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W WHO’s WHO
2016
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2016 WHO’S WHO HONOREES pulse of the region’s vibrant beat. They do abandon
Across Nassau and Suffolk counties are business business challenges; instead they confront them to
leaders who possess clear vision and pure drive to create opportunities that pave the way for a better
keep Long Island on top of its game. This forward Long Island. These frontrunners develop new prod-
thinking determination is revealed within the pages ucts, advise with unrivalled experience, tackle new
of this 2016 Who’s Who publication — a compilation regulations and exercise professionalism with great
of Long Island Business News’ Who’s Who honorees skill. Long Island Business News is pleased to present
who have been highlighted in our business newspa- these honorees who have contributed to Long Island’s
per throughout the year. positive business climate in 2016 — and will undoubt-
This publication encompasses a broad range of pro- edly have an impact on the region’s future growth.
fessionals from a variety of industries who are the – Lisa Morris Josefak

Commercial & Residential Real Estate Law . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Real Property, Certiorari Law Firms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Forensic Accounting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 and Health Care Law . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Intellectual Property, Labor Law . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Health Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
Banking & Finance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 Women in Professional Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
Environmental Consulting & Engineering . . . . . . . . . . . 33 Accounting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Not for Profits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 Real Estate & Development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90

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 2 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
WHO’s WHO
in Commercial & Residential
CATHLEEN
D. ALLEN
Jaspan Schlesinger
LLP
Real Estate Law Cathleen D. Allen is a partner in
Jaspan Schlesinger LL’s banking and
financial services practice group and
Even when there appears to be no real estate practice group. Allen rep-
complications or risky issues facing a real resents financial institutions and lend-
ers in all types of commercial lending
estate transaction, it is always wise to consult transactions and regulatory matters.
She also has extensive experience rep-
with a real estate attorney before committing resenting business entities and indi-
to a property/building. viduals in all aspects of real estate
law, including sales, acquisitions and
leases and has experience in trans-
In this Who’s Who in Commercial & Residential actions involving Industrial Devel-
opment Agencies, the United States
Real Estate Law section, top real estate Small Business Administration, inter-
est rate swaps and 1031 exchanges.
attorneys in the region discuss cases when a Prior to joining the firm, Allen
client should have obtained counsel earlier to was a partner in a prominent Suffolk
County law firm where she concen-
avoid more legal issues. trated on banking, real estate and
corporate transactions. She also for-
merly served as assistant in-house
counsel for a major commercial finan-
cial institution.
Allen received her undergraduate
degree from Duke University and her
law degree from Washington Uni-
INDEXINDEXINDEX versity in St. Louis School of Law,
where she was a member of the Law
Quarterly. She also attended Ford-
ham University School of Law as a
2 CATHLEEN D. ALLEN Jaspan Schlesinger LLP
visiting student.
2 JEFFREY I. CITRON Davidoff Hutcher & Citron She is admitted to practice in the
state of New York, and the District
3 DAVID H. COHEN Moritt Hock & Hamroff LLP Courts for the Southern and East-
ern Districts of New York. Allen is a
3 BRAD CRONIN Cronin & Cronin Law Firm
member of the New York State Bar
4 PATRICIA C. DELANEY Lamb & Barnosky, LLP Association and Suffolk County Bar
Association.
4 BRENDAN J. DERIGGI Certilman Balin Adler & Hyman, LLP In 2015, Allen was named a “Top
4 WARREN DUBITSKY Herman Katz Cangemi & Clyne, LLP Legal Eagle” by Long Island Pulse mag-
azine in the field of Real Estate Finance.
4 WAYNE G. EDWARDS Sahn Ward Coschignano, PLLC Jaspan Schlesinger LLP is a mid-
size general practice law firm with
5 SCOTT L. FEUER Rivkin Radler LLP offices in Garden City and Suffern,
5 JEFFREY D. FORCHELLI Forchelli, Curto, Deegan, Schwartz, Mineo & Terrana New York. Since its founding in 1946,
the firm’s 60 attorneys provide legal
6 TONI J. HOVERKAMP Farrell Fritz, P.C. services in virtually every area of
practice, including lending, workout,
6 ANDREW T. KASMAN Abrams, Fensterman, Fensterman, Eisman,
bankruptcy, real estate, commercial
Formato, Ferrara & Wolf, LLP and corporate matters, general and
complex commercial litigation, em-
6 BERNARD P. KENNEDY Bond, Schoeneck & King PLLC ployment and labor law, municipal
7 RICHARD S. KESTENBAUM Kestenbaum & Mark law, estate and tax planning, probate,
tax certiorari, condemnation, securi-
7 MICHAEL R. MARTONE Koeppel Martone & Leistman, LLP ties, education, trademark and matri-
monial, among others.
7 GARY MELTZER Meltzer, Lippe, Goldstein & Breitstone, LLP The firm represents banks and
8 JERRY SIEGELMAN Ruskin Moscou Faltischek P.C. business enterprises of all sizes,
which operate on a local, national and
international level. Its clients are in-
volved in lending, real estate (includ-
ing leasing and development), man-
ufacturing, distribution, engineering
and construction, insurance, telecom-
munications, advertising, foods, con-
sumer products, the hotel industry
and the automotive industry.
The firm also performs legal work
for individuals, professional firms,
local government bodies, trade asso-
ciations, and education and religious
institutions.
JEFFREY I.
CITRON
Davidoff Hutcher
& Citron
Jeffrey I. Citron is co-managing
partner at Davidoff Hutcher & Citron,
and is based in the firm’s New York
City office. Throughout the course of
his over 25 years as a practicing at-
torney, Citron has gained extensive
experience in real estate and gener-
al commercial practice, particularly
assisting private and public compa-
nies in securing financing, grants
and other benefits for capital projects
through the auspices of government
agencies and lending institutions.
Citron also represents a number of
prestigious, privately held businesses,
acting in the capacity as general coun-
cil offering advice in connection with
banking relations, general adminis-
tration, employment, contract law,
real estate leasing and acquisitions
and other business-related issues.
Among his notable cases, includes
his representation of Madelaine Choc-
olate Novelties where he assisted in
the acquisition and negotiation of a
$13 million loan from SBA and a $12
million grant from New York City to
assist the client’s recovery from Super
Storm Sandy. He is currently repre-
senting Gabrielli Truck Sales, Ltd in
the development of a $22 million sales
and fabrication facility to be located
outside of Kennedy Airport through
the auspices of the New York City
Industrial Development Agency. In
addition to his continued work with
privately held entities, Citron is cur-
rently negotiating the refinancing of
an Industrial Revenue Bond for a not-
for-profit entity and is also involved
with developers and government enti-
ties in the establishment of what will
hopefully become one of New York’s
and the nation’s foremost museums.
All transactions should be dis-
cussed with an attorney prior to sign-
ing any documents, Citron said.
“A client contacted me after he had
executed, without legal counsel, a de-
tailed Letter of Intent in connection
with the sale of property located in
Midtown Manhattan,” Citron noted.
“The client claimed that when he de-
cided not to move forward with the
transaction, both the broker and the
proposed purchaser claimed that the
Letter of Intent actually contained
all the indicia of a contract and was,
therefore, binding.”
“Obviously, had the client shown
me the Letter of Intent before execut-
ing same, I would have advised him of
the potential pitfalls of signing such an
agreement and insisted on the inclu-
sion of specific language making it clear
that a formal contract was to be execut-
ed and that the Letter of Intent was,
in fact, non-binding,” Citron said. “Al-
though the matter was ultimately set-
tled to the client’s satisfaction, the prop-
erty remained off the market during
the pendency of this matter and the
client incurred significant legal fees.”

WHO’SWHO
in Commercial & Residential Real Estate Law
Citron earned a Juris Doctor from
Brooklyn Law School and a B.S.B.A
from American University.
He has been an elected delegate
to the State Judicial Conference
for the Southern Districts of New
York and has served as counsel for
the  trustees of various Industrial
Development Agencies. Citron is
also a recognized authority in the
negotiation of Industrial Revenue
Bond Financing.
He has also served as a board
member of such entities as the Young
Men’s Philanthropic League, United
Hebrew Geriatric Center, and as pres-
ident of Fenway Golf Club, along with
a number of privately held entities.
Davidoff Hutcher & Citron LLP,
founded in 1975, has become one of
New York’s most respected mid-size
commercial law and government re-
lations firms. The firm has melded
its multi-discipline law practice, with
its distinguished government rela-
tions practice. The firm handles legal
and lobbying matters from the routine
to the complex. Each of its practice
groups is chaired by a highly-distin-
guished lawyer in the field.
Davidoff Hutcher & Citron’s skilled
attorneys handle complicated and
sensitive matters for a varied clientele
that includes Fortune 500 companies,
entrepreneurs, litigants in business
disputes, financial institutions, own-
ers of valuable intellectual proper-
ty, prominent real estate owners and
developers, individuals and families
confronted with family law issues,
leaders in the health industry, hos-
pitality business owners, and well-
known companies and executives in
the fashion industry.
With offices located in New York
City, Albany, Washington, D.C., and
on Long Island, the firm’s government
relations group can closely monitor
legislative and regulatory develop-
ments. Its mid-size firm offers all the
benefits of big firm practice with the
advantages of small firm attention to
detail and personalized service.
DAVID H.
COHEN
Moritt Hock &
Hamroff LLP
David H. Cohen is a partner at
Moritt Hock & Hamroff LLP in Gar-
den City. Cohen has more than 30
years of experience in handling all
facets of complex real estate trans-
actions and related matters. The
scope of his practice is diversified,
and includes real estate and corporate
transactions with an emphasis on the
representation of both tenants and
landlords in retail and office leasing,
and sale-leasebacks. In addition, he
also represents institutional clients,
corporate clients and real estate de-
velopers in the acquisition, financing,
development and leasing of commer-
cial properties, development agree-
ments, construction contracts, and
commercial co-ops and condos.
3 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
Cohen also has extensive experience area of tax certiorari, protesting the an attorney even before a contract is
in representing clients in all phases real property tax assessment and con- signed, Cronin said.
of corporate and commercial matters, demnation for commercial properties “I was retained on a high profile
including corporate formation and gen- throughout New York State. Cronin transaction, after contract execution,
eral commercial contracts. focuses his skills on representing to review the impact of the sale upon
When negotiating a deal, every property owners in Nassau, Suffolk the real estate taxes and to appeal the
stage should be brought to your attor- and Westchester counties, as well as taxes,” Cronin said. “In reviewing the
ney’s attention, including a Letters of New York City and upstate New York. history, I discovered there were prior
Intent (LOI) that outlines the agree- For more than 35 years, Cronin tax year appeals pending for years
ments between two or more parties has developed longstanding relation- that my client had paid the taxes to
before the agreements are finalize, ships with a diverse client base in prevent a foreclosure. We immediate-
Cohen said. order to assist property owners in ly advised the client that the rights
“Clients often negotiate LOI with- obtaining reductions for their real es- to those prior proceeding should be
out consulting their lawyer,” he said. tate taxes for their commercial prop- transferred to them since they were
“An LOI that does not contain all rel- erty. He has extensive experience entitled to the refunds and those prior
evant terms of a transaction or that representing prominent developers, appeals could impact their ability to
is poorly drafted often creates issues national tenants, and many of the have the taxes reduced in the future.”
when lawyers draft the relevant largest properties in New York State. “Under a provision of the Real
agreement. A poorly drafted or incom- In addition, he has earned the high- Property Tax Law, a new owner can
plete LOI results in the expenditure est rating awarded by Martindale be prohibited from obtaining a reduc-
of additional legal fees because law- Hubbell in both competency and eth- tion in his real estate taxes for three
yers are left to re-negotiate important ics in his field. years even where the taxes are exces-
deal terms that were overlooked or Cronin represents a cross section sive,” Cronin noted.
not properly addressed.” of many of the largest developers, “As a result of moving quickly, we
“For example, an LOI for a lease property owners and national corpo- were able to obtain the rights to the
should address a tenant’s assignment rations, REITs and retail chains, suc- prior proceedings, insure the new
or subletting rights,” Cohen explained. cessfully obtaining court ordered tax owner was not bound by any agree-
“I have seen several LOI’s fail to in- relief for all types of commercial prop- ment of the prior owner, successfully
corporate or address this issue. Thus, erty including race tracks, apartment obtain refunds from the prior appeals,
when negotiating a lease, the assign- buildings, office complexes, malls, and reduce the future real estate tax
ment subletting provision can lead to
shopping centers, golf courses and obligation,” Cronin said. “This took
lengthy negotiations resulting in sig-
marinas. Cronin has extensive trial a great deal of work, work that could
nificantly higher legal fees.”
experience having successfully litigat- have been avoided if the items were
“The bottom line, it’s often less
ed and resolved high profile cases in discovered in the due diligence stage
expensive in the long run to consult
counties throughout New York State prior to the contract being signed.”
your lawyer at the very beginning of a
and established a number of land- Cronin has been an invited speaker
transaction,” Cohen said.
mark decisions in the field. and participant on various panels in-
Cohen earned a juris doctor from
It is essential to work close with volving different subjects affecting tax
Brooklyn Law School and a bachelor’s
degree from State University of New
York at Oneonta. He is admitted to
practice in New York.
Cohen is involved in various busi-
ness, philanthropic and civic activities
including Queens County Builders
and Contractors Association, NYS and
Nassau County Bar Associations, In-
ternational Council of Shopping Cen-
ters, NYS Mortgage and Bankers As-
sociation and the B’nai B’rith Youth
Organization.
Moritt Hock & Hamroff LLP, es-
tablished in 1980, is a full-service,
AV-rated commercial law practice
with offices on Long Island and Man-
hattan. The firm’s practice areas in-
clude alternative dispute resolution,
commercial foreclosure, commercial
lending & finance, construction &
surety, copyrights, trademarks & li-
censing, corporate & securities, cred-
itors’ rights & bankruptcy, cyberse-
curity, employment, equipment &
transportation leasing and finance,
healthcare, landlord & tenant, litiga-
tion, marketing, advertising & pro-
motions, not-for-profit, patents, real
estate, tax, and trusts & estates.
BRAD
CRONIN
Cronin & Cronin
Law Firm, PLLC
Brad Cronin is the founding part-
ner at Cronin & Cronin Law Firm,
PLLC in Mineola. Cronin & Cronin
Law Firm practices exclusively in the

WHO’SWHO
in Commercial & Residential Real Estate Law
certiorari and valuation of property
such as condominiums, environmental
contamination, and reviewing changes
in the tax certiorari field. As a member
of the Nassau and Suffolk Condemna-
tion and Tax Certiorari committees, he
has worked to implement changes to
facilitate the timely resolution of com-
mercial tax protests. He has lectured
and participated in panels involving
issues that pertain to property taxes
as well as been featured in numer-
ous publications. He is also featured
quarterly in the New York Real Estate
Journal’s “Ask the Expert” column re-
garding real property issues.
Cronin has also contributed to the
real estate community by current-
ly serving on the board, and as past
co-president, of the Long Island Real
Estate Group. This organization has
supported various Long Island char-
ities, as well as real estate related
projects, educational real estate pro-
grams and networking events.
Cronin also serves on the North
Shore University Hospital Depart-
ment of Medicine Leadership Circle
Committee and the Village of Plan-
dome Planning Board.
Cronin is a graduate of Le Moyne
College and earned a juris doctor from
Quinnipiac University School of Law.
Cronin & Cronin Law Firm, PLLC
specializes in tax certiorari, protest-
ing the real property tax assessment
and condemnation for commercial
properties throughout New York
State. The attorneys of Cronin & Cro-
nin have extensive experience rep-
resenting prominent developers, na-
tional tenants and many of the largest
properties in New York State and are
committed to obtaining positive re-
sults for each and every client.
PATRICIA C.
DELANEY
Lamb &
Barnosky, LLP
Patricia C. Delaney is an attorney
at Lamb & Barnosky, LLP in Melville.
Delaney has been counseling clients
from the New York metropolitan area
to the East End of Long Island since
1986. She has extensive experience in
commercial lending, banking, leasing,
and real estate transactions.
It is always wise to obtain a lawyer
even when a transaction is amiable to
both parties, Delaney said.
“In a recent transaction, my client
was gifting a commercial building to
his employee of many years,” Delaney
explained. “The employee was very
appreciative of his employer’s gener-
osity and both parties expected the
transaction to proceed in an agreeable
and swift manner. It did until the title
search of the property revealed a mort-
gage given by my client that was due
and payable 19 years earlier. My cli-
ent had paid the mortgage, but never
received a satisfaction and had little
documentation as proof of payment.”
“The person who held the mort-
gage had since passed away,” Delaney
4 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
noted. “It took nearly several months
to track down one of the co-executors
of the mortgagee’s estate, to convince
her that the mortgage had been paid
and to obtain a discharge of mortgage
from her as a party that was autho-
rized to execute and deliver the neces-
sary instrument.”
“Fortunately, my client was able to
ultimately obtain a recordable mort-
gage satisfaction, but the time and
money expended in procuring it could
have been avoided if my client had
consulted with me when it was mak-
ing its final mortgage payment, as I
would have insisted that it receive a
satisfaction of mortgage in exchange
for that final payment,” she said.
Delaney served as general counsel
to Bank of Smithtown and Smithtown
Bancorp from 1994 through 2010. She
has counseled publicly traded corpo-
rations in the preparation of their an-
nual disclosure filings with the Se-
curities and Exchange Commission,
as well as privately owned entities in
their formation, business acquisitions
and sales.
Prior to joining the firm, Delaney
was working in her own practice in
Hauppauge that she established and
managed since 1993. Delaney also
served as senior underwriting counsel
for First American Title Insurance
Company where she analyzed and as-
sessed legal risk associated with in-
suring real estate transactions.
Delaney earned a bachelor’s degree
in in Spanish and political science
from the State University of New
York College at Cortland and a juris
doctor from Albany Law School of
Union University. She is admitted to
practice in the state of New York.
Lamb & Barnosky, LLP is one of
Long Island’s largest law firms rep-
resenting a wide variety of corporate,
municipal and individual clients. As
a full-service law firm, Lamb & Bar-
nosky, LLP is comprised of numer-
ous practice areas, including banking;
real estate; taxation; corporate, merg-
ers and acquisitions; education; labor
and employment; municipal; health
care; intellectual property, land use,
planning, environmental and zoning;
and trusts and estates.
Founded in 1981, the firm enjoys
an AV rating from Martindale-Hub-
bell, the nationally recognized legal
directory, for the highest standard of
legal ability and professional stan-
dards of conduct and ethics. It has
also been named to the National Reg-
ister of Preeminent Lawyers. The firm
also honors its commitment to pro
bono and bar association work by hav-
ing several partners who have served/
currently serve on New York State
and local bar association boards.
BRENDAN J.
DERIGGI
Certilman Balin
Adler & Hyman,
LLP
Brendan J. DeRiggi is a partner
in Certilman Balin Adler & Hyman,
LLP’s real estate, commercial lend-
ing and litigation departments.
DeRiggi represents buyers and sell-
ers in a wide array of commercial
transactions. He also represents
lenders and borrowers in all types
of commercial lending transactions,
including small business and mid-
dle-market loans, construction loans,
leasehold financing and asset based
credit facilities.
DeRiggi also has experience in
1031 exchanges, Industrial Develop-
ment Agency transactions and U.S.
Small Business Administration (SBA)
loans. He is designated closing coun-
sel for the SBA specializing in the 504
and 7a loan programs.
He also represents lenders in com-
mercial foreclosures, enforcement ac-
tions and general litigation matters.
DeRiggi serves as a member of the
board of directors for the Hunting-
ton YMCA. He is also an active fund-
raiser and volunteer for numerous
charitable organizations, including
the Diabetes Research Institute, the
American Heart Association and the
Epilepsy Foundation. Outreach House
in Brentwood recently honored DeRig-
gi at their annual luncheon.
He earned a juris doctor from St.
John’s University School of Law and
a bachelor’s degree from Seton Hall
University.
Certilman Balin Adler & Hyman,
LLP has grown into one of Long Is-
land’s largest full-service law firm with
offices in East Meadow and Haup-
pauge, Long Island and Saddle Brook,
New Jersey. Its 14 practice areas in-
clude: real estate, real property tax
certiorari and condemnation, cooper-
ative and condominium, land use, en-
vironmental law, corporate/securities,
litigation, commercial lending, labor
relations/employment law, bankruptcy
and debtor/creditor rights, trusts and
estates, elder law, telecommunications
law and criminal law.
WARREN
DUBITSKY
Herman Katz
Cangemi & Clyne,
LLP
Warren Dubitsky is an associate
at Herman Katz Cangemi & Clyne,
LLP, with offices in Melville and
New York City.
Joining the firm in 2013, Dubitsky
focuses on matters in New York City,
Nassau County, Hudson Valley and
Erie County. He consults clients re-
garding the potential real estate tax
consequences of acquisition, leasing,
and Industrial Development Agency
PILOT agreements. His New York
City practice includes helping clients
obtain tax exemptions and abate-
ments, including ICAP.
Both New York City and Nassau
County require most commercial
property owners to annually file their
income and expenses, Dubitsky said.
“Failure to file can subject the
owner to draconian penalties,” he
explained. “However, these require-
ments can be confusing for certain
types of businesses. Retail business-
es, from drug stores to self storage,
often own the properties (or have an
affiliated entity owning the property)
where their businesses are operated.”
“Some of these properties may also
have ancillary real estate income from
sources such as roof-top antennae, or
from non-real estate sources, such as a
retail store within a self-storage opera-
tion,” he said. “Property owners should
carefully review exactly what the RPIE
(New York City) and ASIE (Nassau
County) reporting forms are request-
ing to avoid mistakes such as classify-
ing income generated by the business
as rental income or reporting a book
rent between affiliated entities as arms-
length rental income. Since the finan-
cial information supplied by the owner
is used to set the property’s assessment,
reporting mistakes can and do lead to
drastic over-assessment.”
“Property owners who are unsure
about these requirements are best
served consulting counsel before sub-
mitting their income and expenses,”
Dubitsky noted.
Prior to joining the firm, he served
as a deputy county attorney in the
Tax Certiorari and Condemnation
Bureau of the Nassau County Attor-
ney’s Office. In that position, he ac-
quired extensive experience litigating
commercial and residential property
tax matters.
Dubitsky earned a juris doctor
from Notre Dame Law School and a
bachelor’s degree in economics from
Bowdoin College. He is admitted to
practice law before the courts of New
York and New Jersey and is a mem-
ber of the New York State, New York
City, Westchester, and Nassau Coun-
ty Bar Associations.
The partners of Herman Katz
Cangemi & Clyne, LLP (HKCC) have
more than 115 years of property tax
experience. HKCC’s industry-wide rep-
utation for integrity provides the firm’s
clients with the confidence that they
will receive skilled and trusted counsel
through the multi-faceted and highly
complex property tax valuation process.
The firm represents clients at
both the administrative and judicial
levels throughout the tri-state area
as well as across the nation. HKCC
combines its trial and transactional
expertise in both real estate tax and
eminent domain proceedings with a
pragmatic and flexible approach to
meet and exceed its clients’ needs
and expectations.
WAYNE G.
EDWARDS
Sahn Ward
Coschignano,
PLLC
Wayne G. Edwards is a partner at
Sahn Ward Coschignano, PLLC in
Uniondale. Edwards concentrates his
practice in the areas of zoning and
land use, real estate law and trans-
actions, including acquisitions, sales,
leasing and financing and related cor-

