Power Lists
The 2025 Law Power 100
The leaders of the legal world in New York.
City & State presents the 2025 Law Power 100. Manhattan District Attorney's Office; Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images; New York Court of Appeals
Law isn’t just a profession. It’s the underpinning of a well-ordered society. A legal system unites us and promotes justice, even if its application is imperfect. It brings about stability and, in turn, economic prosperity. Indeed, it’s hardly an exaggeration to say that law is the difference between freedom and tyranny.
And yet the rule of law in the U.S. is under attack. Politicians exchange accusations of weaponizing government through spurious investigations. Dubious pardons have been issued by the current and the former president alike. Legal institutions are under threat, with trust in the courts eroding.
Many of these battles are being waged in New York. It was Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg who secured a conviction of Donald Trump, the first time a president was found guilty of a crime. State Attorney General Letitia James has been a thorn in Trump’s side across two administrations. And now the U.S. Department of Justice is seeking to drop the corruption case against New York City Mayor Eric Adams, a move critics are assailing as nakedly partisan.
City & State’s Law Power 100 identifies the key figures in New York’s legal sphere, including presidential appointees like Emil Bove and local elected officials like Bragg and James, as well as top judges, high-profile attorneys, leading advocates and distinguished academics.
1. Letitia James
State Attorney General Letitia James dropped a campaign for governor several years ago and more recently ignored calls to enter the race for New York City mayor. In her second term as the top legal officer in solidly Democratic New York, James is among the most prominent warriors on the front lines of various legal fights with the Trump administration, whether it’s opposing Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, protecting gender-affirming care for minors or reversing a federal funding freeze. She also notched a victory against an old rival, former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, with a court ruling that upheld the constitutionality of the state’s ethics board.
2. Rowan Wilson
The battle over Gov. Kathy Hochul’s first nominee for chief judge, Hector LaSalle, ended as an embarrassing failure for the governor. For the unions and advocates on the other side of the fight, the eventual elevation of another nominee, Rowan Wilson, appears to have paid off. Under Wilson’s leadership, the court has taken on significantly more cases and sided more often with criminal defense attorneys. Wilson has also emphasized writing clear, accessible opinions and recently came out in favor of greater leniency for prisoners who have been incarcerated for long periods of time.
3. Alvin Bragg
As Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg gears up for his first reelection campaign this year, he enjoys a public profile that few other prosecutors can hope to attain. That’s thanks to his role in securing a history-making conviction of now-President Donald Trump in a closely watched hush money case. While some observers considered the case relatively weak, jurors agreed with prosecutors – and Trump wasn’t able to avoid his sentencing, even if the eventual punishment resulted in no penalty. Bragg has also helped reduce gun violence rates and improved collaboration with police.
4. Todd Blanche & Emil Bove
The Southern District of New York has at times run almost independently of the U.S. Department of Justice, but Washington, D.C., is imposing its will on New York. Acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove caused an uproar when he directed SDNY officials to drop the criminal case against New York City Mayor Eric Adams, who has cozied up to President Donald Trump. Acting U.S. Attorney Danielle Sassoon refused to drop the case and resigned, setting off a cascade of Justice Department resignations. Bove rejected Sassoon’s concerns and transferred control of the case to Washington, D.C., and the dismissal request was ultimately submitted. Bove, a former partner at the Blanche Law in Manhattan and onetime SDNY prosecutor, was part of Trump’s legal defense in the hush money case that resulted in a conviction. He is now principal deputy attorney general acting as U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi’s deputy until his former law partner, Todd Blanche, is confirmed by the U.S. Senate. Bove will then become Blanche’s deputy.
Blanche, the founder of his own law firm and another former SDNY prosecutor, led Trump’s legal team in the historic criminal case brought by the Manhattan district attorney’s office and cases regarding 2020 election interference and classified documents. Blanche left Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft to launch his own firm with the goal of defending Trump. During his Feb. 12 confirmation hearing, Blanche described the nomination as “his American dream” and said that the cases against Trump were partisan warfare and that he aimed to “restore American’s faith in the justice system.”
5. Darcel Clark, Anne Donnelly, Eric Gonzalez, Melinda Katz, Michael McMahon & Raymond Tierney
Richmond County District Attorney Michael McMahon last year assumed the presidency of the influential District Attorneys Association of the State of New York, where he spearheads a statewide legislative platform on behalf of the state’s prosecutors. McMahon, a former member of Congress, joined Gov. Kathy Hochul when she unveiled her latest discovery reform legislation. McMahon said the state’s district attorneys are supportive of Hochul’s proposals, arguing that a 2020 discovery law has led to thousands of criminal cases being dismissed statewide.
Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond Tierney is focused on changing the culture of his office and getting Long Islanders to think differently of county government. Tierney’s tenure has made headlines due to the arrest of the suspected Gilgo Beach serial killer, which was led by the prosecutor’s office and has given Tierney a political boost.
Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez has made his name as a progressive reformer, with a focus on restorative justice. He has been touting statistics that showed last year had the lowest gun violence rate for Brooklyn on record. He also announced the 40th exoneration since the launch of a wrongful convictions unit.
Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark has made state criminal justice policy a key part of her job. She is calling on state lawmakers to strengthen state retail theft laws, saying the current laws hurt small businesses, and wants to address a loophole in the state’s cannabis law that she says makes it tougher to address illegal sales. Clark co-chairs the national Prosecutors Against Gun Violence.
A career prosecutor, Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly has created a cybercrimes unit and a unit to address the opioid crisis. Donnelly is prosecuting a Hempstead woman accused of performing unlicensed dentistry out of her kitchen and indictment of an alleged ghost gun manufacturer.
A former Queens borough president and lawmaker, Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz has cracked down on illegal squatters, among other priorities. Katz is focused on ways to keep the borough’s youth out of gangs and the criminal justice system, even attending high school basketball games to get her message across.
6. Brad Hoylman-Sigal & Charles Lavine
State Sen. Brad Hoylman-Sigal has displayed two notable skills since he was first elected in 2012: getting bills passed in Albany and generating media coverage. Hoylman-Sigal, who has chaired the Judiciary Committee since Democrats took over in 2019, spent the past year championing the state’s Equal Rights Amendment, adding more judges to address a backlog in Family Court and pushing to eliminate a cap on the number of state Supreme Court judges. His biggest splash, however, was launching a campaign for Manhattan borough president.
Assembly Member Charles Lavine chairs the Assembly Judiciary Committee, a post he was appointed to in 2021. The Long Island lawmaker oversaw the impeachment investigation into Andrew Cuomo that pressured the former governor to resign. More recently, he defended the state’s Equal Rights Amendment, which voters approved last year, and sponsored a new law that decriminalizes adultery in New York.
7. Jocelyn Strauber
As New York City government’s chief internal investigator, Jocelyn Strauber leads efforts to uncover and prevent corruption, fraud and misconduct, even if it means probing the most powerful. Strauber’s investigations were cited as part of the now-dropped federal indictment of Mayor Eric Adams; she probed top Adams aides Tim Pearson and Winnie Greco; and she worked with Manhattan prosecutors on the indictment of former Adams chief adviser Ingrid Lewis-Martin. Strauber has led the Department of Investigation in probes into bribery schemes involving city employees and contractors, as well as misconduct by law enforcement officials.
8. Alex Spiro
In a town filled with attorneys with a knack for finding high-profile clients and television cameras, Alex Spiro is the new go-to criminal defense attorney for New York City’s boldface names. As the press-savvy lawyer for New York City Mayor Eric Adams, Spiro has been spearheading the mayor’s defense strategy in the court of public opinion, inside the courtroom and in negotiations with the U.S. Department of Justice, which ultimately moved to drop the case – at least for now. A partner at Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, Spiro’s other celebrity clients include Elon Musk, Jay-Z and Alec Baldwin.
