Nick is a commercial litigator and trusted advisor who is a key member of Mintz's national Insurance and Reinsurance practice and serves as Co-chair of the firm's Real Estate Litigation practice.
Nick has two decades of experience representing insurance companies, reinsurers, and brokers in a wide variety of complex litigation, including coverage disputes under commercial general liability, directors and officers, professional liability, property and excess policies, and claims alleging unfair trade practices and bad faith. He serves as national coverage counsel for certain emerging risks and has represented clients in insurance and reinsurance disputes in state, federal and bankruptcy courts and arbitrations across the country.
Nick’s real estate practice focuses on zoning, subdivision, affordable housing, lease disputes, and environmental issues, including wetlands, waterways, coastal zone management, and air pollution control regulation. He has defended permits before the MassDEP Office of Appeals and Dispute Resolution and defeated appeals to all levels of Massachusetts courts, including the Land Court, the Superior Court, the Appeals Court and the Supreme Judicial Court.
During his tenure at Mintz, Nick also served as a Special Assistant District Attorney with the Middlesex District Attorney’s Office, where he handled numerous criminal matters and tried several cases before juries. Prior to joining the Firm, Nick was a law clerk for the Honorable Alexander H. Sands III of the Massachusetts Land Court.
Nick is a commercial litigator and trusted advisor who is a key member of Mintz's national Insurance and Reinsurance practice and serves as Co-chair of the firm's Real Estate Litigation practice.
Experience
Insurance and Reinsurance
- Represents a primary and excess insurer in the Purdue Pharma bankruptcy, which concerns the company’s liability for thousands of governmental enforcement actions and private lawsuits filed in state and federal courts alleging that Purdue Pharma's’ manufacture, promotion, and sale of OxyContin contributed to the opioid epidemic.
- Represents a liability insurer in consolidated asbestos cases, which concern the trigger of coverage for certain asbestos disease.
- Represented a UK based reinsurer in a $30 million reinsurance arbitration dispute involving rescission of a workers’ compensation program.
- Successfully represented certain London Market Company Reinsurers in a lengthy litigation proceeding in federal court arising out of a cedent’s $120 million settlement with its insured resolving environmental contamination exposure. The matter involved complex issues of allocation, enforcement of coverage periods, and application of choice of law.
- Defended an insurer through summary judgment and on appeal against breach of contract and bad faith claims by immediately deposing the insured and proving no damages, while preventing any depositions of the insurer.
- Defended an insurer against claims that it converted subrogation claims, obtaining summary judgment from the US District Court for the District of Oregon.
Real Estate Litigation
- Defended the developer of a mixed use project, which included over 60 residential units, in an appeal brought by a competing shopping center.
- Obtained summary judgment on behalf of developer in an action challenging of municipality’s inclusionary zoning determination.
- Regularly represents an finance agency in litigation involving affordable housing in order to protect affordability of units.
- Argued an appeal of a Comprehensive Permit before the Supreme Judicial Court, which affirmed our client’s Comprehensive Permit for a residential development of approximately 150 units.
- Obtained dismissal of lawsuit brought by a municipality challenging a funding agency’s determination of eligibility for a Comprehensive Permit.
viewpoints
Massachusetts Appeals Court Upholds Liability Insurer’s Contractual Right to Settle
December 14, 2017 | Advisory | By Nicholas Cramb, Lavinia Weizel
Massachusetts Appeals Court Holds that Restrictive Covenants Created as Part of a Common Scheme May Be Extended Beyond Thirty Years Only if Explicitly Allowed in the Original Instrument
December 7, 2017 | Advisory | By Joel Rothman, Rebecca Lee, Nicholas Cramb
First Circuit Affirms US Park Service Designation of Long Wharf Pavilion Area for Public Recreational Use
October 4, 2016 | Alert | By Nicholas Cramb
Louisiana Supreme Court Adopts Pro Rata Allocation of Defense Costs Among Insurers and Insured
September 22, 2016 | Alert | By Nicholas Cramb, Lavinia Weizel
Developers Who Elect Not to Pay Comprehensive Permit Fees in Full Proceed at Their Peril
September 19, 2016 | Alert | By Nicholas Cramb, Joel Rothman
Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Rejects "Selective Tender Rule" As Exception to Doctrine of Equitable Contribution Among Co-Insurers
March 8, 2016 | Alert | By Nicholas Cramb, Lavinia Weizel
The Supreme Judicial Court Declares that Inexpensive Market-Rate Housing May Not Be Counted in Determining a Town’s Compliance with Chapter 40B
January 11, 2013 | Alert | By Nicholas Cramb, Caitie Hill
News & Press
Fifty-Nine Attorneys Recognized as 2023 Massachusetts Super Lawyers and Rising Stars
October 12, 2023
Three Mintz Attorneys Selected for Boston’s Future Leaders Program
January 15, 2013
Events & Speaking
MREBA Fall 2016 Symposium
Massachusetts Reinsurance Bar Association
The Harvard Club of Boston- Back Bay Clubhouse 374 Commonwealth Ave. Boston, MA
Nick is a commercial litigator and trusted advisor who is a key member of Mintz's national Insurance and Reinsurance practice and serves as Co-chair of the firm's Real Estate Litigation practice.
Recognition & Awards
- Chambers USA: Massachusetts - Insurance: Up and Coming (2021-2023)
- Best Lawyers in America: Litigation - Insurance, Insurance Law (2018-2024)
- Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce: Boston's Future Leaders (2013)
- Massachusetts Super Lawyers: Business Litigation (2023)
Nick is a commercial litigator and trusted advisor who is a key member of Mintz's national Insurance and Reinsurance practice and serves as Co-chair of the firm's Real Estate Litigation practice.
Involvement
- President of the Massachusetts Reinsurance Bar Association (MReBA) (2016)
- Member, ARIAS-US
- Board of Directors, Magic Garden Children’s Center (2016-2017)
Recent Insights
