Colin R.P. Delaney

Colin R.P. Delaney is a partner in the Litigation Section of Smith, Gambrell & Russell, LLP.

Mr. Delaney’s practice covers a broad range of commercial litigation, from real estate-related disputes to trade secrets matters to debtor/creditor litigation to all manner of contract cases. Mr. Delaney has gained extensive experience in aviation-related litigation and pre-litigation strategy development. Mr. Delaney has recently taken a leading role in the Firm’s practice representing officers and directors of troubled banks.

Mr. Delaney’s most notable successes include the following:

• Recovery for airline of nearly $10 million in maintenance reserves from lessor
• Defense of airline in $7 million dispute with lessor over a failed engine
• Summary judgment for successfully reorganizing airline disputing $30 million in claims filed by two major lessors
• Representation of foreign flag carrier and U.S. subsidiary on substantive consolidation of bankruptcy cases
• Defense of airline in dispute with lessor over return condition of an aircraft
• Favorable settlement for airline in dispute with fuel supplier, including recovery of overpayments
• Judgement on the pleadings in lawsuit brought by supplier of on-board service items against major domestic low-cost carrier
• Initiating lawsuit and TRO against storage facility, leading to prompt release of aircraft to foreign buyer and favorable settlement
• Representation of low-cost carrier in dispute with lessor over terminated lease and refund of money owed to airline
• Representation of low-cost carrier in lease dispute with airport authority
• Advise seller of aircraft on rescission of $7 million contract for alterations to passenger aircraft for return to commercial service with foreign carrier
• Defense of engine repair facility in dispute with private jet owner
• Summary judgment, affirmed on appeal, for guarantor in a $3.5 million commercial real-estate dispute
• Summary judgment, affirmed on appeal, for former hospital owner in $1.5 million dispute over asset purchase agreement, followed by recovery of over $500,000 in attorneys fees
• Favorable arbitration award for German manufacturer of sinks in $30 million joint venture and contract dispute with major U.S. manufacturer
• Defense of energy-consulting startup in bet-the-company trade-secrets and employee-raiding case brought by manufacturing conglomerate
• TRO leading to settlement for hedge fund investor in treasure-hunting outfit
• Defense of former executives of office-supply company against $8 million fraud claims by leading supplier of office products
• Putting a public company in receivership as part of judgment-collection efforts for creditor of holding company
• Entry of restraining orders and charging orders against judgment-debtor’s interests in scores of LLC’s and partnerships in $13 million judgment-collection case for former partners of nationally known real estate developer, and recovery of over $100,000 in attorney’s fees
• Summary judgment for lender in commercial-financing dispute and favorable arbitration award denying lender-liability claims
• Summary judgment for design and dental-supply firm in $1.5 million contract dispute with supplier
• Dispossessory writ and trial judgment for landlord against a defaulting restaurant operator and guarantors
• Dispossessory writ after trial for bank against occupants and developer of commercial property
• Summary judgment in multiple real-property title cases
• Representation of toy maker in a breach-of-contract arbitration with manufacturer and logistics-provider
• Dismissal of fraud and related claims against restaurant franchisors
• Summary judgment on breach-of-contract counts for hotel franchisor, rejecting claims by franchisees in $30 million franchising fraud case
• Pre-litigation representation of merchant-services company avoiding state efforts to impose regulatory orders
• Pre-litigation representation of German acquirer of steel-manufacturing business to resolve disputes with seller under asset purchase agreement

Prior to joining the Firm, Mr. Delaney served as judicial law clerk to the Honorable Danny J. Boggs of the 6th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals in Louisville, Kentucky.

Mr. Delaney received his B.A., cum laude, from Tufts University in 1997, with concentrations in History, Classics, and Political Science. In 2000, he earned his Doctor of Jurisprudence from Vanderbilt University Law School. Mr. Delaney was a member and Notes Editor of the Vanderbilt Law Review, which published his note, “The Graduation Prayer Cases: Coercion by Any Other Name”, 52 VAND.L.REV. 1783 (1999). He was elected to Order of the Coif upon graduation. In January 2000, he organized “Same-Sex Marriage: A Panel Discussion,” which featured constitutional law scholars from Vanderbilt and Yale Law Schools.

Mr. Delaney is a proud member of the Stonewall Bar Association of Atlanta. He is admitted to practice before Georgia state and federal courts, as well as the Second, Sixth, and Eleventh Circuits of the U.S. Court of Appeals, and the U.S. Tax Court.