Partner Los Angeles, California Phone: 310.789.3123 Fax: 310.789.3014 ssklaver@susmangodfrey.com* Print this Profile (PDF) Download Business Card Member: Financial Fraud Task Force   Mr. Sklaver has had tremendous success handling a wide variety of complicated, high-stakes commercial disputes and class actions for plaintiffs and defendants. Mr. Sklaver is experienced in wage and hour litigation, antitrust litigation, contract disputes, intellectual property cases, insurance coverage litigation, accounting malpractice disputes, securities fraud litigation, and many other types of cases. Mr. Sklaver has tried complex commercial and class action disputes – including jury trials and bench trials in federal and state court, as well as arbitrations. REPRESENTATIVE CLIENT ENGAGEMENTS: FINANCIAL FRAUD Represented Royal Standard Minerals, which was the plaintiff in a federal securities lawsuit against a "group" of more than ten dissident shareholders for failing to file Schedule 13-D disclosures. RESULT: Preliminary injunction granted and final judgment entered that, among other things, required for three years the votes of all shares owned by any of the defendants to be voted as directed by the Board of Directors of my client. Represented plaintiff who held millions of WorldCom shares as an opt-out to the class in In re WorldCom Securities Litig. RESULT: Settled on confidential terms. Represented plaintiff Accredited Home Lenders in a TRO and breach of contract action over a wrongful default declared by Wachovia in a credit re-purchase agreement. RESULT: The case was resolved favorably, following the entry of a TRO. Represented Walter Hewlett in his challenge to the Hewlett-Packard/Compaq merger. In preparation for that trial, Mr. Sklaver deposed Compaq's former CEO Michael Capellas about his famous handwritten journal note which, describing the merger, stated "at our course and speed we will fail." Mr. Capellas was right. EMPLOYMENT Represented one of the world's largest retailers in the defense of a four month long jury trial, wage and hour class action pending in California. One of the world's largest retailers appointed Susman Godfrey L.L.P. to be its national trial counsel for wage and hour litigation. ANTITRUST Lead day-to-day lawyer for the class in White, et al. v. NCAA, a certified, antitrust class action alleging that the NCAA violated the federal antitrust laws by restricting amounts of athletic based financial aid.  ESPN Magazine coverage of the lawsuit may be found here.  RESULT: The NCAA settled and paid an additional $218 million for use by current student-athletes to cover the costs of attending college, paid $10 million to cover educational and professional development expenses for former student-athletes, and enacted new legislation to permit Division I institutions to provide year-round comprehansive health insurance to student-athletes. ENTERTAINMENT Represented NAACP image award winner Morris Taylor "Buddy" Sheffield in his breach of contract lawsuit against ABC Cable Networks Group regarding the creation of Hannah Montana. RESULT: Defendant settled less than four weeks before trial. PRO BONO Appointed to represent Carl Petersen, who was charged by the United States Attorney's Office with being a felon in possession of a firearm – a charge that carries a five-year prison sentence and an 89% conviction rate. RESULT: Acquittal. Jury deliberation lasted less than four hours. Appointed by the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit as appellate counsel in five cases, including: United States v. Petersen; United States v. Blaze (specifically noting Mr. Sklaver's "good workmanship"); and Sorrentino v. IRS (appointed as Amicus Curiae for the Court). EDUCATION Dartmouth College (B.A., cum laude) Northwestern University School of Law (J.D., magna cum laude and Order of the Coif) HONORS & DISTINCTIONS Law Clerk to the Honorable David M. Ebel, United States Court of Appeal for the Tenth Circuit Northwestern Law Review member and editor National Debate Tournament (NDT) collegiate championship winner PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS  United States Supreme Court United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth and Tenth Circuits United States District Courts for the Central, Southern, Northern, and Eastern Districts of California and District of Colorado Admitted to state bars of Illinois, Colorado, and California Los Angeles Advisory Board of the National Association for Urban Debate Leagues AUTHOR "Federal Power to Commandeer State Courts: Implications for the Theory of Judicial Federalism," 32 Ind. L. Rev. 71 (1998) (with Martin H. Redish, Professor, Northwestern University School of Law). *Internet mail is not fully secure or private. Therefore, please do not transmit confidential information via Internet mail. Transmission of information is not intended to and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Please do not assume that your communications sent using Internet mail are privileged or confidential. Please do not send Susman Godfrey any confidential information via the Internet without previously consulting one of our attorneys. **Nothing on this web page is intended to represent that Susman Godfrey currently represents any particular clients mentioned because matters and client relationships naturally terminate from time to time.