9. Joseph Zayas
As New York state’s chief administrative judge, Joseph Zayas has handled day-to-day operations in the judiciary since 2023. Zayas showed his political acumen, obtaining the largest-ever increase in the judiciary’s budget for fiscal year 2025 – $340 million more than fiscal year 2024, bringing the total to $3.76 billion – to better fund judgeships, increase funding for the state’s family courts and increase judicial morale. Zayas has collaborated with state legislators to enact the Judicial Security Act and expand e-filing in the court system. Zayas started his judicial career as a New York City Criminal Court judge.
10. Jay Clayton & Joseph Nocella Jr.
Jay Clayton’s claim to fame is having led the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission during President Donald Trump’s first term, though his next job could be even more consequential. Clayton, a senior policy adviser and of counsel at the law firm Sullivan & Cromwell, is Trump’s nominee to be U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York. While Clayton awaits U.S. Senate confirmation, the prosecutor’s office has been in the headlines thanks to a power struggle with the Department of Justice over continuing a corruption case against New York City Mayor Eric Adams. Sullivan & Cromwell also assumed representation of Trump in an appeal of his hush money conviction in Manhattan as his former defense attorneys have been appointed to key Justice Department posts.
Trump’s pick to be the top prosecutor for the Eastern District of New York is Joseph Nocella Jr., a Nassau County judge with a lower profile. An assistant U.S. attorney in the office in the 1990s, Nocella is well connected in Republican circles on Long Island, where the GOP has been ascendant in recent years. The Eastern District encompasses Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island and Nassau and Suffolk counties, while the Southern District covers Manhattan, the Bronx and half a dozen Hudson Valley counties.
11. Brian Mahanna
When Gov. Kathy Hochul needs top legal advice on legislation, policy ideas or state strategy, Brian Mahanna is her first call. Mahanna, the counsel to the governor, was previously at WilmerHale as co-chair of State Attorneys General Practice and vice chair of the Regulatory Department before moving over to the governor’s office. Mahanna also served as chief of staff and deputy attorney general in the state attorney general’s office and was a senior adviser to former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg.
12. Muriel Goode-Trufant, Allison Stoddart & Asim Rehman
A career city government attorney with more than three decades experience in the New York City Law Department, this is Muriel Goode-Trufant’s moment. She became the city’s corporation counsel last year after Mayor Eric Adams’ first nominee could not be confirmed by the City Council, and Gov. Kathy Hochul directed Adams to put no-nonsense technocrats in charge, following the mayor’s federal indictment. Goode-Trufant’s backers tout her experience in city government as giving her the background to guide the city’s legal operations. She would serve on a city Inability Committee if one were convened to determine if Adams should be removed from office.
As Adams’ top in-house counsel, Allison Stoddart took office in November after her predecessor, Lisa Zornberg, resigned as the Adams administration came under multiple investigations. Stoddart previously served as Zornberg’s chief of staff where she managed legal operations and launched the New York City Legal Fellows Program, which places junior attorneys in public service roles.
Asim Rehman leads New York City’s administrative justice system, overseeing the largest tribunal of its kind in the nation. Last year, Rehman, the first Muslim American and first South Asian person to hold his post, oversaw the Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings as it handled cases involving businesses challenging cannabis legalization summonses. He also worked to get the office’s administrative law decisions published in the New York Law Journal.
13. Lucy Lang
Lucy Lang has a message for President Donald Trump: Don’t mess with inspectors general. As New York’s inspector general, Lang criticized Trump’s firing 12 federal inspectors general in his first weeks in office, saying the president’s action “threatens the very fabric of American democracy.” Lang’s focus includes transparency in government and fighting for the most vulnerable New Yorkers. As inspector general, Lang visited the state’s prisons as part of in-depth research to address prison issues. Lang’s office could also expand its reach under a proposal from the governor that would create a special inspector general for New York City affairs, a move made amid calls to oust Mayor Eric Adams.
14. Twyla Carter & Judith Goldiner
At The Legal Aid Society, the country’s oldest and largest legal aid organization, Twyla Carter and Judith Goldiner uphold a 150-year mission of advocacy for low-income New Yorkers. As CEO and attorney-in-chief, Carter is the first Black woman and first Asian American person to lead the organization. Carter has made the defense of New York City’s right to shelter law and addressing the conditions on Rikers Island the hallmarks of her tenure in leading Legal Aid. Goldiner oversees the Legal Aid Society’s Civil Law Reform Unit, which deals with public benefits, housing and homelessness rights. Over 35 years at the society, Goldiner has litigated high-profile cases defending rent stabilization and health access and worked on major city legislation including 2024’s “good cause” eviction law.
15. Donna Lieberman
Donna Lieberman is coming off one of her most successful years leading the New York Civil Liberties Union. She was a driving force behind the successful referendum to pass the Equal Rights Amendment to the state constitution last year. Lieberman counts this as one of her signature achievements, alongside ensuring right to counsel, ending gerrymandering in Nassau County and passing the John Lewis Voting Rights Act. In December, Gov. Kathy Hochul signed NYCLU-backed legislation to prohibit schools from being built within 500 feet of major roadways.
16. Barry Berke & Mylan Denerstein
Barry Berke, known nationally for defending such high-profile clients as former New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, co-chairs the Litigation Practice group at Gibson Dunn. The former Kramer Levin attorney is also a member of Gibson Dunn’s Trials and White Collar Defense and Investigations Practice groups. In addition to his work on behalf of corporate titans, he has held key roles in presidential impeachments, serving as special counsel to the U.S. House Judiciary Committee for President Donald Trump’s two impeachment trials.
At Gibson Dunn in New York City, Mylan Denerstein is a litigation partner and co-chair of the firm’s Public Policy Practice Group. She also serves as global chair of Gibson Dunn’s Diversity Committee and is co-partner-in-charge of the New York office. Denerstein leads complex criminal and civil litigation and internal investigations, and she is known for her deep knowledge of New York. In 2022, she was appointed to serve as the independent monitor for the New York City Police Department, overseeing a court-ordered reform process.
17. Jonathan Lippman
You wouldn’t know it from his schedule, but Jonathan Lippman is retired from state government. The former state chief judge remains one of New York’s prominent civic leaders, whether he’s chairing the commission developing the final roadmap to closing Rikers Island or working with state lawmakers to reform the state’s law in sex offense cases. Gov. Kathy Hochul selected Lippman to lead a review of antisemitism at CUNY and his report is a blueprint for higher education. Lippman and his Lathan & Watkins colleagues led a successful challenge of New York’s property tax system.
18. Dianne T. Renwick
In 2023, Dianne T. Renwick made history when she was appointed by Gov. Kathy Hochul as the first woman of color to serve as presiding justice of any state Supreme Court Appellate Division – and only the second woman in 130 years to lead the First Department. Renwick, a lifelong Bronx resident, began her career as a Bronx staff attorney for The Legal Aid Society’s criminal defense division. She has also served as a New York City Housing Court judge and was elected a justice of the state Supreme Court in 2001.
19. Roberta Kaplan
Roberta Kaplan’s high-profile victories include $89 million in jury verdicts against President Donald Trump in the sex abuse and defamation case of writer E. Jean Carroll, and a landmark $26 million verdict against perpetrators of the Charlottesville, Virginia, neo-Nazi violence. Kaplan, whom one legal research firm described as “a modern-day legal giant,” is a founding partner in the firm of Kaplan Martin, with decades of experience in commercial, higher education and civil rights cases. Most recently, Kaplan helped the Metropolitan Transportation Authority defeat 10 separate challenges to New York’s congestion pricing program.
20. Howard Fensterman
Since founding Abrams Fensterman with 13 attorneys 25 years ago, Howard Fensterman has grown the firm to become one of the largest full-service law firms on Long Island and in Westchester County, as well as the largest in Brooklyn, with 115 attorneys in five offices statewide. An experienced litigator and businessperson, Fensterman has also been a gubernatorial appointee to the state Public Health and Health Planning Council and chaired the Nassau County Industrial Development Agency; he currently chairs the board of Chabad of Port Washington.
