MasterCard rules and policies); In re Hydrogen Peroxide Antitrust Litig., MDL No. 1682 (E.D. Pa.) (represented a chemical company that opted out of a class action and pursued its own antitrust claims); Cosmetic Gallery, Inc. v. Schoeneman Corporation et al., No. 01-4896 (D.N.J.) (represented a distributor defendant in action alleging group boycott relating to limited distribution policies for hair care products); Schreiber et al. v. Eli Lilly & Co., No. 05-2616 (E.D. Pa.) (represented plaintiffs in an inventorship and patent infringement suit relating to a major pharmaceutical product); and a AAA arbitration in which he represented a manufacturer in a dispute with national retailer over breach of distribution agreement.
Prior to joining Boni, Zack & Snyder, Mr. Sindoni also served as a Staff Attorney for the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.
Mr. Sindoni's pro bono experience includes having represented a prisoner in a section 1983 action alleging use of excessive force by prison guards. The case settled on the eve of trial.
Mr. Sindoni was selected to the Pennsylvania "Super Lawyers Rising Stars" list issued by Thomson Reuters each year from 2015 through 2018 and the Pennsylvania "Super Lawyer" list in 2019 through 2022.
Experience
In re Da Vinci Surgical Robots Antitrust Litigation, No. 3:21-cv-03825-VC (N.D. Cal.) (antitrust class action pending)
In re Generic Pharmaceuticals Pricing Antitrust Litigation, MDL 2724, 16-MD-2724 (E.D. Pa.) (antitrust class action pending)
In re Foreign Exchange Benchmark Rates Antitrust Litigation, No. 1:13-cv-7789-LGS (S.D.N.Y.) (antitrust class action, partial settlements pending)
In re Interior Molded Doors Antitrust Litigation, Lead Civil Action No. 3:18-cv-00718-JAG (E.D. Va.) (antitrust class action settlement)
In re LIBOR-Based Financial Instruments Antitrust Litigation, No. 11-MD-2262 (S.D.N.Y.) (antitrust class action settlement)
Laumann v. National Hockey League, No. 12-civ-1817 (S.D.N.Y.) & Garber v. Office of the Commissioner of Baseball, No. 12-civ-3704 (S.D.N.Y.) (antitrust class action settlements)
Joseph C. Kohn of Kohn, Swift & Graf, P.C., where Ms. Zack worked for 18 years, said that "so many trial lawyers, class action lawyers, have egos that precede them by a few miles. Joanne would be the smartest attorney sitting around the room but not have to prove it. She could say one sentence at one point and solve the whole problem."
Joshua Snyder has been with the firm since it opened in March 2007 and became a partner in 2008. Over the course of his career, Mr. Snyder has gained experience in a broad array of complex litigation matters, representing plaintiffs, defendants, and third parties in class actions and individual cases. This experience encompasses high-stakes litigation in state and federal trial and appellate courts across the country.
In the area of antitrust, Mr. Snyder has represented consumers, businesses, and public sector clients transacting in various industries and markets, ranging from those involving commodity and commodity-like products such as chemicals and wood products, to interest rate swaps and other derivatives, to sports broadcasting. Current representative matters include In re Foreign Exchange Benchmark Rates Antitrust Litigation, No. 1:13-cv-7789-LGS (S.D.N.Y.), and In re: Generic Pharmaceuticals Pricing Antitrust Litigation, MDL 2724 (E.D. Pa.).
Many of Mr. Snyder's clients are in the public sector, including, for example, those counties and municipalities he represents in their lawsuits against the nation's largest opioid manufacturers, distributors, and dispensers. He also has considerable experience in consumer protection class actions, including, among other cases, in In re Apple In-App Purchase Litig., No. 11-CV-1758-EJD (N.D. Cal.), in which he served as a co-lead counsel for a class of consumers, as well as in intellectual property and ERISA class actions.
Prior to joining the firm, Mr. Snyder was an associate with Kohn, Swift & Graf, P.C. and Obermayer Rebmann Maxwell & Hippel LLP. He also served as a law clerk to the Honorable Berle M. Schiller of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania and to the Honorable Thomas L. Ambro of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.
Throughout his career, Mr. Snyder has handled a variety of pro bono matters. With the Pennsylvania Innocence Project, Mr. Snyder represented Letitia "Teri" Smallwood and helped to secure her return home to her family after 42 years in prison. Mr. Snyder serves on the Board of Directors of the Pennsylvania Innocence Project, and, since 2014, has been a Trustee of the Philadelphia Bar Foundation, an organization that provides grants and other support to nearly forty legal aid nonprofits in Philadelphia. In addition, Mr. Snyder is a co-chair of the Philadelphia Bar Association's Antitrust Law Committee.
Mr. Snyder was named one of Pennsylvania's "Super Lawyers Rising Stars" in each year in which the list was published from 2008 through 2015 and has been named a Pennsylvania "Super Lawyer" in 2016 through 2024.
Experience
In re: Generic Pharmaceuticals Pricing Antitrust Litig., MDL 2724, 16-MD-2724 (E.D. Pa.) (class action pending).
In re Da Vinci Surgical Robot Antitrust Litigation, No. 3:21-cv-03825-VC (N.D. Cal.) (class action pending).
