ABOUT
Mike Avidon is a Senior Counsel in Moses & Singer LLP, a New York City law firm, and Co-Chair of its Banking & Finance Practice Group. He was previously a partner in the firm for 36 years.
He is widely recognized for his knowledge of letters of credit (LCs), lending, and secured transactions. He was named “2022 Letter of Credit Lawyer of the Year” by the Institute of International Banking Law & Practice. Mike’s practice emphasizes secured and unsecured lending transactions, LC transactions, trade finance (including supply chain finance, accounts receivable purchases, and draft discounting), subscription finance, and LC litigation. His LC work involves standby, direct pay, and commercial LCs as well as demand guarantees. His clients include money center banks (often acting as administrative agent for syndicate lenders) and other financial institutions.
Mike’s many contributions to the law and practice include: (i) participating in the 1990’s revision of UCC Article 5 on Letters of Credit and the preparation of the International Standby Practices 1998 (ISP98); (ii) serving on the Council on International Standby Practices; (iii) serving on the American Bar Association/U.S.C.I.B. Task Force whose report led to the 1990’s UCC Article 5 revision; (iv) serving as a member of the ICC’s Consultative Group that helped prepare the ICC Uniform Rules for Bank Payment Obligations; (v) preparing for BAFT, for use by its trade association members, a New York law-governed form of Master Trade Loan Agreement (MTLA) ; and (vi) participating in drafting Rules of Arbitration for the International Center for Letter of Credit Arbitration, Inc. Recently, he served as an active Observer to the Drafting Committee that produced the 2022 UCC amendments, including amendments to UCC Article 5 and a new Article 12 on Controllable Electronic Records. He is also a charter member of the Editorial Advisory Board of Documentary Credit World (and, previously, of Letter of Credit Update).
Mike writes and speaks frequently about LCs, demand guarantees, syndicated lending, trade finance, secured transactions, and other finance-related topics, and actively participates in bar associations and trade groups. Mike was elected a Fellow of the prestigious American College of Commercial Finance Lawyers. He is a past Co-Chair of the Letters of Credit Subcommittee of the American Bar Association (ABA) and a past Chair of the Subcommittee on Letters of Credit of the New York State Bar Association. On behalf of the ABA Letters of Credit Subcommittee, he worked with the Loan Syndications and Trading Association (LSTA) to revise their model form of Revolving Credit Agreement to better accommodate LC subfacilities in syndicated revolving credit agreements.
Mike has been listed in The Best Lawyers in America® and Law & Politics’ “New York Super Lawyers.” Mike earned his J.D., with honors, from Columbia University School of Law and received his B.A., summa cum laude, from Brooklyn College.