21. Paul Clement
A former U.S. solicitor general, Paul Clement is now being tasked with addressing the future of New York City Mayor Eric Adams’ federal criminal indictment. The federal judge in Adams’ case asked Clement to step in and deliver an amicus argument to the court on whether the U.S. Department of Justice’s motion to dismiss the case against Adams – which led to a series of resignations at the Justice Department – should be granted. The move shows judicial doubt over the arguments of acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove on the rationale behind the motion.
22. Vincent Pitta, Vito Pitta & Robert Bishop
Vincent Pitta has represented clients across various sectors, including hospitality, entertainment, health care, construction and education. Vincent Pitta is the chair and managing partner of Pitta LLP, a law firm specializing in labor and employment law, and the founding and managing member of Pitta Bishop & Del Giorno LLC, a consulting, lobbying, and government relations firm. He serves on the boards of the Samaritan Daytop Village Foundation, the Police Athletic League and the Catholic Legal Immigration Network Inc.
A top election law attorney, Vito Pitta serves as New York City Mayor Eric Adams’ campaign attorney and has provided counsel on campaign finance and lobbying to other candidate committees, political action committees and corporate clients. Pitta has represented clients before entities such as the Federal Election Commission, the state Board of Elections and the New York City Campaign Finance Board.
Managing Pitta LLP’s Albany office, Robert Bishop represents clients in legislative, administrative and government relations matters before the state Legislature and executive agencies. Bishop’s legal career began with the Suffolk County Legal Aid Society and then as a legislative representative for the New York City mayor’s office.
23. Jerry Goldfeder & Ken Fisher
A top expert in election, campaign finance and public integrity law in New York City, Jerry Goldfeder made the move from Stroock & Stroock to Cozen O’Connor amid Stroock’s closure. In making the move to Cozen in 2023, Goldfeder launched a new election law practice at the firm. A professor at Fordham Law School, where he directs the Voting Rights and Democracy Law Project, Goldfeder is a go-to campaign attorney with an encyclopedic knowledge of New York election law.
From securing land use approvals to fending off investigations to negotiating contracts, attorney Ken Fisher helps clients navigate state and local government as a member at Cozen O’Connor in New York City. Much of Fisher’s work is at the intersection of real estate and government, like the 270-unit mixed used development in Brooklyn for which he recently secured approval from multiple city agencies. Fisher, a former member of the New York City Council from Brooklyn, currently serves on the board of the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce and co-chairs its Real Estate Committee.
24. Edward Wallace & Carmen Beauchamp Ciparick
With a distinguished career spanning law, business and government, Edward Wallace serves as co-chair of the New York office of Greenberg Traurig, a top player in the state’s legal and government affairs arenas. Wallace has represented major real estate developers and institutions, including Columbia University, New York University and Extell Development, in navigating complex regulations and necessary approvals for significant projects. Wallace has served as an at-large member of the New York City Council and as chief of staff to the City Council president. A trailblazer in New York’s judiciary, Carmen Beauchamp Ciparick serves as of counsel at Greenberg Traurig. She was the first Latina to serve on the state Court of Appeals. While on the bench, Ciparick authored a number of landmark decisions, including on school funding, the separation of church and state, and the death penalty.
25. Arthur L. Aidala
As the managing partner of Aidala, Bertuna & Kamins, Arthur L. Aidala has grown the firm from a solo practitioner to 29 attorneys. Aidala successfully argued Harvey Weinstein’s criminal conviction appeal before the state Court of Appeals, and the firm has been retained by Ghislaine Maxwell to handle the appeal of criminal conviction. Other high-profile clients include former Trump White House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, attorney Alan Dershowitz and former City Hall chief adviser Ingrid Lewis-Martin. The media-savvy attorney also hosts his own radio show.
26. Jim Walden & Milton Williams Jr.
Last year brought plenty of changes at the Manhattan-based boutique law firm of Walden Macht Haran & Williams. In June, the firm added partner Milton Williams Jr. to the firm’s name, marking the former prosecutor’s four decades in the legal profession. In September, the firm announced a leadership change, with Managing Partner Jim Walden transferring control to a five-member executive committee that includes Williams. In November, Walden officially launched a bid for mayor of New York City and has gone on to campaign as a more moderate, independent alternative to the Democratic contenders seeking to topple the scandal-plagued Mayor Eric Adams.
27. Neil Barofsky & Matt Cipolla
At Jenner & Block, Partners Neil Barofsky and Matt Cipolla co-chair the firm’s Monitorship Practice, jointly serving as federal monitors for the New York City Housing Authority to ensure compliance with a 2019 agreement aimed at improving housing conditions. Barofsky is also the federally appointed monitor for Credit Suisse’s settlement regarding mortgage-backed securities, and he and Cipolla serve as ombudspersons for Credit Suisse’s historical investigation regarding banking services to Nazis. The pair also co-authored the chapter on corporate culture reform in Global Investigations Review’s Guide to Monitorships. Cipolla is a former prosecutor in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York in the Securities and Commodities Fraud Unit. Cipolla, a compliance expert, co-chairs Jenner & Block’s Executive Hiring Committee and is New York Chair of the firm’s LGBTQ+ Forum.
28. Bart M. Schwartz
Described by The New York Times as a person “sought out in … thorny situations,” Bart M. Schwartz is a co-founder and the chair of Guidepost Solutions, a consultancy around compliance, ethics and investigative services. Schwartz formerly headed the Criminal Division of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York. He later served as federal monitor for the New York City Housing Authority. During his five-year tenure overseeing NYCHA, he oversaw health and building improvements and tackled criminal activity. Schwartz is also president of the Police Athletic League of New York City.
29. Boyd Johnson
A prominent attorney serving as partner-in-charge and co-chair of the White Collar Defense and Investigations Practice at WilmerHale, Boyd Johnson provides top advice to New York’s leaders. Gov. Kathy Hochul chose Johnson to represent her in lawsuits following her pause of congestion pricing last year. He also represented Hochul’s Executive Chamber in a federal civil rights investigation into former Gov. Andrew Cuomo. A former deputy U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, Johnson has advised New York City Mayor Eric Adams and his campaign in a federal campaign finance investigation.
30. Alan Klinger & Dina Kolker
A leading labor attorney, Alan Klinger is the middle of some of the biggest fights in New York City. He led the legal team representing the United Federation of Teachers in a lawsuit opposing the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s congestion pricing plan and in successfully challenging city education budget cuts. As counsel to the Municipal Labor Committee, he led a successful challenge to city attempts to evade civil service hiring practices. He is counsel to the Association of Justices of the Supreme Court of the State of New York, which is opposing a proposal to give more power to state legislators to create new judicial seats.
Focusing on public sector labor law, Dina Kolker has represented prominent New York City public employee unions, including the United Federation of Teachers, the Association of Legislative Employees and the Council of School Supervisors & Administrators. With extensive experience in labor negotiations, contract disputes and pension issues, Kolker has been recognized as one of New York City’s top employment attorneys.
31. Victoria Wickman
The president of the New York State Trial Lawyers Association, Victoria Wickman is in the thick of a number of high-profile legislative fights. Wickman has been pushing the Grieving Families Act, arguing that the thrice-vetoed legislation would ensure that New Yorkers' means do not dictate their ability to access justice. Wickman, who notched a $20 million verdict last year, also joined federal lawmakers in advocating stronger gun control. Wickman is against New York City legislation to lower taxi drivers’ insurance coverage and said coverage should be higher.
