Page "Greenberg Traurig" Paragraph 57

* In December 2008, the firm and several current and former firm attorneys ( Harley Lewin, Steven Wadyka and Janet Shih-Hajek ) were sued in the U. S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia by Catherine and Richard Snyder of Herndon, Virginia.

Also named in the suit, Greenberg Traurig's client, Diane Von Furstenberg Studios, Conde Nast Publications, The New Yorker and New Yorker staff reporter, Larissa MacFarquhar.

The Snyders ' suit stems from a suit filed in the same court by Diane Von Furstenberg Studios against Catherine Snyder in December 2006 for trademark infringement, which resulted in an award of damages to DVF Studios.

The Snyders ' complaint alleges, among other things, that the Greenberg attorneys made false statements to the court when applying for a search warrant and that one ( Wadyka ) impersonated a federal officer by flashing a badge and stating that he was with the office of the U. S. Attorney.

The suit also alleges that the attorneys failed to post a required bond and that the search of the Snyders ' home exceeded the scope of the warrant and resulted in the seizure of many personal items.

The suit also alleges that the firm's attorneys improperly brought New Yorker staff reporter MacFarquhar, who was profiling Lewin for a forthcoming article, into the Snyders ' home while conducting their raid in December 2006 pursuant to the search warrant.