WHO’SWHO
in Commercial & Residential Real Estate Law
porate transactions. His practice in-
cludes representation of many of the
region’s most prominent real estate
owners and developers.
In his practice, Edwards represents
developers in both acquiring property
for development and in obtaining the
municipal approvals necessary to con-
struct their projects.
This year, Edwards successfully
represented Eben-Ezer Haitian Bap-
tist Church of Westbury before the
Town of North Hempstead’s Zoning
Board of Appeals. The plans call for
the construction of a new 4,500-sq.-
ft. church plus a basement. The new
church would give its congregants the
additional space needed to provide re-
ligious services, hold community meet-
ings and maintain its food pantry.
Edwards represented the church
to obtain the required variances for
the new construction. On July 15, the
North Hempstead ZBA unanimously
approved the variance, allowing con-
struction to go forward.
In 2014, Edwards represented a cli-
ent who converted a building at the
site of the former Gulf gas station in
East Hills into a Dunkin Donuts. He
was responsible for obtaining the park-
ing variances for the store and a certif-
icate of occupancy. He also negotiated
with Nassau County and New York
State for curb cuts on the property and
with Nassau to have Dunkin Donuts
connect to the county’s sewer system.
The same year, Edwards helped ob-
tain a parking variance for Mio Sushi,
a 5,500-sq.-ft. Japanese steakhouse
and sushi restaurant in the Elwood
Shopping Center. He was able to ob-
tain a variance for the restaurant’s
owner, who was able to have 28 park-
ing spaces installed in the shopping
center’s parking lot and was allowed
to finish all necessary renovations to
the restaurant.
Retaining an attorney early in the
process assures sufficient time to ex-
amine a property, Edwards said.
“Most of the time, our clients confer
with the firm early in the process of
their intention to purchase or lease
a property,” Edwards said. “It is our
practice to do preliminary due dili-
gence regarding the property to alert
our client as to any potential issues.”
“Recently, I was retained by a cli-
ent later in the process and there
wasn’t adequate time to explore and
investigate the property,” he said.
“After entering into the contract, it
was discovered that the building was
burdened by a restrictive covenant
imposed by the town board and the
building could not be expanded with-
out the town board’s consent. This
would have caused considerable de-
lays and expense and was not satis-
factory to my client. Fortunately, pur-
suant to the contract, my client was
able to terminate the transaction, but
time was lost and funds were expend-
ed when it could have been avoided.”
Edwards is admitted to practice
in the State of New York and before
the United States District Courts for
the Eastern and Southern Districts
of New York. He is a member of the
Nassau County and the New York
State Bar Associations.
Edwards earned a bachelor’s de-
gree from Long Island University and
5 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
a juris doctor from Washington and
Lee School of Law.
He received an AV® Preeminent™
Peer Review Rating from Martin-
dale-Hubbell®, its highest rating for
legal ability and ethics. From 2013
to 2015, Edwards was selected to the
New York Metro Super Lawyers list.
He was recognized in the practice
area of Land Use/Zoning.
Sahn Ward Coschignano, PLLC
provides its clients with the highest
quality representation, counsel and
advice. Practice areas include zoning
and land use planning; real estate
law and transactions; litigation and
appeals; municipal law and legislative
practice; cellular and telecommunica-
tions law; environmental, corporate,
labor and employment law; tax certio-
rari and condemnation, matrimonial
practice; and estate planning. The
firm strives to assist its clients in a
wide array of issues, serving them
with skill and experience, resourceful-
ness and responsibility.
SCOTT L.
FEUER
Rivkin Radler
LLP
Scott L. Feuer is a partner in
Rivkin Radler LLP’s real estate, zon-
ing & land use practice group. Feuer
counsels real estate developers, prop-
erty owners, investors, joint ventures,
institutional and private lenders,
landlords and tenants in connection
with real estate transactions. He
has extensive experience in the ac-
quisition and sale of commercial and
multi-family residential properties,
leasing of retail, office and industrial
space on behalf of both landlords and
tenants, and conventional and con-
struction financing.
Feuer is often called on by clients
to provide real estate counseling in
connection with corporate sales and
acquisitions.
He has represented clients in
many high profile transactions, in-
cluding a $53 million construction
financing of a condominium project
consisting of luxury residential units
and a ground floor retail unit in a
landmarked New York City building;
a $52 million acquisition and financ-
ing of a 250,000-sq.-ft. shopping cen-
ter in Selden, New York to complete
a Section 1031 tax-deferred exchange
following the sale of several small-
er shopping centers; and a $39 mil-
lion refinancing of a shopping center
on the “Miracle Mile” in Manhasset,
New York.
The term sheet stage is essential to
any transaction, Feuer said.
“Clients entering into transactions
such as the purchase of a commer-
cial building or the lease of office
space often present me with a simple
term sheet containing only a few deal
terms,” he explained. “For example,
the term sheet for a purchase may
only include the price, contract depos-
it amount and closing date. Purchase
and sale agreements contain many
other fundamental business terms
which, if negotiated at the term sheet
stage, could expedite contract drafting
and negotiation, thereby reducing the
client’s cost of the transaction.”
Similarly, through term sheet ne-
gotiations, the parties may come to
the realization that the deal is not
viable prior to incurring the expense
of drafting a contract, he noted.
“For example, if a purchaser re-
quires a post-contract due diligence
period to undertake environmental or
other studies and the right to termi-
nate the contract if not satisfied with
the results, but the seller is unwilling
to agree to this — insisting that the
purchaser complete any desired due
diligence prior to contract signing —
then the transaction may not proceed
past this point,” Feuer said. “By re-
solving this fundamental issue at the
term sheet stage, the parties would
save time and the expense of drafting
a contract for a deal that was doomed
from the outset.”
“I encourage all of my clients to
contact me prior to negotiating a term
sheet to discuss some of the key issues
that will be covered in the contract so
they may consider whether to include
them in the term sheet or leave them
to be addressed during contract nego-
tiations,” he said.
A member of the New York State
Bar Association and its Real Prop-
erty Law Section, Feuer has earned
the AV Preeminent rating from Mar-
tindale-Hubbell. He graduated from
Binghamton University, with honors,
and from Brooklyn Law School, where
he was a Dean’s Merit Scholar, a re-
cipient of the American Jurisprudence
Award in Legal Writing, and a mem-
ber of the Brooklyn Law Review.
He is admitted to practice in New
York and New Jersey and before the
United States District Court for the
District of New Jersey.
Feuer is a member of the board of
directors of the Binghamton Univer-
sity Alumni Association and chairs
its Regional Chapters Committee.
He has served as a volunteer for the
Make-a-Wish Foundation, a mem-
ber of the board of directors of the
East Northport Jewish Center and
on fundraising event committees for
the Community Development Corpo-
ration of Long Island.
Rivkin Radler LLP, with offices in
Uniondale, NY, New York City and
Hackensack, NJ, provides legal rep-
resentation to a broad array of cli-
ents. Its 160 lawyers deliver focused
and effective legal services. The firm
provides strong representation and
builds even stronger client relation-
ships. Many clients have been placing
their trust in the firm for more than
25 years. The driving force behind the
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firm’s commitment is its commitment
to total client satisfaction. Rivkin
Radler LLP is the advisor-of-choice to
successful individuals, middle-market
companies and large corporations.
JEFFREY D.
FORCHELLI
Forchelli, Curto,
Deegan, Schwartz,
Mineo & Terrana
Jeffrey D. Forchelli is managing
partner of Forchelli, Curto, Deegan,
Schwartz, Mineo & Terrana, a law
firm he founded in 1976. Forchelli’s
extensive personal practice concen-
trates on complex real estate and land
use matters, including litigation and
tax certiorari for major real estate
developers and national corporations.
Forchelli is known for unraveling
complicated situations, including a re-
cent case that involved a title report.
“A client retained us to represent
him in securing zoning approvals to
construct a building on a large parcel of
property, which is presently improved
with a one-family home,” Forchelli said.
“The zoning of the property permitted a
public/commercial use.”
“After having ascertained that the
zoning permitted the proposed use, the
client entered into a contract to pur-
chase the property,” he said. “He then
came to us to represent him in securing
approvals. We immediately ordered and
secured a title report and found that
the property was encumbered with cov-
enants and restrictions and easements
that limited the future construction and
use of the property. However, the client
had a firm contract with no representa-
tions regarding covenants and restric-
tions and easements. This could have
been a disaster.”
“Whenever someone is purchasing
property for future development, a
title report is imperative prior to hav-
ing a firm commitment to purchase
the property,” Forchelli noted. “A sea-
soned zoning/land use practitioner
would have secured a title report and
discovered these encumbrances prior
to entering into a binding contract.”
“Although, in our particular case
we were able to refine the proposed
plans and secure a great deal of what
the client wanted, the client did suffer
a financial loss and it could have been
worse,” he noted.
“The lesson to be learned is, al-
though traditionally one does not se-
cure a title report until after a client
has signed a contract, when a contract
involves developing property, a title re-
port should be secured prior to signing
the contract so that all relevant infor-
mation is on hand,” Forchelli said.
Forchelli has served as counsel to
the New York State Assembly, and
served on the legal advisory board
and on the Board of Directors of Se-
curity Title and Guaranty Company.
He was selected for inclusion in Who’s
Who in American Law (8th Edition)
and has been selected by his peers for
inclusion in New York’s Super Law-
yers (2007, 2009-2016).

WHO’SWHO
in Commercial & Residential Real Estate Law
Forchelli graduated from Brooklyn
Law School in 1969. In 2003, Forchelli
endowed his first chair at Brooklyn
Law School. He later endowed a sec-
ond chair, in 2004, in honor of his fa-
ther, Don Forchelli. In 2005, Forchelli
celebrated the opening of Brooklyn
Law School’s Jeffrey D. Forchelli Con-
ference Center, named in his honor.
He also received the National Alum-
ni Association Award for “Excellence
in Business” from Wagner College,
where he graduated in 1966.
Forchelli is a trustee of Brooklyn
Law School. He is also a trustee of
Wagner College where he serves as
treasurer of the board; a past presi-
dent of the Oyster Bay-East Norwich
School District; and a former trustee
of Nassau Community College.
In 2009, Forchelli and his wife,
Sadie, were honored by St. Francis
Hospital at its annual Challenge Ball.
Under the auspices of the Diocese of
Brooklyn, he was the recipient of the
2011 Frederic Ozanam Award, WE
CARE, the charitable arm of the Nas-
sau County Bar Association. Most re-
cently, he was honored by The INN
– Interfaith Nutrition Network.
Forchelli is a member of the New
York State and Nassau County Bar
Associations and a Fellow of the Oza-
nam Hall Award and New York Bar
Foundation.
Forchelli, Curto, Deegan, Schwartz,
Mineo & Terrana, one of Long Island’s
leading full-service law firms, has al-
ways enjoyed a solid reputation for suc-
cessfully representing clients in real
estate, land use and zoning, tax, trusts
and estates, tax certiorari, corporate
and commercial and litigation matters.
Founded in 1976, Forchelli, Curto,
Deegan, Schwartz, Mineo & Terrana
in Uniondale provides expertise in the
areas of banking, bankruptcy, employ-
ment and labor, municipal incentives/
IDA, entertainment, construction law
and more.
Throughout the firm’s growth, one
thing has remained constant — its
focus on obtaining results for clients.
The firm employs more than 60 at-
torneys who handle complex matters
for a broad client base including na-
tional, regional and local businesses,
major real estate developers and or-
ganizations, banks, insurance com-
panies, municipalities, educational
institutions, contractors, architects/
engineers and individuals.
TONI J.
HOVERKAMP
Farrell Fritz, P.C.
Toni J. Hoverkamp is counsel in
the real estate practice group at Far-
rell Fritz, P.C. Hoverkamp works in
the firm’s Hauppauge and Water Mill
offices. She represents buyers, sellers
and lenders in residential and com-
mercial transactions, private develop-
ers and investors in joint venture ne-
gotiations and landlords and tenants
in leasing transactions.
6 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
Seeking counsel earlier in the pro-
cess can avoid unnecessary costs,
Hoverkamp explained.
“I recently represented a client
who was purchasing a multi-mil-
lion dollar home in East Hampton,”
she said. “The seller agreed that
she would deliver an updated cer-
tificate of occupancy prior to closing
and my client, relying on this agree-
ment, spent money on due diligence.
I received contracts from the seller’s
attorney that included the seller’s
agreement to deliver an updated cer-
tificate of occupancy prior to closing.
I reviewed the contract and prepared
comments. I called and emailed the
seller’s attorney regarding certain
provisions of the contract but did not
receive responses for several days.
The seller’s attorney finally respond-
ed stating that the seller is unwilling
to agree to provide an updated certif-
icate of occupancy.”
I then received the title report that
I ordered, which included a copy of the
current certificate of occupancy,” Hov-
erkamp said. “I compared the certificate
of occupancy to the survey and home
inspection report and noticed that there
were two bedrooms and two bathrooms
in the basement that were not covered
by the certificate of occupancy.”
“If I had a copy of the certificate of
occupancy earlier on in the process I
could have discovered this issue and
the purchaser could have avoided
due diligence costs on this property,”
she said.
Prior to joining Farrell Fritz in
2011, Hoverkamp was a commercial
real estate associate at Herrick, Fein-
stein LLP in New York City. Before
entering law school, she held posi-
tions as a trial preparation assistant
at the District Attorney’s Office for
New York County and as a paralegal
at Ackerman, O’Brien, Pachman &
Brown LLP in East Hampton.
Hoverkamp earned a juris doctor
from the University of Virginia and
a bachelor’s degree in political sci-
ence from the State University of New
York at Stony Brook. As an under-
graduate, Hoverkamp interned at the
United States Attorney’s Office for the
District of Columbia.
She is a member of the Suffolk
County Bar Association; serves on
Flying Point Foundation for Autism’s
board of directors; and is a member of
the Nassau Suffolk Services for Au-
tism Parent Teacher Organization.
With 90 attorneys, the law firm
of Farrell Fritz is recognized for pro-
viding high quality, responsive ser-
vice, practical advice and for its deep
commitment to the local community.
Farrell Fritz handles legal matters in
the areas of bankruptcy and restruc-
turing; business divorce; commercial
litigation; construction; corporate and
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finance; distressed assets; eDiscov-
ery; emerging companies and venture
capital; eminent domain; environmen-
tal law; estate litigation; health law;
labor and employment; land use, mu-
nicipal and zoning; real estate; tax
planning and controversy; tax cer-
tiorari, and trusts and estates for a
variety of corporations, not-for-profit
organizations and individuals.
ANDREW T.
KASMAN
Abrams,
Fensterman,
Fensterman,
Eisman, Formato,
Ferrara & Wolf,
LLP
Andrew T. Kasman is a partner at
Abrams, Fensterman, Fensterman,
Eisman, Formato, Ferrara & Wolf,
LLP and chairman of the real estate
department.
Kasman concentrates his trans-
actional real estate practice in the
areas of buying, selling, financing
and leasing representing landlords,
tenants and multi-family developers.
His extensive experience includes
all aspects of national commercial
real estate acquisitions, dispositions,
and financing. He has represented
tenants and landlords in retail, of-
fice, warehouse, shopping centers,
day care center and industrial leas-
es. Kasman has also assisted sell-
ers, purchasers, commercial and res-
idential real estate mortgage lenders,
borrowers, developers, and manage-
ment companies in commercial and
residential conveyances.
When dealing with property trans-
actions, always retain an attorney
who has expertise in the field, Kas-
man said.
“A previous client contacted me
when he received his closing numbers
for the purchase of property in New
York City, as they did not seem right
to him. He had a family friend who
was not a real estate attorney han-
dling the transaction, which he now
realized was a mistake.”
“The closing was less than a week
away,” Kasman said.  “Upon review
of the documents I inquired as to the
status of his mortgage ($9,000,000)
and the possibility of doing an As-
signment of Sellers existing mortgage,
which was in the principal amount of
$7,000,000. The attorney had not con-
sidered doing this, which could save a
considerable amount on the New York
State mortgage tax.”
“I advised the client that if we
were able to do this, he would only be
paying the mortgage tax on the ‘new
money’ and would save approximately
$200,000,” Kasman explained.
“After lengthy conversations with
the new and existing lenders —and
Title Company — we were able to
obtain an extension to close and com-
plete an assignment of the existing
mortgage, which saved the client
nearly $200,000 in mortgage tax,” he
said. “While this is customary practice
for an attorney who concentrates in
real estate to consider, an attorney
concentrating in other areas may not
be full aware of such things.”
Kasman has prepared Tenancy in
Common Agreements, completed 1031
Exchanges and has drafted and negoti-
ated various Construction Agreements.
Kasman has been a lecturer regarding
issues pertaining to both landlord and
tenant positions in lease negotiations.
Prior to joining Abrams Fenster-
man, Kasman was the senior real es-
tate counsel at American International
Group, Associate General Counsel for
NBTY, Inc./Vitamin World and Gen-
eral Counsel for CLK Management
Corp., where he handled a broad range
of matters involving real estate laws,
corporate and transactional issues, day
to day real estate management, em-
ployment issues, and estate planning.
Kasman earned a juris doctor from
Thomas M. Cooley Law School and a
bachelor’s degree from Baruch Col-
lege. He is a member of both the New
York State Bar Association and Suf-
folk County Bar Associations, and is
admitted to practice in the state of
New York.
BERNARD P.
KENNEDY
Bond, Schoeneck &
King PLLC
Bernard P. Kennedy is co-manag-
ing member in the Garden City office
of Bond, Schoeneck & King PLLC.
Kennedy advises clients on various
matters including business transac-
tions, contracts, real estate and litiga-
tion. He is a trusted legal advisor who
understands how to translate com-
plex legal issues into practical busi-
ness terms and fashion common sense
solutions to everyday business prob-
lems. Kennedy is known for bringing
a solution-oriented focus to the task
of helping clients find answers to com-
plex issues expeditiously, cost effec-
tively and completely.
For the past 20 years, Kennedy
has provided general counsel services
to King Kullen Grocery Co., Inc., a
Long Island-based company with two
subsidiaries, 39 retail locations and
over 3,000 employees. Serving as out-
side general counsel to King Kullen,
he has been responsible on a day-to-
day basis for corporate transactions,
real estate, leasing and litigation, as
well as coordinating legal services
in areas such as ERISA, intellectual
property, risk management and em-
ployment matters.
In 1989, Kennedy was founding
partner of Kennedy and Gillen, a bou-
tique business law and litigation firm
in Garden City. In addition to King
Kullen, his firm has represented such
clients as Hofstra University, Kimco
Realty, Westbury Realty Ventures,
the Rembold Company and numerous
other corporations and institutions,
large and small.
Kennedy is experienced in com-
mercial leasing, particularly shop-