32. Robert H. Tembeckjian & Susan Friedman
“Robert Tembeckjian is on line one” are words that strike fear in the heart of any state judge. As the administrator and counsel of the state Commission on Judicial Conduct, Tembeckjian last year oversaw the disciplining of 24 judges statewide, including 16 judges who were either removed from the bench or resigned prior to removal. Tembeckjian was selected by California Gov. Gavin Newsom to serve on a panel reviewing California’s judicial ethics system and wants the federal judiciary to create the same level of ethics enforcement that the states use.
Susan Friedman was appointed as the inaugural administrator of the state Commission on Prosecutorial Conduct in 2024. The commission was created through state legislation in 2021 but did not become operational until 2023. Gov. Kathy Hochul referred misconduct allegations against Monroe County District Attorney Sandra Doorley to Friedman last year.
33. Daniel Abebe
In August, Daniel Abebe became the newest dean of Columbia Law School, where he is also the Lucy G. Moses Professor of Law and is overseeing the final stages of its historic law library renovation. Abebe’s scholarship centers on the relationship between the constitutional law of U.S. foreign affairs and public international law. He previously served as a law professor and the vice provost for academic affairs and governance at the University of Chicago. He serves as co-chair of the Columbia University President’s Advisory Committee on Institutional Voice.
34. Randy Mastro
A Giuliani-era New York City deputy mayor, Randy Mastro has been all in for New Jersey, at least in challenging congestion pricing. The King & Spalding partner was the lead attorney in New Jersey’s lawsuit to end the Manhattan tolling plan – which appears moot as the Trump administration moves to terminate the program. A former federal prosecutor, Mastro eyed a return to city government recently, with a nomination from New York City Mayor Eric Adams to serve as the city’s corporation counsel. Mastro withdrew his nomination when it became clear he would not win enough City Council support.
35. Douglas Wigdor
A top specialist in employment discrimination and sexual misconduct cases, Douglas Wigdor is the founding partner of Wigdor LLP. Wigdor has shaped the national conversation on workplace accountability with his representation of plaintiffs in lawsuits against Harvey Weinstein, former International Monetary Fund leader Dominique Strauss-Kahn, Sean “Diddy” Combs and numerous Fortune 500 companies. Dubbed “America’s most prominent #MeToo lawyer” by the Financial Times, his cases have led to corporate resignations, policy reforms and significant financial settlements that have transformed the workplace.
36. Michael Waldman
As leader of the Brennan Center for Justice, Michael Waldman is in the thick of debates over democracy, voting rights and justice. Under his leadership, the center has become an influential voice on voting rights, campaign finance and criminal justice reform. The Brennan Center has recently said congressional Republicans’ proposed proof of citizenship for voter registration legislation could disenfranchise 21 million Americans who do not have that documentation. Waldman previously served on former President Joe Biden’s Presidential Commission on the Supreme Court of the United States.
37. Domenick Napoletano & Kathleen Sweet
Domenick Napoletano and Kathleen Sweet speak for attorneys from Gravesend to Getzville as the leaders of the New York State Bar Association. Napoletano, a Brooklyn attorney and the current bar president, is focusing his year in office on increasing efficiency in the professional lives of attorneys, including advocating in Albany and Washington, D.C, to improve working conditions. Napoletano, who runs his own firm, Napoletano Law, has also been involved in a number of bar association committees including those focused on gun violence prevention, assault weapons, judicial candidate screening and animal law. Sweet, the association’s president-elect, is a Buffalo malpractice attorney and a partner at Gibson McAskill & Crosby. She’s also the founding chair of the Tri-County Bar Association Judicial Screening Committee, which offers judicial candidate evaluations for Erie, Monroe and Onondaga counties.
38. Muhammad U. Faridi, Kevin S. Schwartz & Danielle C. Lesser
At a pivotal moment for American jurisprudence, the New York City Bar Association is led by President Muhammad U. Faridi, Board Chair Kevin S. Schwartz and Judiciary Committee Chair Danielle C. Lesser.
Faridi, a litigator with Linklaters, was elected in May as the youngest person and the first Muslim American to lead the 154-year-old, 22,000-member bar association. He has secured multiple 10-figure verdicts and was the 2024 National Asian Pacific American Bar Association’s Pro Bono Service awardee.
Schwartz, a partner at Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz, has led its specialized Crypto Team and litigated numerous high-profile mergers and acquisitions. Schwartz is an engaged legal civic leader. His pro bono work includes representing the state judiciary in the judicial pay case and the Partnership for New York City in an amicus brief to legalize same-sex marriage. He was a legal adviser to the Partnership’s Innovation Council, has served on state business court reform panels, chaired the bar association’s Judiciary Committee and is a Fund for Modern Courts board member. The former clerk for U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is now a visiting lecturer at Yale Law School.
As the New York City Bar Association’s Judiciary Committee chair, Lesser plays a key role in shaping New York City’s judiciary. The committee plays a key role in the judicial selection process, reviewing, interviewing and providing evaluations for all candidates for judgeships in New York City, including city, state and federal courts. The committee also interviews and provides recommendations on candidates for district attorney in the city and for U.S. attorney in the Southern and Eastern Districts. She is a partner at Morrison Cohen, where she chairs the Business Litigation Practice and specializes in business, real estate and employment-related disputes.
39. Joseph Belluck
Joseph Belluck holds a number of key roles in the state. He is serving his second term as the governor-appointed chair of the state Commission on Judicial Conduct, the body that independently reviews complaints against judges statewide. He is the chair of the state Cannabis Advisory Board and is a SUNY trustee. Belluck is a founder and partner of Belluck Law, a firm representing people with mesothelioma and other personal injuries; he has secured over $1 billion in settlements over his career.
40. Anthony Crowell
Anthony Crowell is in his 13th year as dean and president of New York Law School and is faculty director for the Center for New York City and State Law. Mayoral counsel in the Bloomberg administration, Crowell has expanded the legal center, with an increased focus on reporting and analysis. Crowell recently recruited Ben Max as the center’s program director and executive editor, along with Max’s podcast, “Max Politics.” Crowell is a member of the New York City Planning Commission and chairs the committee to recommend nominees to the state Commission on Ethics and Lobbying in Government.
41. Sean Doolan
Clients with complex legal problems, especially those involving government, turn to Sean Doolan, the president of Hinman Straub and a 30-year veteran of government relations. The firm’s key strategist, Doolan is sought by clients, state and local lawmakers for his deep expertise in the health sector and for his knowledge of policy, regulatory matters and ever-changing state and federal requirements. He is also known for expertly and discreetly negotiating transactions, including mergers, acquisitions, joint ventures and financing.
42. Rita Glavin
A nationally recognized litigator and former federal prosecutor, Rita Glavin is former Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s attorney and one of the former governor’s staunchest defenders. Glavin has led Cuomo’s defense in investigations and lawsuits related allegations of sexual harassment, including the recently dropped lawsuit by Charlotte Bennett. Her peers have described her as “an absolutely fantastic attorney and fierce advocate” and “one of the best trial lawyers I have ever seen.” Glavin is a former acting head of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Criminal Division.
43. Anthony Coscia, Matthew Daus & Sanjay Mody
A corporate attorney at Windels Marx, Anthony Coscia keeps America on the move. As chair of the Amtrak board of directors, Coscia is in the thick of the country’s biggest infrastructure project, the Gateway rail tunnel. Coscia, a former Port Authority chair, is vice chair of the Gateway Development Commission and a key advocate to keep the project moving along in Washington, D.C.
Matthew Daus has dedicated his professional life to transportation in New York.
The longest-serving commissioner and chair of the New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission, Daus now leads the Transportation Practice group at Windels Marx. A leading transportation thought leader, Daus published articles and reports on inequity issues posed by congestion pricing, which ultimately played a role in seeing reduced tolls for for-hire vehicles and private intercity buses. Daus has been working to develop reforms surrounding taxi and livery insurance. A Windels Marx partner, Sanjay Mody also serves as general counsel for The Sentry, a global organization focused on investigating illicit finance and war crimes. He has served as a senior adviser to the chair of the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey and was a law clerk for former U.S. Attorney General Michael B. Mukasey when Mukasey was chief judge of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.
