Max Billek, a co-chair of the firm’s Lawyers Liability practice, handles a variety of professional malpractice actions and defense of lawyers, accountants, medical professionals, directors and officers, and design professionals, in addition to employers in employment liability matters. In the area of executive liability insurance, Max defends upper management of businesses in a range of industries, specifically focusing on directors and officers (D&O) liability, employment practices liability and fiduciary liability. He has broad experience with complex casualty claims, construction and workplace accidents, significant automobile accidents and general liability claims.
Max has served as an arbitrator, mediator and special discovery master in complex matters and has been appointed by courts as a hearing commissioner. He regularly presents to insurance clients on legal malpractice, identifying good and bad risks and trends in legal claims. Max has lectured to other lawyers on behalf of the New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education and to hospitals and medical associations in the areas of medical and nursing malpractice. He has appeared before professional licensing boards on behalf of clients.
Max served on the New Jersey Supreme Court Committee for the Unauthorized Practice of Law and the Committee on Women in the Courts. He is an active member of the Professional Liability Underwriters Association (PLUS). Prior to joining the firm, Max managed his own insurance defense practice, which gave him practical knowledge of the industry and insight into the workings of the claims process. In service to his community, Max was a long-standing member of the Metuchen Edison Woodbridge YMCA and past vice president of the board and chair of risk management.
Areas of Focus
Professional Malpractice
Max handles professional liability matters on behalf of attorneys and accountants; doctors, nurses, hospitals and nursing homes; insurance brokers and agents; real estate agents; architects and engineers; home inspectors; and miscellaneous real estate professionals. Max has significant trial experience representing many clients in high-exposure matters over the past 25 years. He also regularly appears before professional licensing and ethics boards on behalf of his clients.
Employment
Max handles employment matters in all aspects of federal and state employment laws, including Title VII, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Family and Medical Leave Act and the Employee Retirement Income Security Act. He appears with clients before the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the National Labor Relations Board and the U.S. Department of Labor, as well as state and federal administrative agencies and courts.
Directors & Officers Liability
Max has experience with directors and officers liability issues including defending and advising officers and directors in private and not for profit companies and condo boards.
General Liability
Max defends insured and self-insured commercial businesses, construction companies, restaurants, transportation companies, schools and public and private landlords, among others, against virtually every type of personal injury and property damage claim.
Design Professionals/Construction
Max has defended architects and engineers, construction managers, general contractors and subcontractors, crane operators, inspectors and others in the state and federal courts and in arbitrations and mediations. These matters include personal injury, property damage, design defect, delay, differing site conditions and breach of contract. Max also has gained particular proficiency with construction contracts, insuring agreements, OCIPs, indemnity agreements and interpreting the legal responsibility of the parties involved in the industry.
Representative Matters
Obtained a pre-answer dismissal of a legal malpractice case by successfully arguing that a divorcing wife, the plaintiff in the matter, did not make the necessary showing of a legally cognizable property interest, to be owed a fiduciary duty from her husband's attorney.