Bucks County et al. v. Purdue Pharma L.P. et al. (Pennsylvania Coordinated Opioid Proceedings), CV-2017-008095 (Delaware Cty. Ct. Common Pleas) (litigation and partial settlements pending).
In re: Foreign Exchange Benchmark Rates Antitrust Litig., No. 1:13-cv-7789-LGS (S.D.N.Y.) (class action settlements).
In re: Interior Molded Doors Antitrust Litig., Lead Civil Action No. 3:18-cv-00718-JAG (E.D. Va.) (class action settlement).
Julie Fuchs is Counsel to the firm. She has practiced complex commercial litigation for almost 25 years. Ms. Fuchs has extensive experience in commercial litigation, including cases involving the antitrust laws, breach of contract, and consumer class actions. Ms. Fuchs has assisted the Firm in obtaining meaningful recoveries on behalf of clients in antitrust litigation. Ms. Fuchs has worked extensively on nationwide class actions representing consumers against the three major credit bureaus. Her work has helped class members recover damages and correct unlawful practices in the credit reporting industry.
Prior to joining the firm, Ms. Fuchs worked independently on antitrust and consumer class actions. She was also an associate at Klehr Harrison Harvey Branzburg LLP, where her practice focused on commercial litigation.
Experience
Harris, et al v. Experian Information Solutions Inc. et al., Nos.: 6:06-CV-01808, 01810 and 01811 (D.S.C.), and Clark, et al v. Experian Information Solutions, Inc., et al., No. 8:00-1217-24; No. 8:00-1218-24 and No. 8:00-1219-24 (D.S.C.) (consumer class action settlements).
Michael J. Boni has practiced complex commercial litigation for 30 years. In 2007, he founded Boni & Zack after working at two leading plaintiffs' class action firms. He specializes in antitrust, copyright, consumer, shareholder and class action litigation. Mr. Boni has been involved in all aspects of class action and other complex litigation, including trial work, evidentiary hearings, appellate advocacy, oral argument on motions concerning final and preliminary settlement approval, summary judgment, class certification, discovery and other motions, expert and merits discovery, and settlement negotiations. Mr. Boni's antitrust practice has focused on industries including roofing, residential doors, drywall and other building products, Lasik technology, natural gas, pharmaceuticals and banking. His consumer class action practice includes cases against defendants such as IBM, Apple, Yahoo, Toshiba, Verizon and Philips Electronics. He has also handled numerous securities class actions and shareholder derivative suits.
Mr. Boni has considerable experience litigating in other areas of complex litigation as well. In 1991, Mr. Boni represented a class of workers at the Budd Company, alleging that the employer violated its pension plan obligations under ERISA. In 1995, he was co-lead counsel in a class action against the manufacturer of a dangerous hair naturalizer, which advertised the product as chemical-free and harmless. Users of the product, however, experienced loss of hair and burnt scalps. In its opinion granting final settlement approval, the court stated that "the work of [lead counsel] and the manner in which they conducted themselves exhibited the very highest level of professionalism and competence in our legal system." In re Rio Hair Naturalizer Products Liability Litigation, 1996 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 20440, *57 (E.D. Mich. December 20, 1996).
In 1999, Mr. Boni was retained by the Authors Guild, the nation's leading authors' rights trade organization, to represent a class of freelance authors in a copyright infringement action against electronic databases. That case was the first of many in which Mr. Boni was involved and which advanced the state of copyright and book publishing law in the digital age. In 2000, Mr. Boni was interviewed by Lawcast to discuss the freelance authors case. In 2001, he was the subject of a Law.com and an IP Worldwide article on his work in the area of copyright law in the digital age. Mr. Boni was also the subject of the cover story in the Fall 2010 issue of the Penn Law Journal, entitled, "The New Digital Divide."
Mr. Boni also handles cases on behalf of victims of child sexual abuse. He has represented a dozen victims of Jerry Sandusky, a young man who as an altar boy was sexually abused by two priests and a teacher in the Philadelphia Archdiocese, and a victim of abuse by a Boy Scouts of America troop leader.
Mr. Boni was retained by Clinton County and the City of Lock Haven, PA to bring a lawsuit against the manufacturers and distributors of opioids, and has been involved in the coordinated opioid litigation in Pennsylvania.
Mr. Boni has been awarded a rating of AV® Preeminent TM by Martindale-Hubbell®, and has been named by his peers as a Pennsylvania "Super Lawyer" every year from 2005 to the present.
Mr. Boni sits on the Eastern Pennsylvania Board of the Jewish National Fund, and has served for many years on the Board's Executive Committee. He served as Chair of the JNF EPA Board from 2013-2015. He has also sat on the Philadelphia Regional Board of the Anti-Defamation League, and served as Chair of that Board from 2005-2007. Mr. Boni also served for many years on the Leadership Council of Philadelphia Community Legal Services, and in 2010 he was honored with CLS's Equal Justice Award.
Experience
Mr. Boni has served as lead counsel or on the plaintiffs' executive committee in a number of complex matters, including:
In re: Interior Molded Doors Antitrust Litig., Lead Civil Action No. 3:18-cv-00718-JAG (E.D. Va.) (antitrust class action settlement).
In re: Da Vinci Surgical Robot Antitrust Litig., Lead Case No. 3:21-cv-03825-VC (N.D. Cal.) (antitrust class action pending).