44. Debra Katz
Debra Katz is a go-to attorney working on issues of sexual harassment and whistleblowers, frequently in some of the most high-profile and high-stakes battles in the country. Katz represents Charlotte Bennett, who recently dropped a federal sexual harassment case against former Gov. Andrew Cuomo but is proceeding with a case against the state. Katz’s clients have also included Christine Blasey Ford in her sexual assault claims during the U.S. Supreme Court confirmation hearings for Justice Brett Kavanaugh, and Sam Salehpour, a Boeing whistleblower who testified before Congress on the company’s airplane defects. Katz has represented the victims of Harvey Weinstein and The Weinstein Company whistleblower.
45. Jeffrey Citron
Jeffrey Citron brings 35 years of experience in real estate and hospitality law to Davidoff Hutcher & Citron, where he is a managing partner. He also chairs the Real Estate Law practice and co-chairs the Economic Development & Tax Incentives Practice. He assists companies in securing financing for capital projects and represents them as general counsel. Citron was an elected delegate to the Judicial Conference of the State of New York and was 2020’s International Advisory Experts Awardee for New York Real Estate Lawyer of the Year.
46. Terrence Connors
A distinguished trial attorney and founding partner of Connors LLP, Terrence Connors has had a career spanning several decades, securing record settlements in personal injury cases and exonerations in high-profile federal criminal trials. Connors is a recipient of the Erie County Bar Association’s Lawyer of the Year award. He has served on the boards of Canisius University and the University at Buffalo School of Law. While a student at Canisius, he co-captained the school’s basketball team along with future Buffalo Mayor Tony Masiello.
47. Faiza Saeed
Noted corporate attorney Faiza Saeed is the presiding partner at Cravath, Swaine & Moore, where she specializes in high-value mergers and acquisitions, corporate governance and crisis management. She is known for handling 10-figure sales and mergers involving media networks, including advising Disney in its $85 billion acquisition of 21st Century Fox and representing Time Warner in matters including its $109 billion acquisition by AT&T. Saeed, who joined the firm in 1991 and previously co-led its Mergers and Acquisitions Practice, is the 2024 recipient of the Paley Center’s Paley Honors Award.
48. Troy McKenzie
Dean of New York University School of Law since 2022, Troy McKenzie has a scholarly background focused on bankruptcy, civil procedure and complex litigation. McKenzie served as deputy assistant attorney general in the Office of Legal Counsel in the U.S. Department of Justice, serving as the government’s in-house counsel. McKenzie recently announced that Jonathan Gould, a legal scholar focused on political polarization, Congress and reform of the U.S. Senate filibuster rules, will be joining the law school in the fall from the University of California, Berkeley School of Law.
49. Frank Caruso & Verna Saunders
Frank Caruso, Verna Saunders and their state Supreme Court colleagues agree more judges would reduce case backlogs but say the leading proposal would create a separation of powers issue. A proposed state constitutional amendment from Assembly Member Alex Bores and state Sen. Brad Hoylman-Siegal would remove a cap on the number of state Supreme Court judges and allow lawmakers to create more judgeships. Caruso, a Niagara Falls-based judge, recently became president of the Association of Justices of the Supreme Court of the State of New York, and Saunders, a Manhattan judge, preceded him at the helm. The association argues that this would allow lawmakers to pick and choose where new judgeships are created and instead favor a proposal to lower an existing population requirement needed for new Supreme Court judgeships. The amendment is up again in this year’s legislative session for final approval to get on the ballot in November. Caruso has indicated attempting to stop final approval is his top concern. Caruso’s other top priority is getting Gov. Kathy Hochul to reverse her stance on death benefit payouts for the families of judges, a bill she vetoed last year. Caruso describes Hochul as a friend of 30 years, dating back to their days as local elected officials in the Buffalo suburbs.
50. Damian Williams
Former U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Damian Williams joined Paul Weiss’ litigation department in January, bringing his high-level legal experience to the powerhouse firm. Williams left his job at the Southern District in December after a tenure highlighted by the conviction of former U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez of New Jersey and indictments of New York City Mayor Eric Adams and rapper Sean “Diddy” Combs. However, his posting of a personal website and an op-ed for City & State criticizing corruption in New York were used by the Department of Justice as part of its argument for dropping the case against Adams.
51. Marc Agnifilo, Teny Geragos & Karen Friedman Agnifilo
The criminal defense firm of Agnifilo Intrater has only existed for about a year, but it has already taken on a couple of the biggest cases in New York. The firm, founded by several attorneys who decamped from Brafman & Associates, is representing Luigi Mangione, who is facing a second-degree murder charge in the death of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. Mangione’s defense team is led by Karen Friedman Agnifilo, who was previously the No. 2 attorney in the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office. Her husband, Marc Agnifilo, is representing rapper Sean “Diddy” Combs, who was charged with sex trafficking and racketeering. Another founding partner of the firm, which handles state and federal cases at the trial and appellate level, is Teny Geragos. Geragos recently secured an acquittal for a crane rental manager charged with assault and endangerment charges following a 2018 crane accident. She was also on the teams defending pharma bro Martin Shkreli and NXIVM leader Keith Raniere.
52. William Hochul Jr.
William Hochul Jr. joined Davis Polk last year after serving as general counsel for Delaware North, where he led legal work for the hospitality and food service company. New York’s first gentleman, Hochul first made his mark in legal circles as a federal prosecutor in Western New York. As an assistant U.S. attorney, Hochul led the successful prosecution of a terrorist cell in Lackawanna, for which he was awarded the U.S. Department of Justice’s highest honor. He served as U.S. attorney for the Western District of New York during the Obama administration.
53. Kevin Cross & Dennis C. Vacco
Kevin Cross has led Lippes Mathias’ expansive growth, going from 50 attorneys in one office to over 200 attorneys with offices nationwide. Since 2023, Cross led combinations between the Buffalo-based firm with law firms in Syracuse, Ohio and Florida to expand the Lippes Mathias footprint and practice groups. In 2024, Cross orchestrated a strategic alliance with Masiello, Martucci & Associates, the lobbying shop run by former Buffalo Mayor Tony Masiello. Outside of his law practice, Cross led the creation of Scouting America’s Great Falls Council, which merged two upstate scouting groups to better serve youth across the region.
Former state Attorney General Dennis C. Vacco remains a key voice in New York’s legal community as a partner at Lippes Mathias, where he serves on the firm’s Executive Committee and co-leads the Government & Corporate Investigations Practice Team. Elected in 1994, Vacco, a former U.S. attorney in Western New York, expanded the office’s role by reviving its criminal prosecution powers, notably establishing the nation’s first internet child pornography unit.
54. Carey R. Dunne, Mark Pomerantz & Michele Roberts
Carey R. Dunne, Mark Pomerantz and Michele Roberts are seeking to battle authoritarianism across the country as the founders of the Free + Fair Litigation Group. Dunne, a former general counsel to the Manhattan district attorney, Pomerantz, a former Manhattan federal prosecutor, and Roberts, a former executive director of the National Basketball Players Association, bring top flight legal credentials to the group. Dunne and Pomerantz are both veterans of cases battling President Donald Trump. The group has been focused on voting rights, filed the latest lawsuit against Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman over his proposed civilian volunteer militia and has defended Colorado’s gun control laws.
55. Robert Schofield
With substantial experience representing clients in labor disputes and administering collective bargaining agreements, Robert Schofield is managing partner at Whiteman Osterman & Hanna. He specializes in public and private sector labor and employment issues, education law and general litigation. Schofield’s influence extends beyond his legal practice through his involvement in professional organizations. He has served as president of the Albany County Bar Association and was vice president for the New York State Bar Association’s Third District.
