Upon graduation from the Cornell Law School where he served as managing editor of the Cornell International Law Journal, Max began practicing in New York with Chadbourne & Parke, a large international firm. He took a leave of absence when selected by the German Academic Exchange Service (Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst ("DAAD")) to participate in a year-long program in Germany for foreign attorneys sponsored by the Ministry of Justice of North Rhine/Westphalia. At the program's end, he practiced with Bruckhaus Kreifels Winkhaus & Lieberknecht (now Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer) in Düsseldorf before resuming practice with Chadbourne. Later, he left private practice to serve as law clerk, in Texas, for two years to the Hon. Sam D. Johnson of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. With the clerkship concluded, he resumed private practice with Brobeck, Phleger & Harrison in California. Max joined Chorey, Taylor and Feil P.C. in 1991. In October 2010, he and his colleagues founded their new firm, Taylor, Feil, Harper, Lumsden & Hess, P.C.

Max's commercial litigation practice has involved a variety of matters, including litigation of commercial transactions, insurance coverage issues, and contractual and legally implied products liability. His administrative and regulatory law practice has concentrated on matters pertaining to the alcoholic beverages and telecommunications industries. Typical matters include the following:

• Representation of insureds in insurance coverage disputes in multiple lawsuits in multiple jurisdictions
• Defense against constitutional and antitrust challenges to the three-tier system for regulation of alcoholic beverages; see, e.g., Manuel v. State of Louisiana, Office of Alcohol and Tobacco Control, 982 So.2d 316, 2008 WL 1902437 (La. App. 3d Cir. 2008)
• Defense of manufacturer and wholesaler of alcoholic beverages against cease-and-desist order issued under the franchise system for alcoholic beverages
• Representation of wholesaler of alcoholic beverages against notice of intention to change wholesalers
• Lawsuits bringing constitutional challenges to differential taxation of imported alcoholic beverages
• Judicial review of agency orders concerning the telecommunications industry
• Defense of building products such as windows, doors, and heating units in products and warranty litigation
• Representation of licensees, at the Federal, State, and local levels, at all tiers (distilleries; wineries; breweries; importers; brokers; wholesalers; retail package stores such as liquor stores, wine shops, and convenience stores; and on-premises consumption establishments such as restaurants, convention centers, and hotels) of the system for regulation of alcoholic beverages to ensure licensing and regulatory compliance generally

Speaking Engagements

• WHOLESALER WARS — EPISODE IV, May the (Commerce) Clause be with You (presented with John L. Taylor, Taylor, Feil, Harper, Lumsden & Hess PC, Atlanta, Georgia to CLE International, 15th Annual National Conference, Wine, Beer & Spirits Law, October 2010 Chicago, Illinois) .
• Tied-House Evil, the Origin of the Three-Tier System, and a Review of Some Typical State Measures in Regulation of Beverage Alcohol, in NCSLA White Paper Principles of State Based Alcohol Regulation (presented to National Conference of State Liquor Administrators, June 2010, New Orleans , Louisiana).
• Federal-State Power to Regulate Beverage Alcohol: An Orderly Markets Take (presented, with Charles Smarr, Brydon, Swearengen & England, P.C., Jefferson City , Missouri , to National Conference of State Liquor Administrators, June 2010, New Orleans , Louisiana).
• Toward Liquor Control and an historical approach to litigating the 21st Amendment (presented to The Center for Alcohol Policy, 2nd Annual Alcohol Law Symposium, October 2009, Chicago , Illinois).
• It's time to take on the Fourth Circuit's actual furtherance/promotion test for when States may be permitted to exercise their 21st Amendment authority to regulate beverage alcohol: A first installment (presented to The Center for Alcohol Policy, 2nd Annual Alcohol Law Symposium, October 2009, Chicago, Illinois).
• It's time to take on the Fourth Circuit's actual furtherance/promotion test for when States may be permitted to exercise their 21st Amendment authority to regulate beverage alcohol: A second installment (presented to The Center for Alcohol Policy, 2nd Annual Alcohol Law Symposium, October 2009, Chicago, Illinois).
• WHOLESALER WARS – EPISODE III Maintaining the Sovereignty of the Middle Tier (presented with John L. Taylor, Taylor, Feil, Harper, Lumsden & Hess PC, Atlanta, Georgia to CLE International, 14th Annual National Conference, Wine, Beer & Spirits Law, October 2009 Charlottesville, Virginia).
• 21 st Century Challenges for the Regulators (panel presentation to National Conference of State Liquor Administrators, June 2009, Nashville , Tennessee ).
• Litigation Strategies in 21st Amendment Cases (presented to National Alcohol Beverage Control Association's 16th Annual Symposium on Alcohol Beverage Law and Regulation, March 2009, Arlington , Virginia).
• How to Prepare for a 21st Amendment/Antitrust Lawsuit (panel presentation to National Conference of State Liquor Administrators, Central & Western Regions, October 2008, Kansas City, Missouri).
• Wholesaler Wars, The Empire Strikes Back (presented with John L. Taylor, Taylor , Feil, Harper, Lumsden & Hess PC, Atlanta , Georgia to CLE International, 13th Annual National Conference, Wine, Beer & Spirits Law, September 2008, Seattle , Washington).
• Focus on Spirits, View from a Wholesaler (presented with John L. Taylor, Taylor , Feil, Harper, Lumsden & Hess PC, Atlanta , Georgia to CLE International, 12th Annual National Conference, Wine, Beer & Spirits Law, September 2007, New Orleans , Louisiana).
• The Wholesaler's Perspective, What's Going on Behind the Vines? (presented with John L. Taylor, Taylor, Feil, Harper, Lumsden & Hess PC, Atlanta, Georgia to CLE International, 11th Annual National Conference, Wine, Beer & Spirits Law, September 2006, Scottsdale, Arizona).
• The Effects of Supplier and Distributor Consolidation on the Three-Tier System (panel presentation to National Conference of State Liquor Administrators, Northern & Southern Regions, October 2005, Savannah , Georgia).