WHO’SWHO
in Commercial & Residential Real Estate Law
ping center leasing, and represents
both landlords and tenants in leasing
transactions throughout the metropol-
itan area. He also represents a grow-
ing list of independent supermarket
operators throughout New York City
in leasing and litigation matters.
He earned a juris doctor from Ford-
ham University School of Law and
bachelor’s degree from New York Uni-
versity. Kennedy is admitted to prac-
tice in New York, the U.S. District
Court for the Eastern District of New
York, and the U.S. District Court for
the Southern District of New York.
He has held various roles in civic
and pro bono matters, including serv-
ing on the board of the Family and
Children’s Association and its execu-
tive committee and governance com-
mittee; serving as board chair of the
Family and Children’s Association;
serving on the Board of South Shore
Communities Hospital; serving on the
Board of St. Joseph’s College; serving
as chair of the New York State Bar
Association Committee on Volunteer
Lawyers providing pro bono legal ser-
vices to residents of drug and alcohol
rehabilitation facilities; and serving
on the New York State Trial Law-
yers advocacy committee providing
pro bono legal services to victims of
the 9-11 disaster. Kennedy is also a
member the board of the Point Look-
out Civic Association and a member of
the Class of 2012 of Energeia.
Bond, Schoeneck & King PLLC
(Bond) is a law firm with 270 lawyers
representing companies, public and
private institutions and individuals
in a broad range of practice areas.
Bond has nine offices in New York
State and offices in Naples, Florida
and Overland Park, Kansas.
RICHARD S.
KESTENBAUM
Kestenbaum &
Mark
Richard S. Kestenbaum is a part-
ner at Kestenbaum & Mark in Great
Neck. Kestenbaum practices in the
areas of federal and state civil and
criminal tax litigation, complex busi-
ness litigation and corporate and real
estate transactions.
In commercial real estate purchase
transactions, there are two issues
that need to be addressed, Kesten-
baum said.
“The first is to be certain that the
property can be used for the intended
purpose, or if it cannot be, the client is
aware of what has to be done to gain
that approval,” he said. “Some defi-
ciencies are easily cured and others
take a great deal of time to cure or
cannot be fixed altogether.”
“The second issue to be aware of
in investment properties is that the
purchaser has complete clarity as to
the income and expenses they should
fairly anticipate,” Kestenbaum noted.
“The leases must be carefully ana-
lyzed and the projected income and
expenses known to the purchaser. A
7 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
practical understanding of the opera-
tion of the subject real estate is very
helpful to ensure that the buyer re-
ceives what he or she anticipates.”
Kestenbaum earned a juris doctor
from Hofstra University and a bach-
elor’s degree, cum laude, from Long
Island University. He is admitted to
practice in New York and Florida; and
the U.S. Tax Court and U.S. District
Court, Southern and Eastern Dis-
tricts of New York. Kestenbaum is a
member of the Nassau County Bar
Association, American Bar Associa-
tion and the New York State Magis-
trates Association.
He was selected as a New York
Metro Area Super Lawyer in Taxa-
tion in 2015 and as a Long Island
Top Legal Eagle by Pulse magazine in
2010 and 2015. Kestenbaum is acting
village justice for the Village of Great
Neck Plaza (1996-present); and acting
village justice for the Village of Kens-
ington 2014-present).
Kestenbaum & Mark is a boutique
law firm with a national practice com-
bining the specialties of tax law, trial
practice, estate planning and estate
administration. The firm represents
corporations, individuals, and estates;
and regularly assist law, accounting
and pension firms in representing
their clients.
MICHAEL R.
MARTONE
Koeppel Martone
& Leistman, LLP
Michael R. Martone is managing
partner of Koeppel Martone & Leist-
man, LLP in Mineola. Admitted to the
Bar of the State of New York in 1959,
Martone focuses his practice on tax
assessment review and condemnation.
“The impetus for any client seeking
my firm’s counsel is a concern that
their real property is not being as-
sessed fairly,” Martone said. “There-
fore, our first step is to determine
what unique characteristics and chal-
lenges their property possesses and
or presents. We look at the physical
characteristics of the property, its lo-
cation, actual and potential vacancy
and occupancy issues, environmental
contamination, etc. We carefully ex-
plore and ask questions that may ul-
timately set up an argument for over
assessment that, at first glance, may
not appear obvious.”
“The basic tenet that all real prop-
erty is unique very much applies to our
area of practice,” Martone explained.
Martone is admitted to the U.S.
District Court, Eastern, and Southern
Districts of New York, as well as the
U.S. Tax Court. He is AV rated by
Lexis Nexis-Martindale-Hubbell for
over 30 consecutive years. AV rating
is the highest possible peer rating in
legal ability and ethical standards.
Martone is a member of the Nas-
sau County, Suffolk County, New York
State, Florida State, District of Colum-
bia, and American Bar Associations.
Throughout his career, Martone
has shared his expertise by serving
in various capacities. Early in his
career, he served as Senior Deputy
Nassau County Attorney in charge of
condemnation and tax certiorari and
real estate (1969-71); Commissioner
of Public Safety of the City of Glen
Cove (1970-72); Deputy Nassau Coun-
ty Attorney (1962-69); and Special At-
torney for the Office of Urban Renew-
al for the City of Glen Cove (1973-80).
Today, Martone is on the Nassau
County Bar Association’s Committee
on Condemnation and Tax Certiorari
(1964-present). He is also a member of
the International Council of Shopping
Centers; the International Associa-
tion of Assessing Officers; Columbia
Society of Real Estate Appraisers; In-
stitute of Property Taxation; National
Association of Review Appraisers and
Mortgage Underwriters; and Institute
of Revenue Rating and Valuation.
Martone is also a member of the
board of directors of the American
Property Tax Counsel, which is a
network of accomplished and experi-
enced attorneys through the United
States who carry on professional edu-
cation programs for its members and
others, as well as enable members to
expand their professional relation-
ships nationally.
Martone earned a bachelor’s degree
from Lehigh University, a bachelor’s
degree from New York Law School,
and a juris doctor from New York Law
School. He has authored and partici-
pated in many articles in his field as
well as lectured on eminent domain
and real property tax matters to bar
associations, appraisal societies and
civic groups.
Koeppel Martone & Leistman, LLP
is among the largest law firms in New
York devoted exclusively to the field
of real property valuation review and
condemnation. It has been in exis-
tence for more than 50 years and its
partners and associates combined
have over 150 years of experience.
The firm’s lawyers are admitted to
practice law in several states and,
accompanied by a large staff of para-
legals with extensive experience in
tax certiorari and condemnation law,
have provided tax reduction and con-
demnation services for clients in all of
these states.
GARY
MELTZER
Meltzer, Lippe,
Goldstein &
Breitstone, LLP
Gary Meltzer is a partner and
chair of Meltzer, Lippe, Goldstein
& Breitstone, LLP’s real estate law
practice group. Meltzer’s practice is
a national commercial transactional
practice with an emphasis on selling,
buying, leasing and finance.
Meltzer’s practice includes all as-
pects of commercial real estate acquisi-
tions and dispositions, including 1031
exchanges, loan assumptions and de-
feasances. He has prepared tenancy
in common agreements, partnership
and operating agreements and creat-
ed complex organizational structures
and has experience in representing
owners of shopping centers, multi-fam-
ily developments, office buildings, golf
course and residential communities
and industrial and warehouse devel-
opments. He also represents landlords
and tenants in drafting and negotiat-
ing commercial leases.
Meltzer represents lenders and
borrowers in all facets of real estate
lending and borrowing, including
multi-state portfolio financings on the
lending and borrowing sides, origi-
nating CMBS, life insurance compa-
ny and bank loans, as well as draft-
ing and negotiating participation and
intercreditor agreements between
lenders and drafting and negotiat-
ing forbearance agreements between
lenders and borrowers. He also rep-
resents sellers and purchasers of real
estate loans including performing due
diligence, drafting and negotiating
sale-purchase agreements and han-
dling all aspects of closing loan sale
and/or purchase transactions.
When asked about a recent issue
that if brought to his attention earli-
er in a transaction could have saved
his client money and time, Meltzer
said, “A short-sighted, costly error can
occur when real estate lawyers, look-
ing to avoid a title search fee, refuse
to order a title commitment until a
transaction is under contract or at
least far along in negotiations. This
fee is nominal compared to the cost
of the legal time it can take to nego-
tiate the title section in a contract to
provide for the various outcomes of a
title search, or to learn early on that
the state of title is not suitable for the
purchase. The state of a title, includ-
ing covenants, restrictions and ease-
ments are sometimes the greatest im-
pediment to the transaction and may
preclude the purchaser from using the
property for its intended purpose.”
“Recently, a client in a competitive
bid situation contacted me as the con-
tract was issued,” Meltzer explained.
“I ordered title right away but before
receiving title, I first had to review,
revise and negotiate the contract in
order to meet the time requirements
of the transaction. The property pur-
portedly included development rights
that had been acquired from a neigh-
bor. When I received title, the doc-
uments on record revealed that the
acquisition of the development rights
was not properly done. The fact that
the development rights were not prop-
erly acquired precluded my client
from moving forward. If I had title
sooner, my client would have termi-
nated discussions right away and
saved several thousand dollars of con-
tract review and negotiation time.”
Meltzer is admitted to the New
York State Bar and the Connecticut
State Bar. He earned a bachelor’s de-
gree from Binghamton University and
a juris doctor from Cardozo Law School.
Meltzer, Lippe, Goldstein & Breit-
stone, LLP (Meltzer Lippe) is one of
the largest law firms on Long Island.
The firm’s practice encompasses all
aspects of corporate and business law,
tax law, employment and labor law,
partnerships, limited liability com-
panies and joint ventures, litigation,

WHO’SWHO
in Commercial & Residential Real Estate Law
real estate, tax-exempt organizations,
wills & trusts, estate planning & ad-
ministration, bankruptcy, construc-
tion law, employee benefits and exec-
utive compensation and government
relations and regulatory affairs.
Meltzer Lippe’s real estate prac-
tice group is a national commercial
transactional practice advising prom-
inent developers, financial institu-
tions, real estate investment firms,
real estate investment trusts and pri-
vate clients in the completion of so-
phisticated real estate transactions,
as well as commercial lending and
borrowing. The practice includes all
aspects of commercial real estate ac-
quisitions and dispositions, repre-
senting both landlords and tenants
in office building, shopping center,
big box, triple net and industrial
park lease drafting and negotiations
as well as mortgage and mezzanine
financing for similar properties.
Meltzer Lippe also represents
sellers and purchasers of real es-
tate loans including performing due
8 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
diligence, drafting and negotiating
sale-purchase agreements and han-
dling all aspects of closing loan sale
and/or purchase transactions.‑
JERRY
SIEGELMAN
Ruskin Moscou
Faltischek P.C.
Jerry Siegelman is a partner at
Ruskin Moscou Faltischek P.C. in
Uniondale, where he is a member of
its real estate department. Siegelman
concentrates his practice on commer-
cial real estate transactions, includ-
ing acquisitions, dispositions, portfolio
transactions, financing, leasing and
development. Siegelman’s practice
has focused on shopping center prop-
erties and has counseled his clients
in the development of their retail and
mixed-use projects. He has also han-
dled complex financing for borrowers,
including mezzanine and securitized
loans, and advises clients in their or-
ganizational structures.
Maintaining an attorney throughout
an entire transaction is key to saving
time and expense, Siegelman noted.
“One of my clients recently pur-
chased a commercial property,” he
said. “Rather than having me perform
the lease reviews as part of due dili-
gence, my client took it upon himself.
Following closing, I was asked to re-
view one of the leases on a particular
issue. In the course of my review, I
discovered something else concerning
certain reimbursements to the tenant,
which was overlooked. Had it been
discovered during due diligence, it
could have been negotiated with the
seller as a credit at closing.”
Prior to joining the firm, Siegelman
was a partner at Ackerman, Levine,
Cullen, Brickman & Limmer, LLP.
Siegelman earned a juris doctor
from Boston University School of Law
and a bachelor’s degree from Queens
College. He is a member of the New
York City Bar Association, member of
the Zoning Board of Appeals for the
Village of Great Neck Estates, and is
on the Board of the Long Island Divi-
sion of the Jewish National Fund.
For more than 48 years, Ruskin
Moscou Faltischek P.C., headquar-
tered in Uniondale, has built a repu-
tation as one of the region’s leading
providers of innovative legal services.
Its attorneys are practical, experienced
advocates who measure their success
by their clients’ success. Cornerstone
groups in all major practice areas of
the law are represented at the firm,
including corporate & securities, fi-
nancial services, commercial litigation,
intellectual property, health care, real
estate, employment, cybersecurity and
data privacy, energy, and trusts & es-
tates. Clients include large and mid-
sized corporations, privately held busi-
nesses, institutions and individuals.
 9 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
WHO’s WHO
JAMES
ASHE, CPA,
MAFF, CFF
Marcum LLP
in Forensic Accounting
James Ashe, CPA, MAFF, CFF is
partner-in-charge of Marcum LLP’s
advisory services division and national
Forensic accountants are involved in a wide leader of its forensics practice group.
range of investigations. Business leaders/ With more than 20 years of diverse
forensic accounting experience, com-
owners rely on forensic accountants to analyze bined with 15 years of tax experience
in both international and regional ac-
and confirm complex financial transactions counting firms, Ashe has the unique
and numerical data. However, there are times ability to identify the strengths and
weaknesses of business operations,
when forensic accountants are brought into the structure and evaluate specific trans-
actions, and work with litigants and
process too late and their discovers generate legal counsel on liability and damage
costly results for the business leader/owner. aspects associated with legal actions.
Ashe, who is also a member of the
firm’s marital dissolution and valua-
In this Who’s Who in Forensic Accounting tion services practice groups, has been
engaged in both consulting and expert
section, some of Long Island’s highly-regarded witness engagements, particularly
ownership disputes, breach of con-
forensic accountants describe a case they have tract, intangible asset related cases
worked on — that if their client had approached (patent infringement, trade secrets,
customer lists), fraud investigations,
them earlier in the process — they could have professional malpractice and other
types of forensic analysis.
saved their client time and expenses. Ashe’s reputation goes beyond the
tri-state area. He is appointed by fi-
nancial institutions, insurance carri-
ers, government agencies and other
interested third parties to “look be-
hind and beyond the numbers” to de-
termine mismanagement or financial
INDEXINDEXINDEX fraud, calculate damages associated
with wrongful acts or losses, establish
the basis and amounts of restitution
and seek and assist counsel in govern-
9 JAMES ASHE, CPA, MAFF, CFF Marcum LLP ment claims.
He has also been appointed by var-
9 ANTHONY CARRELLA, CPA DSJCPA ious courts to perform special inves-
tigations and to assist as a receiver
10 LOIS CLINCO, CPA, CFE EisnerAmper LLP
and a neutral. He is a Master Analyst
10 HAROLD L. DEITERS III Baker Tilly Virchow Krause, LLP in Financial Forensics (MAFF), a cre-
dential held by approximately 500
10 MICHAEL J. GARIBALDI, CPA/ABV/CFF/CGMA Israeloff, Trattner & Co., PC professionals in the United States due
11 ERIC KREUTER, PH.D., CPA, CGMA, CFE, CBA Marks Paneth LLP to the rigorous requirements to attain
11 STEPHEN LATUSO, CPA, CIRA, CTA WeiserMazars LLP
certification.
Marcum is often retained in an ad-
12 IRA LEVINE Prager Metis, CPAs, LLC
visory role because of suspected mis-
appropriations, operational inefficien-
12 JOSEPH MAMMINA, CPA Markowitz, Fenelon & Bank, LLP cies and lack of controls, Ashe said.
“One such retention included inves-
12 LARRY MORIARTY KPMG LLP tigation of possible wrongdoing within
12 ELIZABETH M. OBERG, CPA, CFE Sanders Thaler Viola & Katz, LLP the operations of an investment bank-
ing business,” he said. “The litigation
13 YIGEL RECHTMAN, CPA, CFE, CITP, CISM Grassi & Co. stemmed from allegation of diversion
of owner capital contributions as well
13 MARK S. WARSHAVSKY, CPA/ABV/CFF, as client funds intended for invest-
CVA, CBA, ASA, CFE, MAFF, DABFA, MBA Gettry Marcus CPA, P.C. ments but diverted for personal gain
of one of the two owner/officers.”
“Marcum traced flow of funds into
and out of accounts of several related
party entities established by the offi-
cer to understand the source and use
of client funds,” Ashe explained. “This
included review of wire transfers, pay-
ments to personal and business cred-
it cards, and payments to unrelated
third parties that benefitted the offi-
cer. Additionally, we reviewed several
transactional and business documents
to investigate any diversion of funds
for non-business purposes. These in-
cluded documents related to incorpo-
ration of entities, business acquisi-
tions, consulting agreements, loan ap-
plications, and offering memoranda.”
“We found that the officer breached
fiduciary duty by diverting investors’
funds to accounts controlled by him to
fund personal investments and to sup-
port his extravagant lifestyle,” Ashe
said. “Furthermore, he participat-
ed in self-dealing agreements to pay
himself exorbitant and unwarranted
consulting fees and forged or substi-
tuted pages of legal documents to di-
vert funds and gain voting control of
the business. Marcum concluded that
these actions resulted in investors los-
ing a large portion of their investment
and millions in damages.”
Ashe earned a Master of Business
Administration in Accounting from
Pace University and a Bachelor of
Arts in Sociology from Fairleigh Dick-
inson University. He is a member of
many professional and civic associ-
ations including American Institute
of Certified Public Accountants, New
York State Society of Certified Pub-
lic Accountants, National Association
of Certified Valuation Analysts, The
Rafael Brenner Ashe Foundation and
Family Service League. 
Marcum LLP is one of the largest
independent public accounting and
advisory services firms in the United
States. Headquartered in New York
City, Marcum LLP offers the resourc-
es of 1,500 professionals, including
more than 200 partners, in offices in
major business markets throughout
the U.S., Grand Cayman and China.
Marcum is a member of the Marcum
Group, an organization providing a
comprehensive range of profession-
al services spanning accounting
and advisory, technology solutions,
wealth management, and executive
and professional recruiting. The Mar-
cum Group companies include Mar-
cum LLP, Marcum Technology LLC,
Marcum Search LLC, Marcum Staff-
ing LLC, Marcum Financial Services
LLC, and Marcum Bernstein & Pin-
chuk LLP.
ANTHONY
CARRELLA,
CPA
DSJCPA
Anthony Carrella, CPA is a partner
at DSJCPA in Massapequa. Carrella
joined the company almost 10 years
ago as an entry level accountant and
has risen through the ranks to his
current role.
Carrella specializes in tax matters,
as well as not for profit accounting,
private foundations, nursing facilities,
the for profit sector, S-Corporations,
real estate entities and food and bev-
erage enterprises. He performs foren-
sic audits, reviews, and compilations
for a full range of clients.
He is dedicated to the firm’s cross-in-
dustry clients and maintains a proac-
tive, diligent approach in his clients’
financial needs, goals and challenges.

