Overview

Jay Lawlor is a partner at Hoopes and Morganthaler LLC and a highly seasoned commercial real estate, finance, and litigation attorney. His practice spans complex commercial litigation and sophisticated transactional matters, with a particular emphasis on commercial finance, real estate acquisitions and dispositions, leasing, secured lending, and business structuring.

Mr. Lawlor regularly represents lenders, developers, investors, and business owners in middle-market and institutional transactions, including bridge and permanent financing, distressed assets, restructurings, and enforcement of creditor rights. He brings to his transactional practice the perspective of a veteran litigator, allowing him to identify and mitigate risk at the deal stage and to structure transactions with an eye toward enforcement, downside protection, and dispute avoidance.

On the litigation side, Mr. Lawlor has extensive experience in high-stakes commercial disputes in both federal and state courts nationwide, including matters involving complex liability theories, damages modeling, fiduciary duty claims, statutory business torts, and insurance coverage. He has been central in obtaining tens of millions of dollars in recoveries for plaintiffs and in defending clients facing eight- and nine-figure exposure, frequently securing early dismissals, summary judgment, or favorable resolutions well before trial.

Clients value Mr. Lawlor for his breadth of practice, commercial judgment, and work ethic—a combination that allows him to serve as both deal counsel and litigation quarterback when transactions or relationships break down.

Recent Representative Experience

• Represented lenders in the closing of hundreds of millions of dollars in commercial finance transactions, including approximately $250 million in aggregate loan volume from 2023 to 2025, secured by a wide range of commercial properties across New York, Maryland, Massachusetts, and other states involving bridge financing, permanent loans, refinancings, and acquisition financings.
• Obtained ex parte temporary restraining order enjoining a multimillion-dollar construction procurement after demonstrating material procurement and bidding defects, resulting in suspension of the award process.
• Represented commercial real estate purchaser in high-profile land fraud matter that received national media coverage, arising from an imposter scheme in which a third party fraudulently posed as the property owner and purported to sell the property. After the fraud was discovered, Mr. Lawlor was retained to defend a federal court action brought by the true owner, and prosecuted a parallel state court action against the professionals involved in the transaction, resulting in a highly favorable global settlement with no loss to the client.
• Represented party to joint venture in obtaining injunction against opposing party, preventing it from using client’s trademark to compete with it in the manufacture of similar products.
• Represented creditors in contesting Chapter 15 bankruptcy petition filed by foreign representative of debtor claiming to be a participant in reorganization proceedings in the People’s Republic of China.  Obtained denial of recognition of petition and related emergency motion for interim relief.
• Represented party to joint venture and its principal against lawsuit by co-venturer alleging fiduciary duty, CUTPA, and statutory theft claims seeking millions of dollars in damages.  Opened pre-representation defaults that entered against clients, and obtained stay of proceedings and order requiring parties to arbitrate disputes.
• Represented client against vexatious litigation and abuse of process claims seeking hundreds of thousands of dollars in damages.  Obtained pre-trial judgment in client’s favor on all counts.
• Represented client in connection with multimillion dollar solar panel installation involving millions of dollars in claims and counterclaims.  Obtained favorable settlement.
• Represented high yield lender in complicated foreclosure of mortgage securing a multimillion dollar loan.  Obtained judgment resulting in full payoff to client.
• Represented affordable housing developer in obtaining judgment of possession against adult entertainment establishment, whose tenancy was impeding development progress.  When tenant appealed, obtained order requiring tenant to post appeal bond that was, at the time, regarded by the court as the largest in Connecticut history.  The order effectively ended the appeal, as tenant was unable to post the bond.

Education

Mr. Lawlor earned his law degree from the University of Baltimore School of Law (J.D., summa cum laude, Heuisler Honor Society, 2011), where he was a member of the University of Baltimore Law Review.  He holds a bachelor’s degree in English from College of the Holy Cross (B.A., cum laude, Sigma Tau Delta, 2008).

Admissions

Mr. Lawlor is admitted to practice in Connecticut, New York, Massachusetts, and Maryland, and before the U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut.

Professional Memberships

Oliver Ellsworth Inn of Court, Bencher (2025)

Member, Connecticut Bar Association

Member, American Bar Association

Alternate Member, West Hartford Zoning Board of Appeals