56. William Bernstein & Axel Bernabe
At Manatt, William Bernstein serves as chair of the 225-strong national legal and consulting firm, while Axel Bernabe, a partner, specializes in the fast-evolving cannabis industry. In addition to serving as the firm’s chair, Bernstein pioneered the creation of the 260-person Manatt Health group, a first-of-its-kind practice offering legal, public policy, strategic and business expertise to leading U.S. health stakeholders. He leads a team of Manatt lawyers and consultants advising the New York eHealth Collaborative and serves as an outside advisor to the nonprofit organization, which collaborates with the state on health issues. Known as an architect of New York’s cannabis market, Bernabe provides industry-related legal counsel for both companies and governments. He was the inaugural chief of staff and senior policy director for the state Office of Cannabis Management, having helped draft the state’s 2021 Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act as then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s chief health counsel.
57. Mary Jo White & Eric Dinallo
Mary Jo White and Eric Dinallo bring top experience in the regulatory and law enforcement worlds to their work at Debevoise & Plimpton. A nationally recognized leader in securities law, Mary Jo White served as chair of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in the Obama administration. During the Clinton administration, White previously was the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York. Prior to joining Debevoise, where he chairs the Insurance Regulatory Practice, Dinallo served two years as the state’s superintendent of insurance, where he played a pivotal role during the financial crisis, notably in the restructuring of AIG. Before becoming the state’s top insurance regulator, Dinallo was the chief of the Securities Bureau in the state Attorney General’s Office, where he helped to lead a crackdown on Wall Street practices.
58. McGregor Smyth
As executive director of New York Lawyers for the Public Interest, a civil rights organization, McGregor Smyth leads legal and policy campaigns for health, immigrant, disability and environmental justice. Among the organization’s recent accomplishments was overhauling New York City’s mental health crisis response, winning accessibility improvements at a large hospital system and working to stop the pause on congestion pricing last year.
59. Lisa Rivera
At the helm of the New York Legal Assistance Group, Lisa Rivera leads a 400-strong team and wields a $56 million budget on behalf of New Yorkers in need of civil legal services. Rivera joined the organization in 2003 as a staff attorney; she previously worked on domestic violence with the National District Attorney’s Association and co-directed the Domestic Violence Clinical Center in conjunction with St. John’s University School of Law, where she taught. Last year, she was the inaugural recipient of the Puerto Rican Bar Association’s Carol Robles-Román Public Service Award.
60. Brian J. Butler
Chair of the Management Committee at Bond, Schoeneck & King PLLC, Brian J. Butler specializes in complex business and commercial litigation and leads a team of over 300 attorneys across 16 offices. Butler was elected to lead the firm in 2023, taking office last year. During his first year at the helm, Butler led the firm to record growth. Butler’s legal practice spans various industries, including banking, communications, construction, insurance and securities.
61. Jason Lilien
Jason Lilien knows New York nonprofit law, in fact he wrote parts of it. The former chief of the state Attorney General’s Charities Bureau, he now co-chairs the Nonprofits & Tax-Exempt Organizations Practice at Loeb & Loeb LLP, advising a wide array of nonprofit entities on corporate governance, regulatory compliance and charitable fundraising. As Charities Bureau chief, he oversaw over 100,000 nonprofits, negotiated resolutions to complex and high-profile estate disputes related to charities and was a key author of the Nonprofit Revitalization Act of 2013, the most significant reform of state nonprofit law in decades.
62. Benjamin M. Zuffranieri Jr.
Appointed as managing partner of Hodgson Russ LLP in 2022, Benjamin M. Zuffranieri Jr. has been instrumental in strengthening client relationships, expanding the firm’s client base and presence in the legal community. With extensive experience in commercial, construction and international law, Zuffranieri has handled complex cases involving substantial financial stakes, including “bet the company litigations.” Hodgson Russ chose longtime attorney Andrew Wright as the new head of the firm’s State and Local Tax Practice. The appointment comes as tax attorneys gear up for likely changes to the federal tax code.
63. Douglas Dimitroff
As managing partner of Phillips Lytle, Douglas Dimitroff has been focusing on the expansion of the Buffalo-based firm. This includes expansion into the Chicago market and upgrading the firm’s expertise and capabilities in the area of complex litigation. Dimitroff is a recognized leader in telecommunications law, representing leading telecommunications carriers and infrastructure providers. His work in public-private partnerships has facilitated significant development projects. He co-founded and serves on the board of the New York State Wireless Association, where he also co-chairs the workforce development committee.
64. Craig S. Wittlin
Craig S. Wittlin was elected to his fourth three-year term as the managing partner of Harter Secrest & Emery LLP, a prominent law firm based in Rochester, in January. Wittlin maintains an active corporate law and transactional practice. He was lead transactional counsel to The Golub Corp. in their merger with Tops supermarkets in 2022. Wittlin has also provided pro bono assistance to asylum-seekers in New York.
65. Evan Krinick
In over a dozen years as the managing partner for Rivkin Radler, Evan Krinick has steered the firm’s growth from three offices and 140 attorneys to six offices and 240 attorneys throughout the metropolitan area, and he has established himself as a top attorney on Long Island. Krinick has also served as outside counsel to the Long Island Power Authority since 1993, working on such major issues as the Shoreham nuclear plant’s decommissioning, the Long Island Lighting Co. acquisition and the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy.
66. Christopher Jagel
In January, Christopher Jagel successfully completed the merger of Rochester-based Harris Beach with the law firm of Murtha Cullina in Hartford, Connecticut, creating a larger, rebranded firm dubbed Harris Beach Murtha. The firm has 250 attorneys across New York, New Jersey, New England and the District of Columbia with specialties in 20 areas of law. Jagel, who previously led Harris Beach, had been focused on the growth of the firm, including increasing the firm’s capacities in the area of health care, energy and real estate development law.
67. James Curran
At the powerhouse firm of Brown & Weinraub, James Curran has built up an active campaign finance, election law and lobbying compliance practice. Curran assists with lobbying disclosure requirements, counsels clients on strategic legal positioning for issue campaigns and serves as counsel to political action committees. Most recently, he created new PAC for statewide associations, including the Business Council of New York State and the New York State Dentists Association. Last year, he led a successful petition challenge to remove a U.S. Senate candidate from the ballot.
68. Karol V. Mason
At John Jay College of Criminal Justice, President Karol V. Mason has broken fundraising records, bringing in $33 million to power initiatives that have substantially increased graduation rates. She also launched the Future of Public Safety Initiative, drawing on her experience serving as an assistant attorney general at the U.S. Department of Justice. Mason was the first African American woman to chair a management committee at a major law firm, as a partner in Alston & Bird.
69. E. Danya Perry
Not every attorney has to prepare a presidential attorney for testimony against a president, but E. Danya Perry took on that historic duty. The attorney for former Trump legal adviser Michael Cohen, Perry prepped Cohen for his crucial testimony against President Donald Trump in Trump’s Manhattan hush money trial last year. That is not the only high-profile case Perry handled last year, she also successfully represented Madison Square Garden owner James Dolan in a case regarding alleged sex trafficking. Perry is a former federal prosecutor and was chief investigator for the Moreland Commission to Investigate Public Corruption.
70. Bennet Moskowitz
Throughout his career, Bennet Moskowitz has represented prominent clients in high-stakes legal battles, and he has not shied away from the tough cases. Moskowitz successfully defended Ivanka Trump in a case brought by state Attorney General Letitia James, secured favorable rulings for Newsmax in a defamation case and represented the estate of Jeffrey Epstein in civil claims for alleged sexual abuse. In Harkenrider v. Hochul, he prevailed before the state Court of Appeals in a landmark redistricting case.