WHO’SWHO
in Forensic Accounting
His expertise has also exposed
fraudulent activities within compa-
nies. A recent case involved misappro-
priation of million of dollars.
“DSJCPA was engaged to assist in a
forensic audit/investigation after there
was a defalcation discovery of approxi-
mately $4 million by the company’s of-
fice manager,” Carrella said. “Our pro-
cedures uncovered additional methods
to defraud our client of additional com-
pany and personal money, all carried
out by the company’s office manager.”
“Through unauthorized payments
to employees, for unapproved hours
and bonuses, as well as issuing checks
to doppelganger company checking ac-
counts, the office manager was able to
expand his fraud,” Carrella explained.
“In addition to the new company bank
accounts, the office manager opened
a significant line of credit, under the
company’s name — to float the monies
stolen to further conceal the fraud
from the owners.”
“With additional procedures, we
were also able to discover that the
office manager expanded his fraud to
one of the owner’s personal savings
account that had hundreds of thou-
sands of dollars,” Carrella noted.
Carrella earned a Bachelor of Sci-
ence Degree from City of New York,
Queens College. He is a Certified Pub-
lic Accountant in the state of New
York and a member of the American
Institute of Certified Public Accoun-
tant, New York State Society of Cer-
tified Public Accountants, Association
of Fraud Examiners and Health Care
Compliance Association.
DSJCPA is a full service account-
ing firm with a staff of highly trained
and dedicated accounting and book-
keeping professionals. The firm pro-
vides a wide range of accounting and
tax expertise to individuals, busi-
nesses, not-for-profit organizations,
schools and other agencies.
Launched in 1972, DSJCPA has
been built on the highest standards
of knowledge in the fields of business
management, financial planning and
taxes pertaining to estates, trusts and
businesses, as well as individuals.
From its offices in Massapequa, DS-
JCPA serves clients throughout Long
Island, the five boroughs of New York
City, Westchester County, Connecti-
cut and New Jersey.
LOIS
CLINCO,
CPA, CFE
EisnerAmper LLP
Lois Clinco, CPA, CFE is a part-
ner in the Private Business Services
Group at EisnerAmper LLP in Syos-
set. Clinco’s experience encompasses
all aspects of accounting, including
audit, tax, consulting and financial re-
porting. She has a particular focus in
real estate, specifically rental real es-
tate and Common Interest Realty As-
sociations (CIRAs), which includes co-
operatives, condominiums, homeown-
ers associations and timeshares. In
10 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
addition, Clinco serves clients in other
sectors such as e-commerce/internet,
leisure and recreation, and hotel and
lodging. Lois also has specialized ex-
pertise in performing employee bene-
fit plan audits and assisting clients in
CFO/controllership functions.
EisnerAmper’s forensic accounting,
fraud detection and investigatory ex-
perience comes from working with
both privately-held and Fortune 500
companies in a variety of industries,
investigating complex financial issues
and frauds on global and local levels,
and providing expert testimony relat-
ing to the misconduct and resultant
economic damages, Clinco said.
“EisnerAmper’s team of forensic ac-
countants and certified fraud examin-
ers conduct investigations in civil and
criminal lawsuits by working with
both in-house and outside counsel to
perform fact finding, conduct inter-
views, quantify losses, and document
our findings in independent expert
reports that can be used at trial or by
the prosecutor’s office,” she said. “Eis-
nerAmper conducts internal and ex-
ternal investigation with many types
of organizations including public and
private entities, nonprofit organiza-
tions, and governmental entities.”
“For example, EisnerAmper’s fo-
rensic services practice was retained
by a large international conglomer-
ate to assist in the collection of a $15
million judgment held against an in-
dividual and certain related party en-
tities,” Clinco explained. “We helped
identify hidden assets and analyze
financial books and records of over
25 related entities. Our team identi-
fied and reconstructed related party
transactions, domestic and interna-
tional wire transfers, and instances
of comingled corporate and personal
finances. We assisted counsel with
its legal claims related to fraudulent
transfers, piercing the corporate veil
and alter ego.”
Clinco earned her bachelor’s degree
in accounting from Long Island Uni-
versity, C.W. Post. She is a member
of the American Institute of Certi-
fied Public Accountants (AICPA), New
York State Society of Certified Public
Accountants (NYSSCPA) and the As-
sociation of Certified Fraud Examin-
ers (ACFE).
EisnerAmper LLP is a premier ac-
counting and business advisory ser-
vices firm, and among the largest in
the United States with offices in New
York City; Syosset, NY; Pennsylva-
nia; Massachusetts; Connecticut; New
Jersey; California; Florida; Israel; and
the Cayman Islands. The firm fea-
tures 180 partners and principals and
approximately 1,300 professionals.
EisnerAmper provides audit, ac-
counting, and tax services, as well as
corporate finance, including advising
on IPOs and M&A, as well as con-
ducting valuations and due diligence
reviews; internal audit and risk man-
agement; litigation consulting and fo-
rensic accounting; information tech-
nology, and other professional ser-
vices to a broad range of clients across
many industries, including services to
more than 200 public companies.
HAROLD L.
DEITERS III
Baker Tilly
Virchow Krause,
LLP
Harold L. Deiters III is a partner
in the litigation and valuation ser-
vices practice in Baker Tilly Virchow
Krause, LLP’s New York regional of-
fice. Deiters has vast experience in
the areas of business appraisal and fo-
rensic accounting covering valuations
for matrimonial settlements, estate
tax purposes, gift planning, sharehold-
er disputes, buy/sell agreements and
complex forensic accounting projects.
His combined audit and investigatory
skills result in meaningful solutions
to economic damage and lost profit
problems. Additionally, Deiters has
rendered his expertise in accounting
and auditing for public and privately
held companies, including manufactur-
ing, wholesale and retail distribution,
professional service organizations and
not-for-profit organizations.
His thorough investigations have
revealed unsuspected issues for many
clients, most recently through re-
search and analysis of a company.
“We were retained to perform due
diligence on a company (“Target Com-
pany”) our client (the “Buyer”) was
looking to purchase,” Deiters said.
“During our interview with the pres-
ident, chief financial officer (CFO),
controller and information technolo-
gy officer (ITO), we discovered some
alarming breakdowns in internal con-
trol. The interviews revealed that the
ITO had digitally copied the signatures
of the president and CFO, which he
would use to put the dual signatures
required on business checks. The ITO
also had complete unsupervised access
to the accounting software.”
In addition to the interviews of key
employees, we also reviewed the per-
sonnel records of the key employees,”
he said. “It was during this inspec-
tion of the personnel records that we
discovered the ITO was a disgrun-
tled employee that had multiple com-
plaints about being underpaid. While
we were not hired to find fraud in the
company through the process of our
due diligence we came across all the
characteristics of one.”
During the same due diligence, we
also discovered by examination of the
employee retirement plan that the Tar-
get Company had not disclosed a short-
fall of over a million dollars in their de-
fined benefit plan,” Deiters explained.
“Ultimately, with the issues in inter-
nal control and the discovery of a liabili-
ty over a million dollars our client chose
to step away from the deal,” he said.
Deiters is a member of the NYSSC-
PA and the American Institute of CPAs.
Baker Tilly Virchow Krause, LLP
(Baker Tilly) is a nationally recog-
nized, full-service accounting and ad-
visory firm whose specialized profes-
sionals connect with clients and their
businesses through refreshing candor
and clear industry insight. With ap-
proximately 2,500 employees across
the United States, Baker Tilly is one
of the top 15 accounting and advisory
firms in the country. Headquartered
in Chicago, Baker Tilly is an inde-
pendent member of Baker Tilly In-
ternational, a worldwide network of
independent accounting and business
advisory firms in 133 countries, with
27,000 professionals. The combined
worldwide revenue of independent
member firms is $3.6 billion.
MICHAEL J.
GARIBALDI,
CPA/ABV/
CFF/CGMA
Israeloff, Trattner
& Co., PC
Michael J. Garibaldi, CPA/ABV/
CFF/CGMA is a shareholder of Israel-
off, Trattner & Co., PC. Garibaldi is
responsible for client contact, develop-
ment and satisfaction in providing the
firm’s range of services in accounting,
auditing, tax, computer and manage-
ment consulting areas, in accordance
with client needs. These responsibil-
ities involve working closely with at-
torneys as well as the chief executive
and financial officers of the client.
The shareholder in charge of the
firm’s law firm services, forensic ac-
counting, litigation and valuation con-
sulting group, Garibaldi is one of the
industry’s leading law firm services
experts, with a strong background
providing efficient and affordable
solutions to the many complex issues
facing the legal profession today, in-
cluding firm governance, partner com-
pensation and profitability issues. A
Valuation and Litigation Support ex-
pert, Garibaldi specializes in assisting
attorneys and their clients with the
financial aspects of a case throughout
the litigation process, from contempla-
tion of action through expert witness
testimony. He brings an in-depth un-
derstanding of the business and tech-
nical aspects of valuation, finance and
accounting that is required in complex
litigation and arbitration cases.
Garibaldi’s areas of expertise in-
clude the management of a law prac-
tice, the valuation of closely held
businesses, professional practices and
professional licenses in the context
of a marital dissolution, shareholder
or partner dissolution/oppression ac-
tions, estate tax and planning, equita-
ble distribution, structuring buy/sell
agreements, personal injury, wrong-
ful death or termination, bankrupt-
cy, business loss, breach of contract,
mergers and acquisition, sale, embez-
zlement and fraud.
Fraud investigations involve a va-
riety of steps designed to protect the
business, minimize disruptions and
preserve evidence, Garibaldi said.
“Working together with legal coun-
sel, thorough planning is a prerequi-
site to launching a fraud investiga-
tion,” he said. “The plan prioritizes
investigatory tasks to facilitate an
interim report of findings, if required,

WHO’SWHO
in Forensic Accounting
but also allows for revision. Tasks
typically belong to three primary stag-
es: interviews, whereby we interview
third-party witnesses, corroborative
witnesses, possible co-conspirators
and the alleged perpetrator or perpe-
trators; evidence collection, whereby
we target both internal documents
and external records including per-
sonnel files, internal phone records,
e-mail, financial records, security
camera tapes, and physical and IT
system access records, public records,
customer and vendor information,
media reports, and private detec-
tive reports; and evidence analysis,
whereby we review and categorize the
information collected, conduct com-
puter-assisted data analysis and test
various hypotheses.”
“Of course, we will document and
track every step in the investigation
to cover privileged or confidential
items; requests for documents, elec-
tronic data and other information;
memoranda of interviews; and analy-
sis of documents, data, interviews and
conclusions drawn, Garibaldi noted.
“We then provide a report of our find-
ings. Confidentiality is paramount,
and is a hallmark of our profession.”
“Every company should take a pro-
active stance toward risk management
to minimize its exposure to fraud loss-
es,” Garibaldi said. “But when fraud
slips through the cracks, a qualified
expert can help ensure a timely and
comprehensive investigation.”
Accredited in business valuation
and certified in financial forensics,
Garibaldi is a chartered global man-
agement accountant and qualifies
as an expert witness on valuation
matters in the Supreme Courts of
New York, Nassau, Suffolk, Kings,
Queens, Richmond, Orange, Mon-
mouth and Westchester counties, and
has been called upon by the courts
to serve as a neutral expert. He has
lectured extensively on litigation ser-
vices, and teaches his specialty to
other professionals.
Garibaldi and the firm have consis-
tently ranked first in the New York
Law Journal Reader Rankings, or
among the top providers in their cat-
egories. Garibaldi was named Top Ac-
countant by The New York Enterprise
Report in 2013.
Garibaldi is a member of many or-
ganizations including the Institute of
Business Appraisers, the Association
of Certified Fraud Examiners, Amer-
ican Society of Appraisers, Long Is-
land Chapter of The American Society
of Appraisers, American Institute of
Certified Public Accountants and the
New York State Society of Certified
Public Accountants.
Israeloff, Trattner & Co., P.C., with
offices in Garden City and New York
City, is one of the New York metropol-
itan region’s leading professional ser-
vice firms. The firm provides a wide
range of services for individuals and
businesses in a number of industries.
Its services include accounting and
auditing, forensic accounting, fraud
engagements, business, professional
practice and license valuations, do-
mestic and international tax planning
and compliance, merger and acquisi-
tion consulting, management consul-
tation, technology, human resources
11 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
and marketing consulting, financial
and estate planning.
The firm’s law firm services, foren-
sic accounting and business valuation
groups were established specifically
to help attorney’s compete in today’s
challenging legal environment. Due
to the firm specializing in serving the
legal profession, the firm can provide
specialized technical resources to sup-
port all phases of the litigation process.
Israeloff, Trattner & Co. is a mem-
ber of the Private Companies Practice
Section of the American Institute of
Certified Public Accountants Division
for Firms. The firm has received un-
qualified reports on each of its peer
reviews, which means that the firm
practices according to the highest
standards in its profession.
ERIC
KREUTER,
Ph.D., CPA,
CGMA, CFE,
CBA
Marks Paneth
LLP
Eric Kreuter, Ph.D., CPA, CGMA,
CFE, CBA is a partner in the finan-
cial advisory services group at Marks
Paneth LLP. Kreuter specializes in
litigation and forensic services includ-
ing commercial damages and fraud
investigations.
Dr. Kreuter has worked in profes-
sional services firms since 1983 and
has developed a keen sense of in-
sight on topics that require thorough
examination.
“In a recent forensic case, I discov-
ered that a significant capital gain
transaction had been reported twice by
the trustee of a Trust,” he said. “The
impact was a depletion of well over $1
million. This finding became addition-
ally timely because the Trust return
filed in which the duplicate reporting
occurred could be amended, but the
expiry of the time period permitted by
the Internal Revenue Service would
occur within six months by the time
the error was discovered. I advised
counsel who added it to their plead-
ings. I also reported it on an affidavit.”
“The added finding, above the exist-
ing indicia of fraud, could mean that
the Trust may be able to recoup the
excess capital gain tax,” he explained.
“Though the issue is part of a wider
claim of mismanagement of the Trust,
it demonstrates the importance of add-
ing value to a forensic investigation by
thoroughly examining all documents
and the variety of factors associated
with proving loss causation.”
“Metaphorically speaking, the case
depicts working with the blinders off,”
Dr. Kreuter said. “Often, even trained
experts can lose the big picture by
just focusing on main issues. Here,
the side issue proved quite valuable
not only to the case, but, potentially,
to the Trust.”
Dr. Kreuter’s background also in-
cludes management, human resources
and other consulting services. He is
also a specialist in all facets of the
construction industry.
He is a Certified Public Accoun-
tant in New York and Texas. He
holds memberships in the Ameri-
can Institute of CPAs, the New York
State Society of CPAs, the American
College of Forensic Examiners Inter-
national, the Association of Certified
Fraud Examiners, the National As-
sociation of Certified Valuation An-
alysts, the Institute of Management
Accountants and the Center for Stra-
tegic Business Integrity.
He is also a Chartered Global Man-
agement Accountant (CGMA), a Certi-
fied Management Accountant (CMA),
a Certified Financial Manager (CFM),
a Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE)
and a Master Analyst in Financial Fo-
rensics (MAFF). Dr. Kreuter is both a
Diplomat and Fellow of the American
College of Forensic Examiners Inter-
national (DABFE, FECFEI), as well
as a Senior Professional in Human Re-
sources (SPHR) and a Certified Board
Advisor (CBA).
He has testified in state courts and
the U.S. Bankruptcy Court, as well as
arbitrations and depositions. He has
written seven books, a number of book
chapters and numerous articles cover-
ing a wide range of topics.
Dr. Kreuter served on the Amer-
ican Board of Forensic Accounting
of the American College of Forensic
Examiners International and contin-
ues to serve on the Editorial Advisory
Board of the Forensic Examiner. He is
treasurer of the National Association
for Poetry Therapy and past president
and board member of Hermandad,
Inc., a nonprofit community develop-
ment agency serving the southwest-
ern Dominican Republic. He is editor
of the International Journal of Psy-
chology Research.
Dr. Kreuter earned a bachelor’s de-
gree from Manhattan College, a mas-
ter’s degree in industrial psychology
from Long Island University and a
doctorate in clinical psychology from
Saybrook University (now the Chicago
School of Professional Psychology).
Marks Paneth LLP, whose origins
date back to 1907, is an accounting
firm with more than 550 people, in-
cluding over 70 partners and princi-
pals. The firm, with headquarters in
New York City and additional offices
in Washington, DC, New Jersey, Long
Island and Westchester, provides pub-
lic and private businesses with a full
range of auditing, accounting, tax, con-
sulting, trade remediation and valua-
tion services as well as litigation and
financial advisory services to domestic
and international clients. The firm also
specializes in providing tax advisory
and consulting for high-net-worth in-
dividuals and their families, as well
as a wide range of services for interna-
tional, real estate, hospitality, media,
entertainment, nonprofit and govern-
ment services clients. The firm has a
strong track record supporting emerg-
ing growth companies, entrepreneurs,
business owners and investors as they
navigate the business life cycle.
The firm’s subsidiary, Tailored
Technologies, LLC, provides informa-
tion technology consulting services.
In addition, the firm’s membership
in Morison International, a leading
international association for inde-
pendent business advisers, financial
consulting and accounting firms, fa-
cilitates service delivery to clients
throughout the United States and
around the world. In addition, readers
of the New York Law Journal rank
Marks Paneth as one of the area’s top
three forensic accounting firms for the
fifth year in a row.
STEPHEN
LATUSO,
CPA, CIRA,
CTA
WeiserMazars LLP
Stephen Latuso, CPA, CIRA, CTA
is director and practice leader of the
Corporate Advisory and Restructuring
services group at WeiserMazars LLP
in New York and Woodbury. Latuso
has considerable experience conduct-
ing forensic accounting, investigations,
estimating damages and lost profits,
and preparing analyses of preferential
transfers and fraudulent conveyances.
He has prepared numerous ex-
pert reports for litigation purposes as
well as for solvency and bankruptcy
matters. Recently, he conducted a
forensic examination and operational
review of a non-profit organization
whereby he and his team uncovered
fraud and provided recommendations
to improve organizational perfor-
mance and governance.
WeiserMazars was also recently
engaged by the board of directors of a
company to investigate the financial
activity of an insolvent business, La-
tuso said.
“The company was depleted of vir-
tually all funds, and the board sus-
pected that the cause of failure was
rooted in management’s incompe-
tence,” he said. “Soon after the CEO’s
dismissal, our firm worked alongside
a team of forensic accountants, con-
ducting site visits to interview person-
nel, and gather key financial records
and digital evidence to understand
what happened to the company’s cash.
The interviews provided valuable in-
sight into the CEO’s past conduct that
helped determine the critical areas for
investigation.”
“Upon performing a forensic review
of the documents and records, it was
clear that millions of company dollars
were being diverted to pay the CEO’s
and other co-conspirators’ personal
expenses, including credit card, per-
sonal loan and mortgage payments,”
Latuso said. “Our team also discov-
ered that the CEO had systematical-
ly diverted funds, disguised as pay-
roll and consulting services, to family
members, despite no evidence of any
services being performed.”
“Based on our findings, the board
members agreed to turn the evidence
over to the FBI for further investiga-
tion, Latuso said.
Latuso also has extensive experi-
ence providing bankruptcy advisory
and restructuring services to finan-
cially distressed companies, lenders
and creditors’ committees both in

