5 things to know about Randy Mastro

Attorney Randy Mastro, a former federal prosecutor who served as deputy mayor under Rudy Giuliani, might be making a comeback in New York’s political scene. Mastro is in the final stages of becoming corporation counsel, pushing out Sylvia Hinds-Radix, a former judge who has been serving in the role for over two years. According to the New York Times, Mayor Eric Adams has been behind the scenes advocating for the veteran litigator to take on the position of New York’s top lawyer. A City Hall spokesperson told City & State that “no appointment is confirmed until it is announced.”

Mastro is currently a partner at King & Spalding, which he is now reportedly leaving, with only two years under his belt as the firm's partner. He has donated over $2,000 in monetary contributions for Adams’ 2025 campaign for mayor and has praised the mayor’s efforts on crime and homelessness. 

Here are five things to know about Randy Mastro: 

He has represented numerous high-profile companies.

Randy Mastro has an extensive list of wealthy companies he has represented, including Amazon, MSG Entertainment, and Chevron. Notably, Mastro represented MSG Entertainment, which owns Madison Square Garden and Radio City Music Hall, in a lawsuit filed against the company over the barring of 60 lawyers from Davidoff Hutcher & Citron LLP from entering the venues. Facial recognition technology was used to single out 60 of the firm’s attorneys who represented clients with pending litigation against MSG Entertainment. The firm’s co-founder Larry Hutcher, a Knicks season ticket holder, filed the lawsuit in 2022 and lost. The ban policy remains in full effect, a win on Mastro’s part. 

He was hired in 2014 by former New Jersey Republican Gov. Chris Christie.

Mastro represented the New Jersey Governor's Office in 2014 for the high-profile "Bridgegate'' investigation. Former Republican Gov. Chris Christie was on the hot seat, accused of deliberately creating a massive traffic problem on the George Washington Bridge as retribution against the mayor of Fort Lee, Mark Sokolich, a Democrat who had not supported Christie in his reelection campaign in 2013. Christie won, but his former top aide, Bridget Anne Kelly, was sentenced to serve 18 months (later reduced to 13) in federal prison in 2016 for her involvement. Upon sentencing she blasted her former boss, saying he was a “bully” and should have been punished instead of her. Her case was overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2020, and New Jersey reimbursed Kelly for nearly $7.25 million worth of legal fees.

Repeatedly challenged New York City former Mayor Bloomberg.

Mastro loved to legally challenge former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg. Mastro successfully challenged the mayor’s efforts to reform the taxi industry. Mastro believed the Bloomberg administration was overreaching, he even went as far as to accept cases pro bono. Unsurprisingly, he challenged the constitutionality of legislation that permitted Bloomberg’s third term, where he lost and Bloomberg remained in office for an additional four years.

His home was vandalized in 2020.

Mastro’s house was graffitied after he was retained by Upper West Side residents to remove approximately 200 homeless men residing at the Lucerne, a hotel in the neighborhood during the coronavirus pandemic. The city had moved thousands of shelter residents into hotels at the time to avoid crowding and the spread of the virus. Once Mastro got involved, he discovered the doors to his Upper East Side home covered with red paint and the words, “Randy Mastro you can’t displace us,” spray painted on the sidewalk. Eggs also were thrown at the home and door locks were glued, according to the New York Post.

He is representing current New Jersey Gov. Murphy in the state’s lawsuit over congestion pricing.

Mastro is representing New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy in a lawsuit against New York City over the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s impending congestion pricing program, citing there may be potential harmful environmental effects on communities impacted by traffic bypassing the toll zone. According to Mastro, federal transportation officials have allowed New York to move ahead without addressing pollution across neighborhoods in New York and New Jersey. Congestion Pricing is scheduled to go into effect in June, but its fate remains uncertain because of several pending lawsuits. “The MTA has the hugest budgets of any government authority,” Mastro said in a talk with 77 WABC Radio. “It has a voracious appetite for picking other people’s pockets.”