Mario Russo focuses his practice on complex commercial litigation, with a primary emphasis on complex insurance matters. He has spent nearly a decade helping corporate policyholder clients, ranging from Fortune 50 companies to start-ups, navigate issues arising from virtually every type of first-party and third-party insurance, including general liability insurance, directors & officers insurance, errors & omissions insurance, employment practices liability insurance, cyber insurance, workers compensation insurance, property insurance and business interruption insurance. He handles matters arising in both state and federal court and represents clients in arbitration and mediation proceedings. Mario’s efforts have helped clients secure millions of dollars in insurance proceeds.
Mario believes effective representation requires a proactive rather than reactive approach. Mario, therefore, proactively helps clients identify and assess their potential risks, analyze new insurance products and consider the adequacy of their existing insurance programs. He also counsels clients purchasing insurance coverage and reviews existing and prospective insurance policies to determine whether they meet clients’ needs.
Mario prides himself on keeping apprised of insurance matters important to both existing and emerging industries. He has co-authored numerous articles on cutting-edge insurance coverage issues, which have appeared in various professional publications, and contributed to several leading insurance law treatises. Mario also serves as a member of the firm’s Cybersecurity and Data Privacy Task Force and recently joined its Cannabis Industry Group, where he contributes to the Firm’s multi-disciplinary approach to addressing and resolving issues impacting the cannabis industry.
Mario was recently elected a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation, an honorary organization of attorneys, judges, law faculty, and legal scholars whose public and private careers have demonstrated outstanding dedication to the welfare of their communities and to the highest principles of the legal profession. Membership in the Fellows is limited to one percent of lawyers licensed to practice in each jurisdiction.
An active member of the legal community, Mario holds numerous leadership positions within the American Bar Association (ABA) and New Jersey State Bar Association. He currently serves as Editor-in-Chief of Tortsource, an ABA Tort Trial & Insurance Practice Section (TIPS) publication. He also serves as a Vice-Chair of the ABA TIPS Cybersecurity and Data Privacy Committee, as an Associate Editor of the Tort Trial & Insurance Practice Law Journal, and on the ABA TIPS Content Management and Outreach to Young Lawyers Standing Committees. Mario, moreover, recently was elected Secretary of the New Jersey State Bar Association’s Insurance Law Section.
Mario cares deeply about, and remains committed to, public service, pro bono work and his community. He dedicates significant time each year to representing clients pro bono, including by partnering with Volunteer Lawyers for Justice to assist individual policyholders with their insurance coverage claims and disputes. Mario also has partnered with the Veterans Consortium Pro Bono Program, which provides legal assistance to unrepresented veterans with appeals pending at the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, and with Philadelphia VIP, an organization providing pro bono legal assistance to low-income residents, small businesses and nonprofit organizations in the greater Philadelphia area. In his spare time, Mario has served as a writing instructor for NJ LEEP, a college access and success program serving first-generation and socioeconomically disadvantaged students living in the greater Newark area.