WHO’SWHO
in Forensic Accounting
Chapter 11 proceedings and out-of-
court. He has been involved in merger
and acquisition due diligence, pro-
viding strategic and financial buyers
with business and financial analyses;
lender due diligence, providing collat-
eral reviews to secured lenders in con-
nection with asset based loans; and
enterprise valuations.
Latuso earned a bachelor’s degree
in accounting from Binghamton Uni-
versity. He is a Certified Public Ac-
countant in New York, Certified In-
solvency & Restructuring Advisor and
Certified Turnaround Analyst. He is
also involved with the Association for
Insolvency and Restructuring Advi-
sors where he serves as a member of
the board of directors.
WeiserMazars LLP, headquar-
tered in New York City, provides in-
sight and specialized experience in
accounting, tax and advisory services.
Since 1921, its skilled professionals
have leveraged technical expertise
and industry familiarity to create
customized solutions to overcome cli-
ent challenges. As the independent
U.S. member firm of Mazars Group,
the firm has a global reach of nearly
17,000 professionals in more than 75
countries. Locally and international-
ly, WeiserMazars LLP builds lasting
relationships with its clients by ad-
dressing their particular needs, creat-
ing value and optimizing their organi-
zational performance.
IRA LEVINE
Prager Metis,
CPAs, LLC
Ira Levine is a director of licensing
and royalty compliance in the adviso-
ry department of Prager Metis CPAs,
LLC. Levine has more than 30 years of
experience in the accounting industry.
Levine specializes in royalty and
compliance accounting, primarily in
the sports, media, and entertainment
industries. His additional fields of
expertise include music, publishing,
toys, apparel, gaming, licensing, and
academics. Areas of concentration
include royalty audits, licensing ex-
aminations, contract analysis, expert
testimony, compliance administration
and business valuation.
Levine had built a solid practice
on the strength of his work ethic, in-
tegrity and responsive service. Hav-
ing merged his practice, Compliance
Division, with Prager Metis he ex-
panded his ongoing commitment to
provide his clients with the best pos-
sible services and personal attention.
Levine frequently lectures and writes
for various groups and publications.
He earned a bachelor’s degree in ac-
counting from State University at Alba-
ny, New York. He is a member of many
professional organizations including the
American Institute of Certified Public
Accountants, New York State Society of
Certified Public Accountants, Licensing
Executive Society and Licensing Indus-
try Merchandiser’s Association.
12 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
Prager Metis is a Top 10 Interna-
tional firm and Top 100 U.S. account-
ing firm, with over 40 partners and
principals, more than 225 team mem-
bers, and eight offices worldwide in-
cluding New York, New Jersey, Los
Angeles and London. Clients come to
Prager Metis for advice that protects
and grows the value of their world —
whether that world is local or extends
across international markets.
The firm offers a full range of ac-
counting, audit, tax, advisory and
international services and serves a
diverse domestic and international
clientele in a wide range of industries.
Prager Metis CPAs, LLC was formed
in 2013 by the combination of Prag-
er and Fenton LLP and Metis Group
LLC — two highly-respected account-
ing firms who found their deep-rooted
practices to be both philosophically and
culturally complementary.
Prager and Fenton has provided
expert accounting and advisory ser-
vices for nearly a century, focusing
on the entertainment and music in-
dustry, professional practice firms,
real estate groups, and private wealth
individuals.
Founded in 1987, Metis Group is
known for their “team approach” to
creating financial security for their
clients, and provides a full range of
accounting and tax services including
forensic accounting, business and stra-
tegic planning, and litigation support.
JOSEPH
MAMMINA,
CPA
Markowitz,
Fenelon & Bank,
LLP
Joseph Mammina, CPA is a part-
ner at Markowitz, Fenelon & Bank,
LLP in Riverhead. Mammina joined
the firm in 2001 after gaining exten-
sive experience working from 1991 to
1995 at Kaufman Greenhut Liebowitz
& Forman; Mahoney Cohen from 1995
to 1996; and Cullen & Danowski from
1996 to 2001. Mammina established
his practice at the firm by providing
income tax planning for closely-held
businesses and their owners, and
tax-consulting services in the areas
of business acquisitions/dispositions
and real estate transactions. He also
created a niche in non-profit and gov-
ernmental accounting and auditing,
especially “yellow book” audits and
consultation with rules and regula-
tions for governmental entities.
As one of the firm’s audit part-
ners, Mammina is also responsible for
helping to maintain the firm’s quality
control policies and procedures. With
more than 20 years of professional ex-
perience, he provides expert advice to
each situation.
“Not too long ago, a client asked me
to review the internal controls of his
company,” he said. “He made it clear
that he did not suspect there was any-
thing going on, he was just looking for
some reassurance. Like most small
companies, my client has a bookkeep-
er that ‘does it all.’ Although we did
not find any fraudulent activity, we
were able to make several suggestions
to the owner about how he could mit-
igate the lack of segregation of duties.
We helped him put into place several
procedures that would enable him to
have oversight over the bookkeeper
while allowing her to do her job. In
the end, there were some additional
costs involved to implement the proce-
dures; but, my client’s peace of mind
is priceless.”
Mammina earned a bachelor’s de-
gree, with honors, from St. Joseph’s
College. He is a member of the Amer-
ican Institute of Certified Public Ac-
countants, the New York State Soci-
ety of Certified Public Accountants,
the New York State Association of
School Business Officials and the
Government Finance Officers’ Asso-
ciation. Mammina also serves on the
board of directors at the Southampton
Business Alliance.
He is also active in his community
serving on the finance committee at
St. Louis De Montfort Roman Catho-
lic Church where he is an usher and
a Eucharistic Minister. Mammina is
also the assistant scout master for
Boy Scout Troop 204 and raises funds
for the Leukemia Lymphoma Society
by running in the Walt Disney World
Marathon each year.
Markowitz, Fenelon & Bank, LLP
offers a broad range of services to a
variety of businesses and industries
throughout Long Island and the Tri-
State area. The firm’s goal is to help
clients achieve success in both their
business and personal lives. The firm
offers accounting services through
Markowitz, Fenelon & Bank, LLP and
financial planning services through
Raymond James to provide the guid-
ance and counsel needed to help its cli-
ents focus on identifying and achieving
their financial goals. The credentials
and experience of its partners and staff
offer clients expertise in traditional
accounting functions and in specialized
consulting programs.
LARRY
MORIARTY
KPMG LLP
Larry Moriarty, based in Mel-
ville, is a director in KPMG’s finan-
cial crimes and enforcement practice.
With 12 years of forensic accounting
experience, Moriarty has led and as-
sisted on numerous engagements in-
volving sanctions reviews, BSA/AML
regulatory risk assessments, transac-
tion monitoring, and financial state-
ment fraud.
Moriarty has years of investiga-
tion and integrity advisory service
experience serving management and
boards. Over the past year, he assist-
ed a large U.S. bank with addressing
consent order letter risks covering is-
sues in the BSA/AML and OFAC com-
pliance areas. Moriarty also assisted
a global bank and managed a team
of BSA/AML investigators reviewing
correspondent and retail transactions
for indications of money laundering
and terrorist financing; and managed
and coordinated multiple FCPA due
diligence investigations for several
multi-national companies with targets
located in China, Eastern Europe, and
Latin and South America.
“Recently, I assisted a regional
bank with pre-acquisition due dili-
gence for a planned acquisition of a
consumer card portfolio,” Moriarty
noted. “Specifically, KPMG helped
assess documentation related to the
deal to determine the specific kind of
products that were included and what
features they contained. Our forensic
team also did a detailed assessment
of back office functions proposed to be
performed by the seller for a period of
time post acquisition. Our team iden-
tified numerous gaps and risks to our
client in the deal documents and pro-
vided recommendations for additional
controls they client could consider and
propose back to the seller to protect
their interests in the deal.”
Prior to joining KPMG’s forensic
practice, Moriarty worked in the audit
practice with an emphasis on banking
and finance institutions specifically,
credit risk management, trading oper-
ations and operations control process
analysis. While with KPMG’s assur-
ance practice, he served in a senior
manager role for four years on the
Citigroup audit engagement team.
Moriarty is a member of the Amer-
ican Institute of Certified Public Ac-
countants and American Institute
of Certified Fraud Examiners. He is
a certified public accountant, a cer-
tified fraud examiner and certified
in financial forensics. He earned a
bachelor’s degree in accounting from
Siena College.
KPMG LLP, an audit, tax and ad-
visory firm, is the U.S. member firm
of KPMG International Cooperative
(KPMG International). KPMG Inter-
national’s member firms have 174,000
professionals, including more than
9,000 partners, in 155 countries. Some
or all of the services described here-
in may not be permissible for KPMG
audit clients and their affiliates.
ELIZABETH
M. OBERG,
CPA, CFE
Sanders Thaler
Viola & Katz, LLP
Elizabeth M. Oberg, CPA, CFE is
a senior associate at Sanders Thaler
Viola & Katz, LLP in Jericho. Oberg
joined the firm in 2012 and is respon-
sible for communicating with clients
and informing partners of current cli-
ent activity. She prepares year-end
closings for corporations and partner-
ships, as well as tax returns for indi-
viduals, corporations, partnerships
and non-profit organizations.
Oberg prepares audits, review and
compilations, prepares PBC (Provided
by Client) lists and confirmation re-
quests as needed. She also prepares
financial statements and management

WHO’SWHO
in Forensic Accounting
representation letters, proposes adjust-
ing journal entries and discusses audit
findings with clients, and identifies and
communicates accounting and auditing
matters to managers and partners.
Oberg performs analytical proce-
dures/analyses to detect unusual fi-
nancial statement relationships.
Oberg began her career in 2006
and it was at this first place of em-
ployment where she undertook her
first forensic accounting project.
“We had to go through years of
bank statements for quite a few ac-
counts in order to track all the money
and determine where all the funds
came from and went,” she said. “It
was time consuming and tedious at
times but that is what first piqued my
interest in becoming a CFE. I enjoyed
making sure our clients weren’t being
taken advantage of.
“While my certification is fairly
new, I have learned one of the most
important things — in any audit —
is to understand the nuts and bolts
of the entity and the individuals in-
volved,” Oberg said. “You need to un-
derstand the industry that you’re in-
volved in. One of the best tools to as-
sist in analyzing accounts is the ratio
analysis, which measures relation-
ships in financial statements. It is a
useful tool to understand the compa-
ny, where it has been and where it’s
going. I hope to expand my knowledge
and experience in the future with my
CFE license.”
Oberg also trains and supervises
new employees and interns. She is
in charge of the firm’s Young CPA
Committee.
Prior to joining the firm, she was a
senior accountant at a large Long Is-
land-based accounting firm where she
was responsible for audits of develop-
ment stage companies and medical de-
vice companies; and for performing ana-
lytical procedures/analyses to detect un-
usual financial statement relationships.
Oberg earned a bachelor’s degree
in accounting from State University
of New York at Old Westbury. She
received a CFE License in 2014 and a
CPA license in 2010.
She is a member of the Association
of Certified Fraud Examiners; New
York State Society of CPAs (secre-
tary of the NYSSPCA Financial Lit-
eracy Committee and co-chair for the
NYSSPCA Womens Focus Group);
and American Institute of Certified
Public Accountants.
Sanders Thaler Viola & Katz, LLP
(STVK) offers a full spectrum of ac-
counting and tax services, with a
hands-on approach for all of its cli-
ents. This includes general income tax
preparation for individuals and all cat-
egories of business, as well as special-
ized practices like IRS and State tax
grievances, for which STVK has an
entire division. Additional niche areas
include gift, trust and estate planning
and filings; entertainment related
fields; and personal business manage-
ment. The firm also provides financial
statement preparation, tax planning,
audit services and monthly accounting/
bookkeeping services. STVK’s part-
ners and professionals maintain con-
stant communication and respond in a
prompt and professional manner.
13 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
YIGAL
RECHTMAN,
CPA, CFE,
CITP, CISM
Grassi & Co.
Yigal Rechtman, CPA, CFE, CITP,
CISM is a principal in Grassi & Co.’s
forensics and litigation practice.
Rechtman specializes in fraud inves-
tigation and forensic accounting, infor-
mation technology, data mining, com-
puter aided auditing, statistical analy-
sis, and internal controls. He manages
engagements of forensic accounting,
electronic discovery and analysis,
search for assets and income sources,
operational analysis, and financial au-
dits. These engagements include fraud
investigation, litigation support, evalu-
ation of internal controls, risk analysis,
computerized information systems eval-
uation, HIPAA compliance, SSAE 16
and SOX 404 testing.
Rechtman’s experience is in a wide
range of industries including health-
care, real estate, construction, profes-
sional services, not-for-profit, technol-
ogy, closely held companies, ERISA
plans and education.
Grassi & Co. has the expertise to in-
vestigate intricate matters that reveal
underlying facts, Rechtman explained.
“We recently handled several
multi-million dollar accusations be-
tween business partners,” he said.
“This happens more frequency than is
generally known. We often find that
the business records are incomplete or
manipulated.”
This is not the end of the challeng-
es, said Rechtman, “To complicate
matters – some of these businesses
partners are married to each other.”
Rechtman and his team focus on
finding solutions that could suit the
negotiations and the courts: “Invari-
ably one partner accused the other
of wrong doing,” he said. “What we
sometimes wind up doing is to recon-
struct all the records from banks and
loan agreements. This way, the ma-
nipulation was obvious and the truth
is revealed.”
The background in accounting and
audit is key, but there is a lot more to
it than debits and credit, Rechtman
notes, adding that “in a sense, we ap-
plied audit techniques, but we don’t
just ‘sample’ or ‘test.’
Every angle and every direction
of a claim is checked. “To avoid any
questions about our confidence in the
results, we compiled 100% of the re-
cords,” he said. “The resulting analysis
enabled us to assist the lawyers in es-
tablishing who did what.”
Rechtman was selected as one of
the 2015 “Top 10 Public Accounting
Professionals” in New York by The
National Academy of Public Account-
ing Professionals. He is the author of
articles focusing on issues in infor-
mation technology, fraud, account-
ing, attest and audit, and is an active
member of the editorial board of the
CPA Journal.
Rechtman is also a professor at the
Lubin School of Business, Pace Uni-
versity, New York campus where he
teaches forensic accounting, auditing
and accounting information systems,
in both the graduate and undergrad-
uate programs. He lectures in schools
and other venues about technology
assurance, forensic accounting and
information systems.
Rechtman is a member of the
American Institute of Certified Public
Accountants (AICPA), and a certified
member of the Association for Certi-
fied Fraud Examiners (CFE). He is
also a Certified Information Technol-
ogy Professional (CITP) and a Certi-
fied Information Security Manager
(CISM) by the Information System
Audit & Control Association.
He earned a bachelor’s degree in
computer science from New York Uni-
versity and a master’s degree in ac-
counting from Pace University.
Grassi & Co. is the 70th largest
firm in the U.S., according to INSIDE
Public Accounting. The firm is a pre-
mier professional service organiza-
tion specializing in accounting, au-
diting, tax, technology, and business
consulting services. Grassi & Co. has
offices in Manhattan, Long Island and
Rockland County, NY, as well as in-
ternationally through its association
with Moore Stephens International.
Grassi & Co. specializes in profes-
sional services for the not-for-profit,
construction, architecture & engineer-
ing, financial services, life sciences,
manufacturing & distribution, retail,
technology, media & telecommunica-
tion, transportation, energy & natural
resources, and healthcare industries,
among others.
MARK S.
WARSHAVSKY,
CPA/ABV/CFF,
CVA, CBA, ASA,
CFE, MAFF,
DABFA, MBA
Gettry Marcus
CPA, P.C. LLP
Mark S. Warshavsky, CPA/ABV/
CFF, CVA, CBA, ASA, CFE, MAFF,
DABFA, MBA is partner-in-charge
of Gettry Marcus CPA, P.C.’s Busi-
ness Valuation and Litigation Services
Group, one of the largest in the New
York metropolitan area, with multiple
credentialed business valuation pro-
fessionals and a team of forensic ac-
countants. Warshavsky is also a mem-
ber of the firm’s Executive Committee.
He has been retained by law firms,
businesses, financial institutions, in-
surance companies, trustees, receivers
and individuals to provide services in
diverse areas of forensic accounting
and business valuations, including
complex litigation assignments.
As an example of his prior accom-
plishments, Warshavsky’s expertise
exposed fraudulent behavior in a case
where he represented the Creditors in
a federal bankruptcy proceeding.
“The bankrupt company (“Debtor”)
was a distributor of athletic equip-
ment,” Warshavsky explained. “My
initial non-financial investigation led
to an independent blog dedicated to
users of this product. Commenting on
the blog was a former employee of the
Debtor discussing its warranty policy.
The former employee was also venting
over losing his job and said that, on
the last day of business, inventory was
moved to another company at no cost.
He suspected that this other company
was affiliated with the Debtor.”
“During my financial investigation,
I analyzed the accounts receivable of
the Debtor and identified a write-off
of over $1 million to one customer,”
Warshavsky said. “Further investiga-
tion revealed that this was the same
company that received the inventory
at no cost. With court intervention, I
obtained the relevant documents and
discovered that the company was pre-
viously owned by the same individual
as the Debtor, but subsequently sold
his interest to his son just prior to the
bankruptcy filing. This company had
been receiving inventory at below cost
or free for years.”
“My thorough investigation forced
a favorable settlement allowing the
Creditors to receive additional pro-
ceeds from the Debtor and the related
company,” he said.
Warshavsky has served as an ex-
pert witness and consultant in both
state and federal courts, as well as
in arbitration cases. He has been se-
lected as a court appointed neutral
expert and arbitrator, and is approved
to accept appointments as an accoun-
tant and business appraiser in several
counties of New York State pursuant
to NYS Part 36 of the Rules of the
Chief Judge.
His engagements have included
cases involving lost profits and com-
mercial damage modeling, sharehold-
er and partnership disputes, intel-
lectual property disputes, contract
litigation, marital dissolutions, fraud
investigations, business bankruptcy,
estate litigation, and gift and estate
tax filings, among others.
Warshavsky is a member of several
professional organizations within his
discipline, including serving as a past
chairman of the business valuation
committee for New York State. He
also serves on the editorial advisory
board of several national journals, for
which he peer reviews articles sub-
mitted for publication in the areas of
business valuation, forensic account-
ing, litigation support and expert wit-
ness services. He was a contributing
author of the book Financial Foren-
sic Body of Knowledge, published by
Wiley in 2012. Warshavsky was also
awarded The CPA Journal’s 2013
Max Block Award for Outstanding
Article, in the category of Informed
Comment, for his article “The Role
of the Forensic Accountant in Litiga-
tion Cases,” published in the journal’s
June 2013 issue. Warshavsky was
also a featured guest on WNYW-TV
Fox 5’s Good Day New York discuss-
ing “Tips on Uncovering Hidden As-
sets During a Divorce.”
Warshavsky is a national in-
structor for National Association of
Certified Valuators and Analysts
(NACVA), and has lectured to its Con-
sultants Training Institute. In addi-
tion, he has lectured to a variety of
groups including several state CPA
 14 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM

WHO’SWHO
in Forensic Accounting
societies, the American Institute of
CPAs, and other professional organi-
zations, covering business valuation
and forensic accounting topics. War-
shavsky has been presented with the
Instructor of Exceptional Distinction
Award by NACVA for several years
and he was a founding member of NA-
CVA’s Forensic Accounting Academy.
Gettry Marcus CPA, P.C., was
named to INSIDE Public Account-
ing’s Best of the Best Firms list for
2016, which honors only 50 CPA
firms across the country for their
overall superior financial and oper-
ational performance on more than
70 IPA criteria. Gettry Marcus is a
Top 200 firm nationally with offices
in Woodbury, Long Island and New
York City. The firm provides ac-
counting, tax, and consulting services
to commercial businesses and high
net worth individuals from various
industries, including real estate and
health care. The firm has one of the
premier and most credentialed busi-
ness valuation and litigation groups
in the New York area.
 15 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
WHO’s WHO
in Intellectual Property, Labor Law
STEWART
BELLUS
Collard & Roe,
P.C.
Intellectual property (IP) and labor/
employment law attorneys are monitoring
Stewart Bellus is senior trademark
developing issues within their niche practice attorney at Collard & Roe, P.C. in
areas as 2016 moves forward. Roslyn and has practiced intellectu-
al property law for more than three
decades. His practice encompasses
In this Who’s Who in Intellectual Property all aspects of U.S. and foreign trade-
mark law, including clearance, prose-
and Labor Law section, some of Long Island’s cution, policing, counseling, licensing
leading IP attorneys discuss the requirements and litigation, as well as the filing
and prosecution of oppositions and
for safe-harbor protections against copyright cancellations.
infringement, as well as the registration of Bellus has represented a wide
range of clients, including a well-
disparaging trademarks —two issues Intellectual known U.S. bank seeking registra-
Property Watch, a non-profit independent tions in over 60 countries, a lead-
ing international seller of artificial
news service, highlights as being among the nail care products, a major German
top IP issues to watch in 2016. This section chemical company, and a well known
non-profit organization dedicated to
also reveals recommendations that some of the animal adoption.
region’s top labor law attorneys are making to Like in any field, there are many
new hot issues that capture the at-
employers after the amendment to NYS’ Equal tention of trademark practitioners
Pay Law went into effect January 19, 2016. and writers, Bellus said. However, he
noted, that one “old” issue has become
more crucial now than ever before.
“The most underappreciated as-
pect of intellectual property protection
is the need for businesses to choose
and clear trademarks carefully before
starting to market and manufacture
INDEXINDEXINDEX products,” he said. “A trademark often
is the most valuable asset a company
owns because it identifies the source
of goods and distinguishes products
15 STEWART BELLUS Collard & Roe, P.C. from those of competitors. A careless
selection of a mark, or a business
15 ANTHONY BENNETT Hoffmann & Baron, LLP
owner’s statement that ‘I did my own
16 BRIAN BLOOM Moritt Hock & Hamroff LLP research and didn’t see any problems,’
often leads to wasted time and money,
16 JOHN A. DeMARO Ruskin Moscou Faltischek, P.C. not to mention unwanted litigation.”
“Few events in marketing a new
18 JONATHAN FARRELL Meltzer, Lippe, Goldstein & Breitstone, LLP
product are more painful than in-
18 RICHARD S. FINKEL Bond Schoeneck & King PLLC vesting large sums in a promotional
campaign, or preparing packaging,
18 GREGORY A. GILLEN Lamb and Barnosky, LLP and having to start all over because
someone else has used a mark first,”
19 PAUL S. LINZER Certilman Balin Adler & Hyman, LLP
Bellus noted. “This is far more like-
19 GREGORY S. LISI Forchelli, Curto, Deegan, Schwartz, Mineo & Terrana, LLP ly nowadays because searching is so
easy on the internet. As the process
20 CHRISTINE MALAFI Campolo, Middleton & McCormick, LLP
20 KIMBERLY B. MALERBA Ruskin Moscou Faltischek, P.C.
of clearing and assessing risk of new
marks is not overly expensive, this
20 JOSEPH O. McPARTLAND Carter, DeLuca, Farrell & Schmidt, LLP
initial step should not be overlooked.”
Prior to joining Collard & Roe, Bel-
lus was an associate at an intellectual
21 GREGORY MILLER Rivkin Radler
property boutique in New York City.
22 DOMENIQUE CAMACHO MORAN Farrell Fritz, P.C. Prior to that, he served for five years
as an examiner at the U.S. Patent and
22 CRAIG M. SPIERER Harris Beach PLLC Trademark Office, earning the highest
22 MARK E. SPUND Davidoff Hutcher & Citron LLP ratings possible throughout his tenure.
He also was selected for several special
23 SHARON STILLER Abrams, Fensterman, Fensterman, Eisman, Formato & Wolf, LLP details and projects with the Trade-
mark Trial and Appeal Board, the Of-
23 LAWRENCE TENENBAUM Jaspan Schlesinger LLP
fice of the Assistant Commissioner for
23 A. JONATHAN TRAFIMOW Moritt Hock & Hamroff LLP Trademarks and the Office of Solicitor.
In 1988, he received a U.S. Department
24 EDWARD A. TREVVETT Harris Beach PLLC of Commerce Bronze Medal Award for
24 ERYN Y. TRUONG Campolo, Middleton & McCormick, LLP superior federal service. In his earliest
days of legal practice, before becoming
26 JAMES VERSOCKI Archer, Byington, Glennon & Levine, LLP involved in trademark law, Bellus was
an assistant attorney general in Flor-
26 KEITH WELTSCH Scully, Scott, Murphy & Presser, PC ida, representing the state in criminal
and constitutional law appeals.
He also has been active in the In-
ternational Trademark Association
(INTA), serving for many years as a
member of the Trademark Reporter
Editorial Board, Academic Committee
and Trademark Office Practice Com-
mittee, and is currently a member of
the Community Trademark sub-com-
mittee specializing in European Com-
munity law. He frequently lectures to
bar, business and school groups; has
been an adjunct professor at Touro
Law School and Trademark Law sym-
posium at Cardozo Law School; and
served as a judge during many moot
court competitions.
Bellus is consistently ranked in the
top 25 attorneys in the world in the
number of trademark applications
filed at the U.S. Patent and Trade-
mark Office.
Bellus often writes articles for
leading legal publications, and also
finds time for writing fiction. Several
of his short stories have been pub-
lished in literary magazines, and he
provided the winning short fiction
entry in the “Stuart Stiller Writing
Competition” sponsored by the D.C.
Bar Association. Last year, he pub-
lished his first novel, his “favorite
writing endeavor ever.”
Collard & Roe, P.C. is an intellec-
tual property law firm representing
clients since 1966 in patent, trade-
mark and copyright law. The firm
serves clients in the United States
and throughout the world in all as-
pects of intellectual property. From its
historic involvement in the patenting
of PVC (polyvinyl chloride) decades
ago, to current work with a global net-
work of patent and trademark attor-
neys across more than 70 countries,
the firm is uniquely qualified to han-
dle a wide range of intellectual prop-
erty issues. Since 1966, Collard and
Roe has obtained more than 10,000
patents and 17,000 trademarks for
clients, and continue to support in-
novation with a continuous stream of
new filings. With an average of more
than 20 years of experience, each of
the firm’s attorneys serve clients of
all sizes with legal and technological
skill in areas such as biotechnology,
chemistry, computer programming
and engineering.
ANTHONY
BENNETT
Hoffmann &
Baron, LLP
Anthony Bennett is a partner in
Hoffmann & Baron, LLP’s Syosset
office and has extensive experience in
obtaining patents, trademarks, and
copyrights and related litigation. His
practice includes rendering patent va-
lidity and non-infringement opinions,
drafting and prosecuting patent appli-
cations, and inter-partes patent and
trademark matters.
Bennett also has significant expe-
rience in trademark matters, which
include counseling clients on brand
selection, conducting trademark clear-

WHO’SWHO
in Intellectual Property & Labor Law
ance investigations, and prosecuting
trademark applications. He also has
experience in appeals before the Court
of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and
the United States Supreme Court.
Bennett is admitted to practice
in the states of New York and New
Jersey and before the United States
District Court for the Southern and
Eastern Districts of New York, United
States District Courts of New Jersey,
United States Court of Appeals for
the Federal Circuit, Supreme Court
of the United States. He is also reg-
istered to practice before the United
States Patent and Trademark Office.
He earned a juris doctor from Hof-
stra University School of Law and a
bachelor’s degree in mechanical engi-
neering from the University of Notre
Dame. Prior to earning his law de-
gree, Bennett worked as an engineer
for Grumman Aircraft Systems and
Festo Corporation.
Hoffmann & Baron, LLP is a
full-service intellectual property law
firm that specializes in prosecution,
counseling, licensing, and litigation of
patent, trademark, and copyright-relat-
ed issues worldwide. The firm’s practice
also includes trade secrets, technology
transfer, and unfair competition.
With offices in Syosset, New York
and Parsippany, New Jersey, Hoff-
mann & Baron, LLP serves clients
throughout the United States and in-
ternationally. Clients include individ-
uals, entrepreneurial firms, univer-
sities, national research laboratories,
and multinational corporations.
The firm’s attorneys possess ex-
pertise in the acquisition, protection
and strategic planning for all forms of
intellectual property. The firm is es-
pecially experienced in acquiring pat-
ent protection, trade secret protection,
copyright protection, and establishing
appropriate and related trademark,
brand, and trade dress protection.
The firm has a robust Inter Partes
Review (IPR) practice. IPRs are a rel-
atively new vehicle to attack the va-
lidity of patents in the US Patent Of-
fice without having to go to a Federal
District Court and to stay a Federal
District Court action for infringement
while the US Patent Office reconsid-
ers the merits of validity/invalidity of
the patent(s) in issue.
In addition to enforcing and de-
fending its clients’ rights in the
areas of patents, trademarks, and
copyrights, Hoffmann & Baron pro-
vides counseling regarding a variety
of other legal issues associated with
technology development. For example,
the firm’s attorneys counsel clients
concerning technology licensing, tech-
nology transfer, patent infringement,
patent validity, and software protec-
tion and licensing. The firm is also
experienced in all phases of intellec-
tual property litigation, post grant
inter-parties matters, and oppositions
in the United States and abroad.
The firm is active in the Long Is-
land community making presenta-
tions at local entrepreneurial events,
e.g., BNL’s Entrepreneur Workshop
Series, and the Center of Excellence
in Wireless and Information Technol-
ogy (CEWIT) Conference; and coach-
ing technology teams at SUNY’s Boot
Camp. The firm is also a supporter of
16 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
the Stony Brook University Chapter
of the National Academy of Inventors.
Hoffmann & Baron, LLP serves cli-
ents in all major scientific and engi-
neering fields including biotechnolo-
gy, pharmaceuticals, medical devices,
chemical, organic and inorganic chem-
istry, biochemistry, electrical, mechan-
ical, electro-mechanical, consumer
products, drug delivery systems, mo-
lecular biology, genomics, proteomics,
bio-affecting agents and delivery sys-
tems, petroleum processing and prod-
ucts, computers, software, optics, la-
sers, and e-commerce, among others.
BRIAN
BLOOM
Moritt Hock &
Hamroff LLP
Brian Bloom is a partner at Moritt
Hock & Hamroff LLP in Garden City.
Bloom has more than10 years of ex-
perience in handling all facets of com-
plex litigation, intellectual property
and licensing matters.
The scope of his practice is diversi-
fied, and includes counseling emerging
brands and Fortune 500 companies,
telecommunication companies, phar-
maceutical companies, major record
companies’ merchandising affiliates,
photographers and authors with re-
spect to a diverse range of intellectu-
al property matters. Bloom also rep-
resents large and small merchandising
companies with respect to entertain-
ment related litigation and complex
corporate transactions involving intel-
lectual property issues. His practice
includes the representation of a vari-
ety of clients in civil litigation involv-
ing claims of copyright and trademark
infringement, counterfeiting, trade
dress, false advertising, unfair compe-
tition, right of publicity, privacy, and
defamation. Bloom has pursued cyber-
squatters in federal court, ICANN ar-
bitration proceedings, and in complex
WIPO actions.
In addition, Bloom counsels clients
in regard to the risk assessment is-
sues of trademark and copyright use
and licensing, franchise agreements,
on-line business operation, branding,
marketing partnerships and sponsor-
ship agreements. He negotiates and
drafts a variety of agreements includ-
ing developer agreements, work-for-
hire agreements, buy-sell agreements,
recording, software license, joint ven-
ture, trademark licensing, film finance
and option, and reality television par-
ticipation and development agree-
ments. Bloom also has a sophisticated
copyright and trademark filing and
prosecution practice before the United
States Copyright Office (USCO) and
the United States Patent and Trade-
mark Office (USPTO) and the Trade-
mark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB).
Technology continues to evolve
making newer and easier methods to
disseminate information, Bloom said.
“As companies take advantage of
innovation, they will need to be dili-
gent in preserving their control,” he
said. “Lacking the ability to expedi-
tiously remove infringing content can
present significant legal problems.
Since online content continues to ex-
pand, it is not surprising that it is
no longer maintained by a single en-
tity. Thus, controlling that informa-
tion now depends on carefully drafted
agreements between companies and
their service providers.”
“Furthermore, while the Internet
broadens a business’ opportunities for
growth, it also presents new ways for
them to infringe,” Bloom noted.
Disparaging Trademarks will also be
a hot topic to watch, Bloom explained.
“In re Tam, 808 F.3d 1321 (Fed.
Cir. 2015) has opened the door to re-
verse the decision in Pro-Football, Inc.
v. Blackhorse, 112 F. Supp. 3d 439
(E.D. Va. 2015), but businesses should
still be careful when choosing a mark
to represent themselves,” he said.
“The use of disparaging marks may
still be deemed unprotectable. Acquir-
ing secondary meaning for words that
rile the public may be difficult. Busi-
nesses will need to prove that a dis-
paraging mark has moved beyond its
derogatory connotation and has come
to be associated with their brand.”
Bloom earned a juris doctor,
magna cum laude, from Hofstra Uni-
versity School of Law and a bache-
lor’s degree, with distinction, from
Cornell University.
He is admitted to practice in New
York. He is also admitted before the
U.S. District Courts for the Eastern,
Western, Southern and Northern Dis-
tricts of New York, as well as the Dis-
trict of Columbia and the Second Cir-
cuit Court of Appeals.
Bloom is a member of the Ameri-
can Bar Association, the New York Bar
Association’s Committee on Entertain-
ment, Arts and Sports Law, and the
Nassau County Bar Association. He is
a member of the Copyright Society of
the United States of America and also
serves as an executive board member of
the music and entertainment commit-
tee of the City of Hope.
Moritt Hock & Hamroff LLP, estab-
lished in 1980, is a full-service, AV-rat-
ed commercial law practice with offices
on Long Island and Manhattan. The
firm’s practice areas include: alterna-
tive dispute resolution, commercial fore-
closure, commercial lending & finance,
construction & surety, copyrights, trade-
marks & licensing, corporate & secu-
rities, creditors’ rights & bankruptcy,
cybersecurity, employment, equipment
& transportation leasing and finance,
healthcare, landlord & tenant, litiga-
tion, marketing, advertising & promo-
tions, not-for-profit, patents, real estate,
tax, and trusts & estates.
JOHN A.
DeMARO
Ruskin Moscou
Faltischek, P.C.
John A. DeMaro is a partner at
Ruskin Moscou Faltischek, P.C. in
Uniondale. DeMaro has been with the
firm for more than 20 years and is chair
of its intellectual property group, and a
member of the litigation department.
DeMaro is a leading intellectual
property attorney, recognized in the
field for his work on complex transac-
tional matters and dispute resolution.
He represents and advises clients in
connection with all conceivable in-
tellectual property issues, including
trademark, copyright, licensing, new
media, privacy, Internet, domain
name, unfair competition, trade se-
crecy and technology-transfer matter.
He has represented clients before the
U.S. Patent and Trademark Office,
Trademark Trial and Appeal Board
and the U.S. Copyright Office.
DeMaro supervises the firm’s in-
ternational trademark practice and
advises clients regarding worldwide
intellectual property matters. He also
has substantial experience in connec-
tion with the drafting and negotiating
of software, Internet, and technolo-
gy-related agreements. He has litigat-
ed intellectual property and complex
commercial matters on behalf of na-
tional and regional clients in federal
and state courts.
He has represented some of the
world’s leading suppliers of celebrity
images and photography and focuses
on the representation of individuals
and companies involved in publish-
ing, music, television, and Web‐based
businesses. He has also handled the
negotiation and documentation of a
wide range of transactions in the en-
tertainment area.
A development of top concern in
the field of trademark law is the ex-
panding power of the Trademark
Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) in
determining important trademark is-
sues, DeMaro said.
“The March 2015 U.S. Supreme
Court decision in B&B Hardware,
Inc. v. Hargis Industries, Inc. held
that courts should give serious weight
to certain TTAB decisions,” he said.
“The TTAB is an administrative board
within the U.S. Patent and Trade-
mark Office. Within its limited au-
thority the TTAB determines whether
a trademark should be refused feder-
al registration based on a likelihood
of confusion with other marks. Be-
fore the Supreme Court’s B&B Hard-
ware decision in 2015, certain TTAB
decisions had questionable weight.
The full effect of the Supreme Court
decision is not yet known, but it is
likely that TTAB proceedings will be-
come more expensive and complex
as parties seek to ensure that they
are on the ‘right’ side of a potentially
game-changing TTAB decision.”
“Alternatively, parties may opt to
avoid TTAB altogether and seek rul-
ings in the federal courts – a differ-
ent and even more expensive alterna-
tive,” DeMaro noted. “We will know
more in 2016.”
DeMaro earned a juris doctor from
St. John’s University and a bachelor’s
degree, cum laude, from State Univer-
sity of New York at Albany.
DeMaro served as an editor of the
St. John’s Law Review, as well as the
New York International Law Review.
He has also taken classes focusing on
Leadership and Management at Har-
vard Business School.
17 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM

WHO’SWHO
in Intellectual Property & Labor Law
He is a member of the New York
State Bar Association’s Intellectual
Property section, the Nassau County
Bar Association’s Intellectual Prop-
erty section and the Columbian Law-
yers Association of Nassau County.
He serves on the board of directors
of the Nassau County Chapter of the
St. John’s Law School Alumni Asso-
ciation. He also serves as an elected
trustee in the Village of Garden City.
For more than 48 years, Ruskin
Moscou Faltischek P.C. has built
a reputation as one of the region’s
leading providers of innovative legal
services. Its attorneys are practical,
experienced advocates who measure
their success by their clients’ success.
Cornerstone groups in all major prac-
tice areas of the law are represented
at the firm, including corporate & se-
curities, financial services, commer-
cial litigation, intellectual property,
health care, real estate, employment,
cybersecurity and data privacy, en-
ergy, and trusts & estates. Clients
include large and mid-sized corpora-
tions, privately held businesses, insti-
tutions and individuals.
JONATHAN
FARRELL
Meltzer, Lippe,
Goldstein &
Breitstone, LLP
Jonathan Farrell is a partner and
co-chair of Meltzer, Lippe, Goldstein
& Breitstone, LLP’s labor and em-
ployment law practice group and a
member of the firm’s employee ben-
efits and litigation groups. Farrell is
counsel to manufacturing, service,
commercial, and management compa-
nies, professional practices, non-profit
organizations, private educational in-
stitutions and insurance companies.
An employment and labor relations
specialist, Farrell regularly practices
before the National Labor Relations
Board, federal and state courts, and
federal and state human rights’ agen-
cies. He counsels employers on a va-
riety of labor and employment-relat-
ed laws including the NLRA, OSHA,
EEOC, ADA, FMLA and ERISA. He
also litigates in these areas.
Changes in New York’s Equal Pay
Law have made it more difficult for
employers to justify different pay for
different genders, Farrell said.
“Employers should be aware of four
major changes in the law, he said.
“First, any difference in pay can no
longer be based on ‘any other factor
other than sex’ as the statute was
once written. Now, the employer must
show that the difference in pay is
based on ‘a bona fide factor other than
sex, such as education, training, and
experience,’ thus placing a greater
burden on employers to justify dif-
ferent pay. Second, employers can no
longer prohibit (only limit) employees
from sharing wage information with
each other. Third, the statute clarifies
that differentials in pay are prohibit-
ed even if the employee works in a dif-
ferent location, as long as they work
18 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
within the same region, i.e. county).
And lastly, penalties faced by employ-
ers have increased from 100% of un-
paid wages to 300%.”
Employers are now facing three
times the amount in damages and
should pursue remedial measures,
Farrell noted.
“First, employers should perform
a pay analysis to determine whether
they are currently in compliance,” he
said. “Any differences in pay should
now be judged on whether the employ-
er is able to show that the difference is
related to the job performed or consis-
tent with business necessity. Second,
employers should ensure that their
manuals do not prevent employees
from discussing their wages. Instead,
employers should rewrite their policies
to contain a reasonable workplace and
workday clause that limits employees
from discussing their wages, subject
to proper time, place, and manner re-
strictions. Finally, changes in the law
and manuals should be communicated
with managers to guarantee its imple-
mentation, and in effect, compliance
with the law.”
Farrell regularly practices and de-
fends employers before the National
Labor Relations Board. He has been
counsel to employers in more than 200
unfair labor practice investigations
and has litigated several unfair labor
practice trials before administrative
law judges of the National Labor Re-
lations Board, as well as Section 10(j)
proceedings of the National Labor Re-
lations Act in federal court. Farrell is
known for his has success against the
board, where he represents employers
in unfair labor practice investigations
and trials, representation hearings
and compliance proceedings.
Farrell has been involved in about
33 unionization campaigns for vari-
ous companies. In all but three cam-
paigns, he has been involved in, the
employees elected to remain union
free. Farrell also represents unionized
employers in their arbitrations before
the American Arbitration Association
and New York State Employment Re-
lations Board, assists unionized em-
ployers during their collective bar-
gaining negotiations, or conducts the
negotiations for them, and advises
unionized employers on a daily basis
regarding contract interpretation,
union issues, and union grievances.
He has also successfully represent-
ed various employers in more than 300
wage and hour investigations at the
state and federal level in connection
with minimum wage, overtime and
prevailing wage actions. He has rep-
resented employers before the United
States Department of Labor, New York
State Department of Labor; Bureau of
Public Work and Attorney General’s
Office, General Labor Bureau.
Farrell drafts employee policies de-
signed to save employers time and
money and prevent vexatious employ-
ment-related litigation. He also drafts
employee handbooks and policies re-
garding sexual harassment, discrimi-
nation, Family and Medical Leave Act
and ADA.
Farrell is admitted to practice be-
fore the federal and state courts of
New York and New Jersey. He has
been recognized as a New York Super
Lawyer in the area of labor and em-
ployment law. Upon graduation from
Hofstra University’s School of Law,
he received the university’s Award
for Excellence in the field of labor and
employment law and the Industri-
al Relations Research Management
Award for Excellence in industrial
and labor relations.
Meltzer, Lippe, Goldstein & Bre-
itstone, LLP in Mineola is a full-ser-
vice business law firm providing cli-
ents with domestic and international
corporate and securities, tax, labor
and employment, litigation, health
care, intellectual property, financial,
employee benefits, bankruptcy/cred-
itors’ rights, workout, and real es-
tate legal services, as well as a broad
range of personal services including
wills and trusts, estate planning and
administration.
Formed in 1970, the firm serves
Fortune 500 companies and an in-
creasing number of medium and
smaller sized public and private cor-
porations, real estate developers, ven-
ture capitalists and individuals on
Long Island, throughout the United
States and around the world.
RICHARD S.
FINKEL
Bond Schoeneck &
King PLLC
Richard S. Finkel is a member at
Bond Schoeneck & King PLLC in Gar-
den City. Finkel has extensive expe-
rience in the areas of municipal law,
land use and zoning, litigation and
labor and employment matters.
After 16 years representing indi-
vidual and corporate clients on Long
Island, and handling the defense of
labor law and negligence claims for
such entities as the New York State
Insurance Fund and the Town of
North Hempstead, Richard was ap-
pointed to the office of North Hemp-
stead Town Attorney in 2004. He held
that position for eight years, super-
vising eight in-house attorneys and
managing outside counsel while rep-
resenting the Town Board, the Board
of Zoning and Appeals, the Board of
Ethics and the Solid Waste Manage-
ment Authority.
He handled all aspects of employ-
ee disciplinary proceedings as town
attorney. In addition, he investigated
and defended discrimination and ha-
rassment complaints before the New
York State Division of Human Rights
and the EEOC; presided over the
town’s Labor-Management Commit-
tee where he considered and resolved
union grievances; defended complaints
brought before the New York State
Public Employee Relations Board; and
served as lead negotiator for the town
in collective bargaining sessions.
Employers need to review and
make the necessary changes to ad-
here to the recent amendment to New
York’s Equal Pay Law, Finkel said.
“The amendment to New York’s
Equal Pay Law is a wake-up call for
employers previously unaware that
the National Labor Relations Act pre-
cluded them from utilizing and enforc-
ing a ‘wage-secrecy’ policy prohibiting
employees from discussing, inquiring
about, or disclosing information relat-
ed to their wages,” Finkel said. “While
there are certain permissible restric-
tions on such discussions identified in
the amendment, current policies and
their enforcement should be promptly
reviewed and tailored to fit within
those permissible restrictions or elim-
inated. As the amendment is likely
to increase employee awareness, the
unwary employer will be exposed to
unnecessary risk.”
“Further, because the amendment
limits acceptable predicates for unequal
pay between men and women and does
so open-endedly, i.e., a differential
which could formerly be based upon
‘any other factor other than sex’ now
must be predicated upon ‘a bona fide
factor other than sex such as educa-
tion, training or experience,’ employers
should carefully scrutinize the amend-
ment, review their payrolls for dispar-
ities, and ensure that any disparity is
predicated upon non-gender related fac-
tors such as experience, quality, and
quantity of work. Such review must
now extend beyond single facilities and
encompass employer facilities located in
the ‘same geographic regions’ — but no
larger than a county.”
In his role as counsel to both the
Board of Zoning and Appeals and the
Town Board, Finkel successfully lit-
igated numerous land use matters,
from the trial courts up through the
Court of Appeals. He also supervised
and participated in the defense of
hundreds of negligence claims.
Finkel earned a juris doctor cum
laude, from Hofstra University School
of Law and a bachelor’s degree from
Syracuse University. He is admitted
to practice in New York and before
the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sec-
ond Circuit, U.S. District Court for
the Eastern District of New York, and
the U.S. District Court for the South-
ern District of New York.
He is a member of the Nassau
County Bar Association and a mem-
ber of Hofstra Law Review.
Bond Schoeneck & King PLLC is
a full-service law firm counseling in-
dividuals, companies, not-for-profits
and public sector entities in a wide
spectrum of practice areas. Bond has
270 lawyers and 9 offices across New
York State; an office in Naples, Flori-
da; and in Overland Park, Kansas.
GREGORY A.
GILLEN
Lamb and
Barnosky, LLP
Gregory A. Gillen is an associate
with Lamb & Barnosky, LLP in Mel-
ville. Gillen practices extensively in
both education and management-side
labor and employment law advising a
wide array of employers on a host of
legal matters affecting their labor forc-

WHO’SWHO
in Intellectual Property & Labor Law
es. He has experience in collective bar-
gaining, contract arbitrations, compul-
sory interest arbitrations, disciplinary
proceedings, unemployment insurance
hearings, as well as in matters before
the New York State Public Employ-
ment Relations Board, the New York
State Commissioner of Education and
in State and federal court.
Recent amendments to the NYS
Equal Pay Law, has moved Gillen to
encourage employers to review their
current policies and pay rate rates.
“With the amendments to the NYS
Equal Pay Law having restricted the
permissible exceptions upon which em-
ployers may pay employees of one sex
less than employees of the opposite
sex for the same work, I have been
advising employers to actively review
the factors and practices by which they
have and will establish employee com-
pensation rates,” Gillen said.
“While the law’s preexisting excep-
tions justifying pay disparities because
of seniority, merit or systems measur-
ing earnings by quantity or quality
of production remain unchanged, the
narrowing of the ‘catch-all’ exception,
‘any other factor other than sex,’ has
exposed employers to unforeseen lia-
bility,” Gillen explained. “As amended,
the ‘catch-all’ exception now permits
a pay disparity for a ‘bona fide fac-
tor other than sex, such as education,
training, or experience,’ provided that
the factor is not derived from a ‘sex-
based differential,’ is both ‘job-related
with respect to the position’ and ‘con-
sistent with a business necessity.’”
“Even then, the exception will
not apply when an employee demon-
strates that the factor or employment
practice causes a disparate impact
on the basis of sex; another employ-
ment practice exists that would serve
the same business purpose and not
result in a disparate impact; and the
employer has refused to adopt the
different practice,” Gillen said. “When
these changes are considered in the
context that employers can no longer
prohibit employees from discussing
their wages with one another, and
increased penalties for willfully vio-
lating the law, my advice to employ-
ers is that adopting a ‘wait and see’
approach may prove disastrous.”
Prior to joining Lamb & Barnosky,
LLP he was an associate with Guercio
& Guercio, LLP for four years, where
he also practiced extensively in both
education, and labor and employment
law. He is admitted to the Bar in New
York, New Jersey and the Eastern
District of New York, and is a mem-
ber of both the New York State and
Nassau County Bar Associations.
Gillen was named by Super Law-
yers as a Metro-Rising Star in the area
of Schools and Education Law for 2015
and 2016.
He earned a juris doctor, cum
laude, from Touro College, Jacob
D. Fuchsberg Law Center. While in
law school, Gillen served as an arti-
cles editor for the Touro Law Review
and published Cubas v. Martinez, 24
Touro L. Rev. 455 (2008). He earned
a bachelor’s degree philosophy from
Stony Brook University.
Lamb & Barnosky is a full-service
law firm representing a wide variety
of corporate, municipal and individual
19 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
clients. Since the firm was founded in
1981, the firm has an AV rating from
Martindale-Hubbell, the nationally
recognized legal directory, for the high-
est standard of legal ability and profes-
sional standards of conduct and ethics.
It has also been named to the National
Register of Preeminent Lawyers.
Its practice areas include banking;
real estate; taxation; corporate merg-
ers and acquisitions; education; labor
and employment; municipal; health
care; intellectual property, land use,
planning, environmental and zoning;
and trusts and estates.
PAUL S.
LINZER
Certilman Balin
Adler & Hyman,
LLP
Paul S. Linzer is a partner in the
labor relations and criminal law prac-
tice groups at Certilman Balin Adler &
Hyman, LLP in East Meadow. Linzer
concentrates his practice on all aspects
of public sector labor law litigation,
and criminal defense litigation.
He is the labor counsel and/or gen-
eral counsel to a variety of public
sector labor unions and their mem-
bership, including the New York City
firefighters’ union, many county,
town, and village-level police unions,
and the supervisors’ union from the
New York City Department of Cor-
rection. He handles all labor counsel
responsibilities for these unions, in-
cluding their grievance arbitrations,
improper labor practice proceedings,
policy negotiations, collective bar-
gaining of contracts, interest arbi-
trations, and drafting of potential
legislation. Linzer also represents
union members in Internal Affairs,
disciplinary proceedings, or other in-
ternal or external administrative in-
vestigations.
Linzer advises his clients on new
and trending issues, including the re-
cently amended Equal Pay Act.
“The newly enacted Equal Pay Act
means that female employees have
expanded workplace protections, and
that employers must ensure that pay
discrepancies between male and fe-
male employees are supported by ob-
jective business standards,” Linzer
said. “With regard to my initial rec-
ommendations to my clients, it is im-
portant to understand that one of the
changes to Labor Law Section 194 is
the removal of the catch-all phrase
‘any other factor other than sex’ as a
defense by an employer in a pay dis-
crimination claim. The language of the
defense is now ‘a bona fide factor other
than sex, such as education, training,
or experience.’”
“This new factor shifts the burden
onto the employer to prove the exis-
tence of the bona fide factor, which
must be business related,” Linzer
said. “In the previous law, the em-
ployee was required to prove that the
motive was discriminatory. While
this new requirement appears to be
a more stringent standard against
employers, the ‘bona fide factor’ is an
amorphous criterion that will be es-
tablished on a case-by-case basis, and
will be a heavily litigated topic within
equal pay litigation.”
Prior to joining the firm in Septem-
ber 2000, Linzer served as an assistant
district attorney in the Nassau Coun-
ty District Attorney’s Office for about
eight years. He has extensive criminal
trial experience, as both a prosecutor
and a defense attorney, ranging from
minor crimes to serious felonies.
Linzer earned a bachelor’s degree
from the State University of New
York at Albany and a juris doctor
from The American University, Wash-
ington College of Law.
A member of the New York State
and Nassau County Bar Associa-
tions, as well as the Former Assis-
tant District Attorney’s Association,
Linzer is admitted to practice in the
states of New York and Florida, as
well as the District of Columbia.
He is also admitted to practice in
the United States District Court for
the Eastern and Southern Districts
of New York, as well as the United
States Court of Appeals for the Sec-
ond Judicial Circuit.
Certilman Balin Adler & Hyman,
LLP is among Long Island’s largest
full-service law firm with offices in
Nassau and Suffolk Counties and
New Jersey. Its 14 practice areas in-
clude: real estate, real property tax
certiorari and condemnation, cooper-
ative and condominium, land use/en-
vironmental law, corporate/securities,
litigation, commercial lending, labor
relations/employment law, bankrupt-
cy and debtor/creditor rights, nonprof-
it law, tax exempt and religious or-
ganizations law, trusts and estates,
elder law, telecommunications law,
and criminal law.
GREGORY
S. LISI
Forchelli, Curto,
Deegan, Schwartz,
Mineo & Terrana,
LLP
Gregory S. Lisi is head of Forchelli,
Curto, Deegan, Schwartz, Mineo &
Terrana LLP’s employment and labor
department. He concentrates in the
areas of labor and employment law,
sexual harassment and discrimination
law, overtime, gratuity, wage and hour
law, management/union labor rela-
tions, constitutional law, fair housing
law and real estate law. He has rep-
resented plaintiffs, defendants, public-
ly traded and private companies, the
United States Government and New
York State government entities.
With the amendment to NYS’
Equal Pay Law recently going into ef-
fect, Lisi discusses aspects of the mod-
ification and what recommendations
he gives to employers.
“New York State amended the
Labor Law §194, which effectively
closes a loophole in the current state
law permitting employers to prohibit
employees to discuss wages freely,
which is similar to NLRB decisions,”
Lisi said. “This change, plus policy
changes the U.S. Equal Employment
Opportunity Commission concerning
employer information reports that
requires some employers to provide
more pay data, shows a change in en-
forcement of equal pay law that will
affect employers going forward. Previ-
ously, it was taboo to discuss salaries
at work, but the new law will encour-
age women and minority workers to
discuss differences.”
“Additionally, the millennial work-
force is more likely to share their
personal information with cowork-
ers with greater frequency then past
generations and bring actions against
their employers when they see unex-
plained inequality,” Lisi noted.
There are many recommendations
Lisi has for employers.
“I have been recommending that
my clients review their salary evalua-
tion process; create an objective eval-
uation system for salaries, raises and
bonuses; revise Employee Handbooks
to satisfy the new law; train supervi-
sors about the new law; inform their
employees what they need to do to
get raises and bonuses; have man-
agement regularly review the actual
salaries within the company to look
for discrepancies; and document the
reasons for differences in salaries in
similar positions in the employee per-
sonnel files,” he said.
“By taking such evaluative steps
and enhancing the information a
company keeps, companies can avoid
problems with its work force in the
future,” Lisi noted.
Lisi has been recognized by the New
York Times as a Super Lawyer; by Mar-
tindale-Hubbell with the Client Distinc-
tion Award; the Nassau County Bar
Association’s Labor and Employment
Law Committee for Distinguished Pro-
fessional Achievement; and the Touro
Law School Pro-Bono Attorney of the
Year award, among other honors.
He has lectured extensively on
labor and employment, sexual harass-
ment, discrimination, wage and hour,
equal employment law, immigration
and federal litigation topics.
Lisi earned a juris doctor from
Georgetown University Law Center,
Washington, District of Columbia
and a bachelor’s degree, magna cum
laude, from the State University of
New York at Buffalo.
He is a member of the board of di-
rectors of the Nassau County Bar As-
sociation (NCBA), is the chair of the
NCBA Pro Bono Committee and is the
past chair of the Nassau County Bar
Association’s Labor and Employment
Law Committee.
He is a former Regional Counsel
of the United States Customs Service
where he defended the United States
Government before the Equal Employ-
ment Opportunity Commission, as well
as in labor/union matters. He is cur-
rently a member of the New York State
Bar, Washington, D.C. Bar, New York
State Bar Association, New York State
Bar Association’s Labor and Employ-
ment Law Committee and the Nassau
County Bar Association’s Labor and
Employment Law Committee.
Lisi is admitted to practice law
before the courts of New York State
and Washington, D.C., the United