71. Mark Ustin
A top health care lawyer, Mark Ustin assists health and human services providers in navigating the complex regulatory and legislative landscape. He served as assistant counsel to former Gov. George Pataki, focusing on health and mental hygiene policy, and as deputy director and general counsel to the Commission on Health Care Facilities in the 21st Century, where he played a crucial role in restructuring New York’s hospital and nursing home industries. He is the newly elected chair of the New York State Bar Association’s Health Law Section.
72. Lourdes M. Rosado
With over 25 years of experience as an advocate, Lourdes M. Rosado serves as the president and general counsel of LatinoJustice PRLDEF, a civil rights organization. Rosado was engaged in immigration and civil rights issues during President Donald Trump’s first term, including with Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals and Trump’s Muslim ban. Trump’s focus on deportations and migrants will be a major part of Rosado’s work going forward. Earlier in her career, Rosado served as the chief of the Civil Rights Bureau in the state Attorney General’s Office.
73. Erica Buckley
Real estate is to New York what oil is to Texas, and co-ops and condos dominate New York City’s residential market. Erica Buckley knows co-op and condo law and her deep knowledge and expertise makes her the go-to attorney. Buckley leads Nixon Peabody’s Cooperatives & Condominiums and State Attorneys General practices. Buckley represents some of New York’s most prolific developers and real estate professionals and is a former Real Estate Finance Bureau chief in the state Attorney General’s Office. Buckley’s client list includes the city’s top real estate developers and investors.
74. Andrea Griswold
White-collar defense and investigations is a key practice area and companies needing counsel in this area want the best attorneys on their side. Andrea Griswold at the powerhouse firm of Skadden Arps brings her clients deep knowledge and expertise. Before joining the firm in 2024, Griswold served for 11 years as a federal prosecutor, ascending to the role of deputy U.S. attorney. Her leadership at the U.S. Attorney’s Office was pivotal in high-profile cases, including the prosecutions of Sam Bankman-Fried and Bill Hwang.
75. Joseph Burns
Joseph Burns, a partner with Holtzman Vogel, represents Republican candidates and party committees in election cases statewide. Burns has established himself as a key Republican election law expert and he is also the former deputy director of election operations at the state Board of Elections. He has served as an attorney for the Erie County and state Republican Committees. His clients have included Reps. Nick Langworthy, Claudia Tenney and Elise Stefanik. Burns is a former senior executive with the Erie County Water Authority.
76. Stan Germán
Dedicating his legal career to criminal defense, Stan Germán serves as the executive director of the New York County Defender Services. He is the first Latino to lead a public defender’s office in state history. Germán oversees the execution of the organization’s mission to provide legal representation to accused individuals in Manhattan. He is an outspoken advocate for criminal justice reform, emphasizing the importance of decarceration. In testimony before the state Senate, Germán urged the need to reduce jail populations to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 among incarcerated individuals.
77. Milton Tingling
The first African American to serve as Manhattan’s county clerk and first former judge to serve as a county clerk in state history, Milton Tingling oversees Manhattan juries and court operations. A key focus of Tingling’s is diversifying juries and increasing jury pools. While a state Supreme Court justice, Tingling gained national attention for striking down the Bloomberg administration’s proposed soda ban. Tingling chairs the West Harlem Development Corp. and is a key New York City civic leader. He, his father and his daughter are the only known three-generation family of Black judges in the country.
78. Arthur Schwartz
Arthur Schwartz, principal attorney at Advocates for Justice Chartered Attorneys, boasts 46 years practicing as a union-side lawyer specializing in employment discrimination – including 24 years as counsel to Transport Workers Union Local 100. He has successfully stopped Mount Sinai from closing Beth Israel Hospital, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority from cutting 1,000 bus runs and legal challengers from halting New York City’s new congestion pricing scheme. Schwartz has also served as a Democratic Party district leader in Greenwich Village since 1995 and now is the political director of the New York Progressive Action Network.
79. Joseph Landau
Joseph Landau became the new dean of Fordham University School of Law last year, the 12th person to hold the role and first LGBTQ+ individual to lead the Upper West Side law school. Previously, Landau was the school’s associate dean for academic affairs for three years and a faculty member starting in 2010. Landau is a recognized scholar on constitutional law and civil procedure, and he’s a national thought leader on a number of constitutional issues, including same-sex marriage, immigration law and the treatment of prisoners at Guantánamo Bay.
80. Daniel Alonso
Daniel Alonso is a partner at Vedder Price, with a focus on white-collar criminal defense and cross-border investigations into fraud and corruption. A former chief assistant district attorney in Manhattan, Alonso serves as an adviser to New York City mayoral candidate Jim Walden, providing expertise on anti-corruption issues. Alonso was appointed by Gov. Kathy Hochul to the state Commission of Prosecutorial Conduct. Alonso has served as technical adviser for a number of films, including “The Wolf of Wall Street.” He recently left Orrick to join Vedder Price, an international law firm.
81. Tom Stebbins
Tom Stebbins heads the Lawsuit Reform Alliance of New York, a nonpartisan grassroots nonprofit whose mission is to reduce lawsuit abuse. Under his leadership, the alliance recently exposed large-scale insurance fraud rings exploiting undocumented migrants and successfully lobbied Gov. Kathy Hochul to veto the Grieving Families Act for the third time. Stebbins said Hochul “demonstrated true leadership” with her veto and said that lawmakers need to bring all stakeholders together to update the state’s wrongful death law for the first time in almost two centuries.
82. Kathie Davidson
Even after you get black robes and a gavel, you still need to go to judge school. Kathie Davidson, a former administrative judge overseeing Hudson Valley courts, runs the New York State Judicial Institute, which provides training to new judges and continuing education for veteran judges. Last year’s curriculum included classes on alternative dispute resolution, the impact of bail law on case management, brain science of emerging adults, domestic violence, artificial intelligence, Surrogate’s Court appellate case law, federal immigration law and the impact of bankruptcy on matrimonial cases.
83. Marc Landis
Marc Landis is a leader in Phillips Nizer’s strategic direction and co-chairs its Real Estate and Israel practices. He specializes in complex real estate transactions, including the development and preservation of affordable housing as well as commercial leasing and financing. Landis serves as a member of the state Democratic Committee and is a former chair of the Manhattan Democratic County Committee. He is a member of the North American board of trustees of the Union for Reform Judaism.
84. Basil Seggos
After being the longest tenured commissioner of the state Department of Environmental Conservation, Basil Seggos has found a new path as the senior policy director and a partner at Foley Hoag. Seggos, a U.S. Army Reserve veteran, was instrumental in passing and implementing New York’s groundbreaking Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act, devised the $5.5 billion Clean Water Infrastructure Act and also spearheaded the reauthorization of the state’s Climate Change Superfund Act during his decadelong tenure serving under Govs. Andrew Cuomo and Kathy Hochul.
85. Jelani Jefferson Exum
In 2024, Jelani Jefferson Exum became the first person of color and the second woman to be appointed dean of the St. John’s University School of Law. She came to St. John’s after serving as dean of University of Detroit Mercy School of Law. Earlier in her career, she served as the inaugural associate dean for diversity and inclusion at the University of Toledo College of Law and was a professor at the University of Kansas School of Law. Last year, she was appointed by New York’s chief judge to the New York State Justice Task Force.
86. Kapil Longani
Overseeing legal operations across 64 campuses, Kapil Longani serves as general counsel and senior vice chancellor for legal affairs for SUNY. Prior to his roles at SUNY, Longani was the chief counsel in the New York City Mayor’s Office, where he provided legal guidance during critical events. Since President Donald Trump’s election, Longani has been focused on preparing SUNY for a new legal landscape, with a focus on possible changes to Title IX regulations and immigration enforcement. He is leading efforts to eliminate antisemitism and Islamophobia at SUNY.
