As a litigator for 40 plus years and an arbitrator for 18 of them, I am mindful that at the heart of any arbitration is a client with difficult problems seeking a final resolution and a full and fair opportunity to efficiently present its case.
Experience
I serve as an arbitrator and mediator in domestic and international commercial, construction, employment and consumer cases. COMMERCIAL AND BUSINESS DISPUTES: breach of contract, family and generational business including trust and estates, corporate, partnership, limited liability and joint venture entities, shareholder, corporate dissolution and derivative actions, business valuations, mergers and acquisitions (Delaware and New York law), intellectual property including trademark, trade dress, unfair competition, copyright, trade secrets and ideas, art law, entertainment matters, securities and investment litigation, hedge funds, fraud, breach of fiduciary duty, tortious interference and business torts, insurance, licensing, franchise, supplier, manufacturer/distributor agreements, software licensing and development, energy including oil and gas, False Claims Act, qui tam litigation, housing, disability, source of income and other discrimination matters, banking, UCC, sales, secured transactions, equipment financing and leasing, product liability, class actions, professional malpractice, RICO and Indian gaming law. CONSTRUCTION AND REAL PROPERTY: commercial and residential construction, delays, defects, remediation, surety bonds, real estate financing, acquisition, sale, development and leasing, co-op and condominium, zoning, easements, mechanics liens, trust funds, environmental, wetlands and related disputes, HUD and Section 8 housing. EMPLOYMENT LAW: employment contracts, severance, wage and hour, whistleblower, discrimination, retaliation, wrongful termination, trade secrets, executive compensation, stock options, commissions and bonuses, covenants not to compete or solicit, misappropriation, independent contractor issues, breach of fiduciary duty, breach of duty of loyalty, False Claims Act and qui tam litigation. REPRESENTATIVE INDUSTRIES: energy, oil and gas, construction, real estate, telecommunications, publishing, entertainment, manufacturing, technology, computer software and software and website development, securities, financial advisors and financial services, banking, e-commerce (and Amazon), insurance, education, health care, medical, home health care and related practices, proprietary schools, the Government of Taiwan and Indian gaming. Have also worked with experts in many industries including, construction, engineering, architecture, securities, computer hardware, software and programming, accounting, economics, appraisal/valuation, statistics, insurance claim auditing, questioned documents, environmental and Indian gaming.
Work History
LORETTA GASTWIRTH, ESQ. Independent Arbitrator and Mediator January 2026 to present www.adrpractice.com MELTZER, LIPPE, GOLDSTEIN & BREITSTONE, LLP 1993 to January 2026 Partner, ADR Chair; commercial, construction and employment litigation; WINICK & RICH, P.C. 1991-93 Associate, commercial and equipment leasing litigation; PHILLIPS, NIZER, BENJAMIN, KRIM & BALLON, LLP 1987-91 Associate, commercial litigation; PARCHER ARISOHN & HAYES, P.C. 1986-87 Associate, entertainment litigation; SIMPSON THACHER & BARTLETT LLP 1983-86 Associate, commercial and securities litigation; MUDGE ROSE GUTHRIE & ALEXANDER 5-9/81 Summer Associate; U.S. DISTRICT COURT, N.D. TEXAS 1982-83; Law Clerk to Hon. Judge Jerry Buchmeyer
Cases
Representative Cases as an Arbitrator: disputes involving: breach of contract concerning use of proprietary databases; breach of website and marketing agreement; breach of brokerage firm software license agreement; breach of insurance contract involving employee welfare benefit plans; distributorship agreement involving the beverage industry; breaches of fiduciary duties and operating agreements in connection with multiple oil, gas and energy companies, investments and a public offering; software development, installation and implementation agreement disputes; breach of investment agreements; breach of franchise agreements; closely held business and shareholder rights; partnership and limited liability company agreements; mergers and acquisitions; business dissolutions; medical billing contract; joint venture agreement; royalties; car wash acquisition; golf course acquisitions and engineering reports; e-commerce and Amazon seller agreements; multiple construction matters; breaches of TV series rights and distribution agreements; celebrity license agreement; breach of auto parts distribution agreement; joint venture franchise acquisition agreement; auction agreement; professional fees and malpractice claims; joint venture manufacturing and distribution agreement; credit card equipment leasing and processing agreement; financial advisory consulting; breach of hedge fund agreement; large construction project UCC accounts receivable dispute; merchant cash advance agreements; breach of independent contractor software development dispute; condominium board dispute with owner; condominium ownership claims and related agreements; market research asset purchase transaction; employment agreements; executive compensation, stock and severance claims; supply contracts; discrimination and harassment claims; wage and hour and FLSA claims; UCC claims; trade secrets and restrictive covenant claims; tenant-in-common agreements and partition claims; factory acquisition agreements; health care provider claims against insurer; breach of trust and partnership agreements; real property ownership claims; marketing agreements; financing agreements; energy storage disputes
