Michael Krauss is a former Assistant United States Attorney (Civil Division, S.D.N.Y.) who litigates complex financial disputes nationwide. 

Working as part of a team of specialists, Michael prosecutes defaults and defends against claims of lender liability in disputes arising from financial transactions.  Such transactions involve, for example, financing of tribal gaming operations, participation in and syndication of loans and equipment leases, and issuance of corporate bonds.  In addition, Michael pursues and defends fraudulent transfer, breach of fiduciary duty, and related claims involving insolvent estates.  He also is active in adversary proceedings and other contested matters in bankruptcy court.  In the past year, Michael has represented creditors in litigations and arbitrations in New York, Delaware, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Alabama, and Oklahoma.

Among Michael's clients are Wells Fargo, U.S. Bank, Cargill, Lighthouse Management, Beal Bank USA, The Marshall Group, and Winthrop Resources Corporation (a subsidiary of TCF).   

 Michael's representative cases include:

• A $155 million settlement of a corporate bond dispute after trial in Delaware Chancery Court. 
• A multimillion-dollar arbitration award in favor of the lender in a tribal gaming financing, including dismissal of a $39 million counterclaim under the anti-tying provisions of the Bank Holding Company Act.
• A $42 million settlement on behalf of the receiver of an insolvent construction finance company, on claims of fraudulent transfer and breach of fiduciary duty.
• A $15 million judgment in favor of the lenders on a casino development loan.  2010 WL 5088190 (D. Minn.).
• A $19 million settlement of a claim for default on a condominium development loan participation, despite the borrower's claims of fraudulent inducement.
• Multiple judgments against debtors affirmed by the Minnesota Court of Appeals.
• A preliminary injunction against the gaming commission of the Apache Tribe of Oklahoma, barring it from taking any action that would adversely affect the lender's contract rights.  2011 WL 3876519 (W.D. Okla.).
• Multiple dismissals before discovery of securities fraud class actions against corporations and their directors and officers.
• Defense and successful settlement of a $40 million breach of fiduciary duty claim in Delaware Chancery Court.  959 A.2d 1096 (Del. Ch. 2008).
• Defense of lender liability claims in multiple actions arising out of the Le-Nature's bankruptcy.

Michael was a litigator in New York before joining Faegre Baker Daniels.  He was an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Southern District of New York, a litigation associate at Gibson Dunn & Crutcher and Shearman & Sterling, and an adjunct professor at Cardozo Law School.

Pro Bono

Honors

Civic Activities

• Ronald McDonald House Charities Twin Cities—Board of Directors

Clerkships

• U.S. Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit, Hon. Eric L. Clay, 1998–99

Presentations

• An Honest Discussion About How to Handle Liars
  Minnesota CLE (2011)
• Financial Reform:  Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act
  Minnesota CLE (2010)
• Remedies, Damages and Liability: Advising Clients on Either Side in a Breach of Contract
  Minnesota CLE (2007–09)
• Business Torts: Common Law Fraudulent Misrepresentation
  Minnesota CLE (2008–09)

Published Articles

• Dodd-Frank Offers Whistleblowing Incentives
  City A.M.  (2010)
• A CDO Goes Moo:  Three Email Guidelines Goldman Players Should Have Followed
  Faegre.com (2010)
• Financial Reform Bill May Give Private Plaintiffs Little to Celebrate
  Faegre.com (2010)
• Navigating Troubled Waters: Fiduciary Duties of Directors and Officers of Distressed Companies
  Buying and Selling Distressed Businesses: Leading Lawyers on Evaluating Assets and Identifying Buyers, Negotiating Deals, and Advising Directors and Officers on Fiduciary Duties, Aspatore (2009)
• Digging Deeper: Damages When an Insolvent Corporation Plunges Further Into Debt
  Pratt's Journal of Bankruptcy Law (2008)
• Houses Divided: Does TILA Prohibit Classwide Rescission Claims by Subprime Borrowers?
  Real Estate Finance (2007)
• Taming the Data Dragon: Protecting Your Company From Liability Due to Data Security Breaches
  Privacy & Data Security Law Journal (2007)
• From Martha to Michael: Lessons in Litigation From Recent High-Profile Trials
  Trends (2005)
• Fundamental Fairness in Child Sexual Abuse Civil Litigation
  Stanford Law & Policy Review (1997)