87. Cinnamon Piñon Carlarne
Recognized as a leading international expert in environmental and climate change law, Cinnamon Piñon Carlarne serves as the 19th president and dean of Albany Law School. Her scholarship focuses on the evolution of domestic and international environmental governance, particularly in relation to climate change law. Carlarne has been a prominent thought leader in environmental law, authoring numerous scholarly articles and books, including a comparative analysis of climate change law and policy published by Oxford University Press. Before Albany, Carlarne was the associate dean for The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law.
88. Claude Millman
Claude Millman is a partner at Kostelanetz LLP and leads the firm’s Government Procurement and Contracts Practice as well as its Complex Commercial Litigation Practice. A former federal prosecutor in Manhattan and a past director of the New York City Mayor’s Office of Contract Services, Millman in the past year successfully represented a technology company that was barred by New York City Department of Education procurement officials, successfully defended an individual charged with unregistered city lobbying and successfully defended a Fortune 100 company in a city procurement case.
89. Dwayne M. Andrews
With decades of experience in law and government relations, Dwayne M. Andrews serves as senior vice president and general counsel at Patrick B. Jenkins & Associates. A former Capitol Hill staffer for then-Rep. Floyd Flake and the House Small Business Committee, Andrews has worked in the Government Relations practices of leading law firms such as Cozen O’Connor and Blank Rome, where he also served as vice practice group leader. Andrews is an of counsel with Cohen Schneider Law PC and public policy and advocacy co-chair for the Metropolitan Black Bar Association.
90. India Sneed
India Sneed founded IQEQ Law to focus on minority- and women-owned business enterprises and government procurement, as well as mediation and election law services. Previously, as an attorney at Greenberg Traurig, Sneed developed a MWBE-focused practice to assist clients with city entrepreneurial diversity programs. She is a recognized expert on MWBE procurement issues. She has also served as a prosecutor in Brooklyn, worked in the New York City Mayor’s Office and as chief of staff for two City Council members, and directed the state Black, Puerto Rican, Hispanic and Asian Legislative Caucus.
91. Brenda Colella & Ekin Senlet
At Barclay Damon, energy specialists Brenda Colella and Ekin Senlet co-chair the Regulatory Practice area, and Colella also serves as Regulatory Practice group leader.
Both firm partners concentrate their practices on regulatory matters, routinely representing clients as lead counsel before state agencies. Colella specializes in energy and infrastructure development – including transmission, pipeline and electric generation projects – and most recently, as lead New York regulatory counsel, obtained the approvals for the New York Power Authority’s transmission line project.
Senlet’s caseload involves large infrastructure permitting and financial matters for energy projects, as well as other utility- and generator facility-related proceedings. She currently serves as the lead New York counsel to Equinor Wind USA, securing the permitting for an 816-megawatt offshore wind farm connecting to New York’s electrical grid.
92. Aria Branch
As partner at Elias Law Group LLP, Aria Branch provides counsel to Democratic candidates, nonprofits and political organizations on matters of campaign finance, nonprofit tax law and ethics compliance. She represented a group of voters in successfully contesting the state’s 2022 congressional redistricting in the state Court of Appeals. Branch’s background includes providing expert election and campaign finance law counsel to Democratic candidates at the city, state and federal levels.
93. Oliver G. Chase & Russell A. Kivler
In their 20 years together at Hirschen Singer & Epstein, Russell A. Kivler and Oliver G. Chase have led the transformation of a four-attorney boutique firm to a 20-attorney legal powerhouse in the affordable and mixed-income real estate and finance space. Having added a land use and zoning practice in 2020, the pair now provides clients with access to a full suite of services, representing many of New York’s leading developers in community-focused projects throughout the city and state. In 2024, the firm facilitated the creation or preservation of 8,000 affordable units in transactions worth $3.6 billion.
Among Kivler’s current clients is the Gotham Organization, which is collaborating with the Metropolitan Transportation Authority to create a mixed-use Brooklyn waterfront community. For his part, Chase recently represented Phipps Houses in the Rockaway Village development, which brings 1,700 housing units and 120,000 square feet of commercial and community space to downtown Far Rockaway.
94. YuhTyng Patka
One of New York City’s top real estate tax incentives attorneys, YuhTyng “Tyng” Patka is a partner and the chair of Adler & Stachenfeld’s New York City Real Estate Tax and Incentives Practice and co‐chair of its New York City Development Practice and PACE Finance Practice. She is currently advising clients on the city’s new tax incentive programs and on over 10 million square feet of real estate conversions. Her recent projects include representing Tavros Capital and Charney Companies on a $500 million Brooklyn project.
95. Adam Conway, Kevin Lang & Amanda De Vito Trinsey
Known for its expertise in energy and environmental law, Couch White has a formidable team in Adam Conway, Kevin Lang and Amanda De Vito Trinsey. Trinsey and Lang co-chair the firm’s Energy Practice group, representing clients with matters before federal and state regulatory agencies and handling issues around energy, utility rates and regulatory compliance. The partners have all represented New York City, while De Vito Trinsey also serves as general counsel to the New York State Reliability Council and advises large industrial, commercial and institutional energy consumers. Lang’s clients also include SUNY and prominent owners and developers of renewable resources, transmission and energy storage. Conway chairs Couch White’s Renewable Energy Transactions Practice Group. He recently secured regulatory approval for the Bluestone Gathering Lateral Pipeline, which is a new natural gas pipeline in Broome County. He represented New York City in seeking a permit to build a hydroelectric plant in upstate New York and worked with city officials on efforts to get building owners to convert from oil heat to natural gas.
96. John J. Ciafone
John Ciafone has over 25 years of experience practicing law in New York, New Jersey and Washington, D.C., with a focus on personal injury law, medical malpractice, criminal law, real estate law and estate law. A New York City civic leader, Ciafone serves as a part-time administrative law judge for the city and is a former president of Community School Board 30 in Queens. He is a New York state certified arbitrator and mediator. He has also mounted campaigns for New York City Council and a Civil Court judgeship.
97. Annie Seifullah
A decade ago, while serving as a public school principal, Annie Seifullah suffered the humiliation of intimate images maliciously distributed by an abusive ex-partner. In response, she went to law school and co-founded Incendii Law, a woman-led New York City law firm dedicated to fighting for victims of abuse and exploitation. Seifullah and the firm have obtained a number of important judgments for their clients and was outside counsel to a Democratic Party coalition in a lawsuit where canvassers were being harassed by local law enforcement.
98. Rosevelie Márquez Morales
The chief diversity officer for the Americas at Hogan Lovells, Rosevelie Márquez Morales directs the firm’s initiatives related to the recruitment, retention and advancement of diverse lawyers. Her role encompasses client engagement on diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives across the United States, Mexico and Brazil. She is the president-elect of the Hispanic National Bar Association. Márquez Morales previously was a litigation partner at Harris Beach, focusing on pharmaceutical defense earlier in her career. In 2023, she was honored by LatinoJustice PRLDEF as a Latina Trailblazer.
99. Rachael A. Harding
Providing compliance counsel to a diverse clientele, including corporations, nonprofits, political committees and candidates for office, Rachael A. Harding is a partner at Falcon Rappaport & Berkman LLP. Harding leads the firm’s Campaign Compliance and Election Law Group, navigating federal, state and local regulations regarding political activities. Before becoming a partner, Harding was a senior compliance official for Joe Lhota’s 2013 New York City mayoral campaign and a prosecutor on Staten Island.
100. Keriann Pauls
A veteran community organizer and advocate, Keriann Pauls is the interim executive director at TakeRoot Justice, a New York-based organization dedicated to empowering marginalized communities through legal advocacy, research and policy. Since taking the helm last year, she has been focused on addressing internal governance and budget issues and is positioning the organization’s strategy for the new national political environment. Pauls has been active in advocating for tenants rights, particularly in cases addressing substandard living conditions and landlord negligence. The organization was also among the top spenders on lobbying in New York City in 2023.
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