Training
Core Arbitrator Training: ICDR International Symposia (ICDR Training), 2023; ACE 23 – Panelist Safety & Security, 2023; AAA/ICDR/AAA Mediation.org Panel Conference, 2023; ACE 22 – Process Essentials for AAA Arbitrators, 2022; ACE 21 Impartiality: Do You Know Where Your Biases Are? 2021; ACE 20 Cyber Security: A Shared Responsibility, 2022; AAA/ICDR/AAA Mediation.org Panel Conference, 2019; Arbitrator Performance and Demeanor -Meeting Participant Expectations, 2018; AAA/ICDR/AAA Mediation.org Panel Conference, 2016; AAA Consolidation and Joinder in Construction Arbitration - Ignorance Is Not Bliss, 2017; Arbitration in Technology/IP Disputes (2014); AAA Chairing an Arbitration Panel: Managing Procedures, Process & Dynamics, 2012; AAA Muscular Arbitration: Trimming the Fat Out of Arbitration, 2011; AAA Arbitration Awards: Safeguarding, Deciding & Writing Awards, 2010; and AAA Arbitrator I Training: Fundamentals of the Arbitration Process, 2006
License(s)
New York State; U.S. District Courts, New York: Southern, Eastern and Northern Districts; U.S. Court of Appeals, Second Circuit and Federal Circuit; U.S. Supreme Court
Education
BENJAMIN N. CARDOZO SCHOOL OF LAW, J.D., June 1982 Magna cum laude, Rank: 7/320 Cardozo Law Review: Notes and Comments Editor Adjunct Professor of Legal Research and Writing “National Labor Policy and the Conflict Between Safety and Production”: 23 B.C.L. Rev. 1 (12/1981), Research Assistant; STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK AT ALBANY, B.S., December 1978 Magna cum laude, Business Administration/Marketing
Publications
“ADR vs. Litigation: A Guide for Businesses” The HIA-LI Reporter, April 2017; “The Benefits of Arbitration are Many; Shouldn’t Be Dismissed” Long Island Business News, June 2016; “Determining if ADR is the Right Choice” New York Real Estate Journal, 2016; “To ADR or Not to ADR – That is the Question”, Nassau Lawyer, Nov. 2015; “Words of Wisdom: Getting the Best Results in the ADR Process”, ABA Litigation Section, The Woman Advocate Winter 2013, Vol. 18, No. 2; “Despite ADR Consent, IP Cases End Up in Court”, The National Law Journal, 10/20/97; “Beware of Ideas”, “Preventing Inevitable Disclosure of Internet Company Trade Secrets”, and “Employers: Don’t Blow Your Employees’ Covenant Not to Compete!”, Long Island Business News
Awards
2026 Best Lawyers in America in Arbitration; Power Women in Business, Long Island Press 2018; Top 50 Business Women, Long Island Business News 2005 and 2013; “Who’s Who” in Women Professional Services, Long Island Business News 2010 and 2021
Panels
AMERICAN ARBITRATION ASSOCIATION, 2006 to Present, Arbitrator and Mediator, Commercial, Construction, Employment and Consumer Panels; ICDR – AAA International Centre for Dispute Resolution, 2022 to Present, Arbitrator and Mediator NEW YORK STATE SUPREME COURT, COMMERCIAL DIVISION, 2013 to Present, Mediator: Nassau, Suffolk, Queens, Westchester and New York Counties; NASSAU COUNTY BAR ASSOCIATION ADR Panels, 2013 to 2024, Arbitrator and Mediator; ADR SYSTEMS, 2022 to Present, Arbitrator and Mediator
Associations
New York State Bar Association: Chair-Elect, Dispute Resolution Section, Past Co-Chair, Domestic Arbitration Committee and Executive Committee Member; Commercial and Federal Litigation Section Member; New York Bar Foundation, Fellow; Nassau County Bar Association, past affiliation: Past Co-Chair, ADR Committee; Past ADR Advisory Council member for Arbitration and Mediation Panels; American Bar Association, Litigation Section, Past Member; Cardozo Law School Alumni Association: Past Chair, Executive Committee member and Co-Chair Long Island Alumni Committee
Miscellaneous
ADR Program organizer/presenter: New York State Bar Association: Domestic Arbitration Award Extras: Awarding Fees, Costs and Interest - They Can Really Add Up Fast! (2024); Arbitration War Stories (2024); Tell it to the Arbitrators and Arbitration Providers (2023); Discovery Best Practices for Construction Arbitration (2023); Arbitration Mediation and Mixed Modes: Part I, Seeking Workable Solutions: Med/Arb-Arb/Med Theory and Practice; Part II, Ethical Considerations of Switching Hats (2022); Best Mediation Practices – Timing of Mediation: Conduct it Sooner or Later? (2022); The Parties’ Process and the Role of the Arbitrator (2022); Grounds for Vacatur of an Arbitration Award (2022); Grounds for Vacatur of an Arbitration Award (2022); Emergency Arbitrators and Emergency Measures of Protection in Domestic Arbitration (2021); Alternative Dispute Resolution: A Comprehensive and Practical Review (Lawline 2019); “The Who, What, When, Where, How and Why of ADR” (St. John’s Law School 2019); Nassau County Bar Association: Matrimonial ADR (2017); “To ADR or Not to ADR - That is the Question” (2016); “Litigation Guide to Arbitration -- the Intersection of Arbitration and Litigation” (2016); “Advanced Mediation - Moving Towards Mastery” (2016); “Anatomy of a Construction Mediation” (2016); “Dean’s Hour: Mediation”; “The Role of the Lawyer-Advocate in the Mediation Process” (2015); “Marketing Your Practice - Modern and Traditional Strategies for Lawyers, Mediators and Arbitrators” (2015)
