Lauren Zimmerman

Lauren is frequently engaged in matters requiring discretion, judgment and strategic clarity. She has represented clients in complex contractual disputes, bankruptcy and defamation litigations, and regularly counsels high-net-worth individuals and corporate leadership on sensitive business and family law issues at critical inflection points.

In her investigations and corporate defense practice, Lauren represents individuals, special committees and companies in significant internal and government investigations, including matters involving the U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Her work in this area is marked by a pragmatic understanding of enforcement risk and a steady focus on long-term outcomes.

Before joining Benesch, Lauren was a partner at Selendy Gay PLLC, where she litigated high-stakes contract, bankruptcy, divorce and First Amendment matters. She began her career developing extensive courtroom experience as a trial attorney at Brooklyn Defender Services where she handled countless jury and bench trials, evidentiary hearings and complex motion practice. She later clerked for the Honorable Ursula Ungaro of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.

Alongside her commercial practice, Lauren maintains a robust pro bono and public-interest docket. Her work includes litigating First Amendment challenges involving book censorship in public school libraries and submitting amicus briefs in federal courts across the country.

Clients value Lauren for her ability to distill complex problems into clear, forward-looking strategies and to make sound, disciplined decisions under pressure. She is known for her courtroom presence, intellectual rigor and ability to tell her clients’ stories persuasively—both in and outside of a courtroom. Above all, Lauren is trusted for her judgment and for serving as a steady, thoughtful advisor at every stage of a matter.

*Matter completed prior to joining Benesch.

Representative Matters:

Commercial Litigation:

• Represents foreign investors whose escrow funds were allegedly stolen as part of a long-running Ponzi scheme perpetrated by multiple attorneys and other repeat players throughout the state of New York. Metaxas et al. v. Graubard et al., No. 25-cv-5844-AMD-CLP (E.D.N.Y.), Olden LLC v. Angelos Metaxas et al., Index No. 505819/2025 (NY. Sup. Ct. Kings Co.).
• Represented former holders of warrants in QuarterNorth Energy, Inc., who alleged that the board of directors and controlling stockholders undervalued their warrants when conducting a contractually required anti-dilution adjustment in connection with a dividend to stockholders. Mudrick Capital Management L.P., et al. v. QuarterNorth Energy Inc., et al. (Delaware Court of Chancery). *
• Represented a pharma-services technology company and its founder as plaintiffs in the Delaware Court of Chancery, asserting claims for fraud and breach of the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing against WCG Clinical arising from a series of missed earnout payments valued at over $60 million. *
• Represented foreign representatives of funds in Chapter 15 proceedings in Bankruptcy Court seeking to recover approximately $6 billion in redemption payments from hundreds of entities arising out of the Madoff scheme. *
• Conducted an internal investigation of an apparent hate crime on a university campus and analyzed the school’s overall security systems and safety compliance policies to recommend changes to those systems and protocols. *
• Represented McKinsey in a bench trial in bankruptcy court in Houston, Texas, in which Jay Alix, through Mar-Bow Value Partners, objected to the debtors’ application to retain McKinsey on the basis that McKinsey’s Bankruptcy Rule 2014 disclosures were noncompliant, and that McKinsey was not disinterested. The case, In re Westmoreland Coal Co., Inc., was dismissed after eight days of trial testimony after McKinsey reached a comprehensive settlement regarding future bankruptcy disclosures with the U.S. Trustee. *
• Represented a high-net-worth client in a matrimonial trial and appeal involving cutting-edge legal issues regarding contractual interpretation of and statutory application to the client’s prenuptial agreement, spendthrift trusts, income, cash flow and “lifestyle” analyses for purposes of determining alimony. *

Pro Bono:

• Litigated First Amendment cases in federal court challenging the removal of “And Tango Makes Three” (“Tango”), a widely lauded children’s book which depicts same-sex families, and other books from public school libraries in Florida school districts. Achieved a landmark settlement resulting in the restoration of students’ public school library access to Tango and 35 other books in Nassau County, Florida. *
• Represented members in achieving a novel class settlement of a nationwide class action lawsuit with Navient, one of the nation’s largest student loan servicers, challenging Navient’s practices with respect to advising federal student loan borrowers on Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF). The settlement was unanimously affirmed on appeal before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. *
• Represented a clean energy nonprofit organization, in a precedent-setting case against Rocky Mountain Power (RMP) before the Utah Public Service Commission (PSC) to demonstrate the costs and benefits of solar energy in the state’s net metering program. *
• Filed an amicus brief on behalf of the National Family Violence Law Center, the California Protective Parents Association, and the Domestic Violence Legal Empowerment & Appeals Project asking the U.S. Supreme Court to review a Texas state court death sentence, arguing that the Texas court’s ruling conflicted with Supreme Court precedent and ignored well-established developmental psychology. *
• Drafted Ninth Circuit amicus brief on behalf of 13 economics scholars advocating for economically sound applications of antitrust law to complex facts in the healthcare industry. *