WHO’SWHO
in Intellectual Property & Labor Law
State Court of Appeals for the Sec-
ond Circuit, and the federal courts of
the Eastern and Southern Districts
of the State of New York. He has fur-
ther practiced before the National
Labor Relations Board, the Equal Em-
ployment Opportunity Commission,
New York State, New York City and
Nassau County Divisions of Human
Rights, labor and corporate arbitra-
tions and mediations.
Forchelli, Curto, Deegan, Schwartz,
Mineo & Terrana, LLP is among Long
Island’s leading full-service law firms
representing clients in real estate,
land use and zoning, tax, trusts and
estates, tax certiorari, corporate and
commercial and litigation matters.
Formed in 1976, under the helm
of Managing Partner Jeffrey D.
Forchelli, the firm’s areas of exper-
tise have expanded to include bank-
ing, bankruptcy, employment and
labor, municipal incentives/IDA, en-
tertainment, construction law and
more. Throughout the firm’s growth,
one thing has remained constant -
its focus on obtaining results for cli-
ents. The firm employs over 60 at-
torneys who handle complex matters
for a broad client base including na-
tional, regional and local business-
es, major real estate developers and
organizations, banks, insurance com-
panies, municipalities, educational
institutions, contractors, architects/
engineers and individuals. 
Head-
quartered in Uniondale, NY, the firm
is conveniently located for clients in
Nassau and Suffolk counties, as well
as those in New York City.
CHRISTINE
MALAFI
Campolo,
Middleton &
McCormick, LLP
A partner at Campolo, Middleton
& McCormick, LLP (CMM), Chris-
tine Malafi is a member of the firm’s
executive management team in ad-
dition to its corporate and municipal
law groups. Malafi’s practice focuses
on mergers and acquisitions, corpo-
rate governance, routine and complex
transactions, employment issues, and
other business matters, as well as in-
surance coverage and fraud issues.
She routinely represents buyers and
sellers in multimillion-dollar trans-
actions — from technology compa-
nies to manufacturers to healthcare
businesses — and serves in a general
counsel role for many of the firm’s in-
ternationally-based clients.
As 2016 unfolds, it is critical for
employers to take the time to un-
derstand how the recent changes to
New York’s labor and human rights
laws, part of Governor Andrew Cuo-
mo’s Women’s Equality Agenda, affect
their businesses, Malafi said.
“The amendments, which took ef-
fect on January 19, 2016, include a
narrowing of the permissible bases for
pay differentials, the addition of ‘fa-
milial status’ as a protected class with
regard to workplace discrimination,
20 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
required accommodations for preg-
nant employees, and a prohibition on
blanket policies that restrict employ-
ees from discussing, disclosing, or in-
quiring about wages,” she said. “I tell
my corporate clients that this is the
perfect time for a review of their cur-
rent policies and compliance efforts.
In some cases, existing policies may
need to be significantly revamped to
comply with the recent amendments.”
Prior to joining CMM, Malafi was
senior corporate counsel to Leviton
Manufacturing Co., Inc., where she
handled a variety of national and
international corporate matters.
In 2004, she was appointed Suffolk
County Attorney, serving as the chief
legal officer of the County for eight
years and supervising a team of over
65 attorneys. The first woman and
youngest person ever appointed to the
position, Malafi focused on obtaining
jury verdicts in favor of the county,
making fewer settlements, enforcing
anti-discrimination laws, and pro-
tecting children from harm. Prior to
that role, she was a partner at a large
Long Island insurance defense firm.
Malafi earned a juris doctor,
magna cum laude, from Touro Col-
lege, Jacob D. Fuchsberg Law Center.
She earned a bachelor’s degree from
Dowling College.
She is a member of the New York
and Connecticut State Bars and is
admitted to practice before the United
States Court of Appeals, Second Cir-
cuit; and the United States District
Courts, Eastern and Southern Dis-
tricts of New York.
Malafi has taught both undergrad-
uate and law school classes on litiga-
tion, legal research, and writing at
Long Island University, C.W. Post,
and Touro Law Center. She has also
lectured extensively on municipal is-
sues, insurance coverage issues, and
claim handling.
Located in both the heart of Long
Island in Ronkonkoma and on the East
End in Bridgehampton, Campolo, Mid-
dleton & McCormick, LLP (CMM) is
a premier law firm in Suffolk County.
Over the past generation, CMM attor-
neys have played a central role in the
most critical legal issues and transac-
tions affecting Long Island. The firm
has earned the prestigious HIA-LI
Business Achievement Award, a spot
on the U.S. News & World Report list
of Best Law Firms, and the coveted
title of Best Law Firm on Long Island.
KIMBERLY
B. MALERBA
Ruskin Moscou
Faltischek, P.C.
Kimberly B. Malerba is a partner
at Ruskin Moscou Faltischek, P.C. in
Uniondale, where she chairs the em-
ployment law and digital media prac-
tice groups. Malerba is also a member
of the firm’s litigation department.
Malerba handles virtually all mat-
ters involving the employer-employee
relationship. Her areas of concentra-
tion include wage and hour compli-
ance and investigations, employment
discrimination and workplace harass-
ment prevention, policy development
and litigation, and independent con-
tractor analysis. Malerba has defended
against claims such as sexual harass-
ment, age, race, national origin and
disability discrimination for various
clients, both large and small. She also
focuses her practice on social and dig-
ital media-related employment issues.
In her counseling practice, Malerba
regularly advises employers on best
practices concerning management of
disability accommodation and leave
related issues, reductions in force, re-
strictive covenants, hiring and sepa-
rations from employment, and perfor-
mance management.
Malerba urges employers to ex-
amine their pay policies so that they
meet the amendment to the New York
Equal Pay Law.
New York’s Equal Pay Law, as
amended, which became effective Jan-
uary 19, 2016, makes employers more
accountable for discriminating against
women in the workplace by paying them
less than their male counterparts for
equal work performed in the same es-
tablishment, Malerba said. “Among
other things, the amendment provides
an expanded definition of ‘same estab-
lishment,’ which now includes those
workplaces that are located in the ‘same
geographic region’ (within the same
county). Additionally, the law increased
damages available to an individual who
successfully brings a pay discrimina-
tion case, to as much as 300% of unpaid
wages for willful conduct.”
“Employers are urged to carefully
review their existing pay policies, as
well as the actual wages being paid, to
assess whether they are equal among
men and women,” she said. “Employ-
ers are also encouraged to cross-check
wages for employees in different lo-
cations within the same county to de-
termine whether they are paying men
and women equally for the same work,
even if they are in different facilities.”
“If wages are not equal, employers
should evaluate whether any differen-
tial meets the law’s stricter require-
ments,” she noted.
“Finally, employers are advised to
review their policies and practices re-
garding employee confidentiality con-
cerning wages,” Malerba said. “While
most employers are already precluded
from interfering with their employees’
ability to discuss wages, pursuant to
Section 7 of the National Labor Rela-
tions Act or otherwise, this law also
prohibits employers from engaging in
such conduct, except under very limited
circumstances. Thus, employers should
ensure that they are not in violation of
these pay transparency requirements.”
Malerba also has considerable ex-
perience in the intellectual property
field and represents and advises cli-
ents in connection with trademark,
copyright, licensing, privacy, Internet,
domain name, unfair competition and
trade secrecy issues.
As a featured lecturer, Malerba has
participated in various continuing ed-
ucation programs offering CLE, CPE
and HRCI credit.
She earned a juris doctor, cum laude,
from Benjamin N. Cardozo School of
Law and a bachelor’s degree, with hon-
ors, in music and philosophy, magna
cum laude, from Binghamton Universi-
ty. While in law school, Malerba served
as an articles editor for the Cardozo
Arts and Entertainment Law Journal.
Malerba is a member of the Amer-
ican Bar Association, New York State
Bar Association and the Nassau
County Bar Association.
For more than 48 years, Ruskin
Moscou Faltischek, P.C. has built a
reputation as one of the region’s lead-
ing providers of innovative legal ser-
vices. Its attorneys are practical, expe-
rienced advocates who measure their
success by their clients’ success. Cor-
nerstone groups in all major practice
areas of the law are represented at the
firm, including corporate & securities,
financial services, commercial litiga-
tion, intellectual property, health care,
real estate, employment, cybersecurity
and data privacy, energy, and trusts &
estates. Clients include large and mid-
sized corporations, privately held busi-
nesses, institutions and individuals.
JOSEPH O.
McPARTLAND
Carter, DeLuca,
Farrell & Schmidt,
LLP
Joseph O. McPartland is an asso-
ciate at Carter, DeLuca, Farrell &
Schmidt, LLP in Melville. McPartland
focuses his practice on preparing and
prosecuting patent applications in the
U.S. and abroad, conducting intellec-
tual property due diligence investiga-
tions in connection with mergers and
acquisitions, and rendering opinions
on issues of patentability and patent
infringement, validity, and enforce-
ability. McPartland advises clients on
issues relating to U.S. and interna-
tional patent portfolio management,
licensing, and collaboration agree-
ments. He also has experience with
post-grant proceedings and litigation
involving U.S. patents.
Specific technologies he has worked
with include consumer electronics,
computer hardware and software, dig-
ital signal processing, digital imaging
devices and processing, digital televi-
sion, audio/video media recognition,
telecommunications, optical networks,
medical devices, semiconductor de-
vices and manufacturing processes,
memory systems, financial transac-
tion systems, e-commerce, and busi-
ness methods.
Prior to joining Carter, DeLuca, Far-
rell & Schmidt, McPartland worked
as a law clerk and then an intellectual
property attorney at Fitzpatrick, Cella,
Harper & Scinto in New York.
Before attending law school,
McPartland worked for several years
as an electrical engineer designing,
developing, and testing airborne
multi-mode radar subsystems.
He earned a J.D. from Fordham Uni-
versity; a M.S., Electrical Engineering
from Polytechnic University; a B.E.,
Electrical Engineering, magna cum
laude, State University of New York at
 21 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM

WHO’SWHO
in Intellectual Property & Labor Law
Stony Brook, Tau Beta Pi, Eta Kappa distribution, confidentiality, employ- case, In re Tam, concerned a trade- Miller earned a juris doctor at the
Nu. McPartland is admitted to practice ment, and other agreements; litigating mark applicant that sought to register University of Tulsa College of Law and
in New York and New Jersey and before complex insurance coverage disputes the trademark ‘THE SLANTS’ for a a bachelor’s degree from Colgate Uni-
the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. and subrogation claims, including en- musical band. The application was re- versity. He was named a “Rising Star”
He is also involved in the New York In- vironmental and catastrophic claims, jected on grounds that the trademark by New Jersey Monthly magazine’s
tellectual Property Law Association. and bad faith actions. was disparaging to people of Asian Super Lawyers® edition for insurance
Carter, DeLuca, Farrell & Schmidt, experience includes the success- descent. In ruling that the rejection coverage. He is an active member of
LLP combines the scientific capacity ful defense of dozens of significant was improper, the Federal Circuit the ABA’s Insurance Coverage Litiga-
to fully understand its clients’ intel- claims arising from Y2K, 9/11 and held that the government regulation tion Committee of the Section of Liti-
lectual property needs with the legal Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, many amounted to viewpoint discrimina- gation. He currently serves as a man-
expertise necessary to protect their of which exceeded $100 million. He tion, and under strict scrutiny review, ager editor and previously served as
ideas, inventions and processes in all has provided advice and acted as New the disparagement proscription in the Co-Chair of the Bad Faith Subcommit-
areas of technology. All of its part- Jersey counsel in Hatch-Waxman and Lanham Act was unconstitutional.” tee. Additionally, Greg was appointed
ners and associates have extensive other patent infringement disputes. “The court recognized that its deci- and currently is a member of the Su-
engineering or scientific backgrounds Over the past 15 years he has repre- sion may lead to the wider registration preme Court of New Jersey, District
and are experts in diverse areas that sented pharmaceutical companies in of offensive marks, but in all events, VA Fee Arbitration Committee.
range from computer science to cos- dozens of cases. the First Amendment forbids the gov- Through three offices and 150 law-
metic formulations, from genetics to The registration of disparaging ernment from denying registration be- yers, Rivkin Radler delivers focused
generators, and from wound care to trademarks will be among the top IP cause the speech may be offensive,” and effective legal services. The firm
web design. issues to watch in 2016, Miller said. Miller said. “Whether there will be an provides strong representation and
Carter, DeLuca, Farrell & Schmidt “The United States Court of Ap- avalanche of applications seeking to builds even stronger client relation-
strives to develop its clients’ intellec- peals for the Federal Circuit recent- register disparaging trademarks re- ships. Many clients have been placing
tual property into a coordinated port- ly held Section 2(a) of the Lanham mains to be seen, but the door certain- their trust in the firm for more than 25
folio with both offensive and defensive Act unconstitutional,” he noted. “The ly appears to have been opened.” years. The firm is the advisor-of-choice
capabilities.
The firm is dedicated to providing
first-class, yet cost-effective legal ser-
vices, with the attention to detail and
urgency clients require. Its experi-
enced attorneys and agents, backed
by a knowledgeable professional sup-
port staff, form a formidable force
with one driving goal in mind: to as-
sure that clients’ innovations receive
the protection they deserve.
Carter, DeLuca, Farrell & Schmidt,
LLP believes in supporting worthy
community organizations and causes.
Among the organizations and events
the firm proudly sponsors include
The Developmental Disabilities In-
stitute, Hope For A Cure, The Don
Monti Foundation, Visiting Nurse As-
sociation of Long Island, Inc., Friends
of Karen, The Maurer Foundation;
Greater Long Island Running Club,
The University of Maryland Inven-
tions of the Year Competition, and
The Lupus Alliance of America (Long
Island/Queens Affiliate).

GREGORY
MILLER
Rivkin
Radler LLP

Gregory Miller is a partner at

Rivkin Radler, which has offices in
Uniondale, NY, New York City and
Hackensack, NJ. Miller has more
than 20 years of experience in civil
litigation and corporate counseling,
including trial and appellate work in-
volving complex commercial matters,
intellectual property and insurance
law disputes.
His practice includes litigating con-
tractual, business torts and sharehold-
er and partnership disputes; repre-
senting pharmaceutical and other cor-
porate clients in a wide variety of intel-
lectual property matters, including re-
strictive covenants, unfair competition,
trade secrets, copyright, trademark,
and patent cases; providing counsel
and drafting advice in connection with
business ventures, including restric-
tive covenants, supply and licensing,

WHO’SWHO
in Intellectual Property & Labor Law
to successful individuals, middle-mar-
ket companies, and large corporations.
DOMENIQUE
CAMACHO
MORAN
Farrell Fritz, P.C.
Domenique Camacho Moran is a
partner at Farrell Fritz, P.C. in Union-
dale where she leads the firm’s labor
and employment practice group. As an
advisor, educator and litigator, Cama-
cho Moran’s practice runs the gamut of
employment law. She has extensive ex-
perience in issues that include discrim-
ination, unlawful harassment, wage
and hour, leaves of absence and social
media in the workplace.
Camacho Moran has worked with
small local start-ups to large national
employers. Acting as lead counsel, she
has represented management in jury
trials and hearings in federal and state
courts, arbitrations and administrative
proceedings. In one particularly nota-
ble case, she won a landmark defense
verdict for an employer in a class action
wage and hour trial. Many millions of
dollars were at stake in this lawsuit.
Signed in 2015, New York’s
Achieve Pay Equity Act (APEA) re-
quires employers to review existing
policies and practices regarding com-
pensation, Camacho Moran said.
“Under the APEA, policies prohib-
iting employees from discussing their
base pay, raises, and bonuses with each
other are no longer permissible,” she
said. “In addition, employers will have
to clearly articulate their business rea-
sons for pay disparities. Specifically,
compensation decisions that result in a
pay disparity must be based on ‘a bona
fide factor other than sex, such as edu-
cation, training, or experience.’”
“Further, willful violations of the
equal pay law, as amended, will sub-
ject employers to liquidated damages
up to ‘300% of the total amount of
the wages found to be due,’” Camacho
Moran noted. “For employers, these
changes may mean tweaking existing
policies and procedures regarding the
confidentiality of wage information;
educating the management team to
clarify how and when pay information
can be shared; and analyzing current
compensation to determine whether
pay disparities exist and evaluating
the basis for any such differential.”
Camacho Moran has been named
annually, since 2013, to the Best
Lawyers in America and the New
York Metro Lawyers Super Lawyers
lists. She does a significant amount
of public speaking on issues related
to employment law. This includes
being a keynote speaker for the past
several years at the National Associ-
ation for Mother Centers Annual
Work/Life Conference and at the
HIA-LI’s 2015 – 2016 Women’s Lead-
ership events. She is an advisory
board member of Make-A-Wish Metro
New York, for which she chaired the
2014 and 2015, and co-chaired the
2016, Walk for Wishes Long Island
22 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
fundraisers that together raised more
than $400,000.
With more than 90 attorneys, Far-
rell Fritz is recognized for providing
high quality legal services, practical
advice and responsiveness. The firm
is also known for its deep commitment
to the local community. Farrell Fritz
handles legal matters in the areas of
bankruptcy and restructuring; business
divorce; commercial litigation; construc-
tion; corporate and finance; distressed
assets; eDiscovery; emerging companies
and venture capital; eminent domain;
environmental law; estate litigation;
health law; labor and employment; land
use, municipal and zoning; not-for-prof-
its; real estate; tax planning and contro-
versy; tax certiorari, and trusts and es-
tates for a variety of corporations, not-
for-profit organizations and individuals
. ment, Arts & Sports Law Section) and
CRAIG M.
SPIERER
Harris Beach PLLC
Craig M. Spierer is a member of
Harris Beach PLLC in Melville. Spi-
erer serves on the medical and life sci-
ences industry team and practices in
the Intellectual Property Law and the
Corporate Law Practice Groups. His
practice focuses on the areas of intel-
lectual property, corporate transac-
tions, and food, drug and cosmetic law.
Mr. Spierer represents a variety of cli-
ents in industries such as dietary and
sports nutritional supplements, luxury
and consumer goods, media and tech-
nology, and other related industries.
Spierer counsels clients of estab-
lished businesses and start-up com-
panies on general operating and con-
tractual matters. With more than a
decade of transactional experience,
he routinely negotiates and drafts a
variety of professional agreements
involving domestic and internation-
al parties, including manufacturing,
distribution, licensing, endorsement,
joint venture, service, employment,
commercial real estate leases, settle-
ments and releases, and other busi-
ness transactional agreements. Spi-
erer works with his clients to under-
stand their businesses in an effort to
help them achieve their goals while
minimizing risk.
Spierer devotes part of his prac-
tice to the representation of dietary
supplement and sports nutritional
supplement companies. He provides
legal counsel to clients on matters
that affect their compliance with the
Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic
Act. He also counsels clients on intel-
lectual property protection including
trademarks and copyrights, consumer
complaints and lawsuits, as well as
general transactional needs.
Based on his management of his
clients’ global IP portfolios, Spierer
has experience in formulating, imple-
menting, and executing brand pro-
tection strategies and enforcing cli-
ents’ intellectual property rights on
a worldwide basis. Such strategies
include trademark clearance, pros-
ecution and licensing, as well as as-
sistance against copyright and trade-
mark infringers. Spierer also advises
clients on how to best protect their
intellectual property, and other relat-
ed areas including unfair competition
and the right of publicity.
He earned a juris doctor from
Brooklyn Law School and a bachelor’s
degree from Tulane University. His
court membership includes the New
York State Bar, New Jersey State
Bar, United States District Court —
Southern District of New York and
District of New Jersey.
Spierer is a member of the Amer-
ican Bar Association (Intellectual
Property Division), the New York
State Bar Association (Intellectual
Property Law Section and Entertain-
the Nassau County Bar Association
(Intellectual Property Committee). He
also devotes his time to charitable
and/or mentoring work. Spierer was
selected as a New York Metro Rising
Star by Super Lawyers annually since
2013. He has been asked to speak at
various symposiums and law schools.
Founded in 1856, Harris Beach
PLLC is among the country’s top law
firms as ranked by The National Law
Journal. Harris Beach and its sub-
sidiaries provide a full range of legal
and professional services for clients
across New York state, as well as na-
tionally and internationally. Clients
include Fortune 500 corporations,
privately-held companies, emerging
businesses, public sector entities, not-
for-profit organizations and individu-
als. Principal industries Harris Beach
represents include education, energy,
financial, food and beverage, health
care, insurance, manufacturing, med-
ical and life sciences, real estate de-
velopers, and state and local govern-
ments and authorities. The firm’s over
200 lawyers practice among offices
throughout New York state in Albany,
Buffalo, Ithaca, Melville, New York
City, Rochester, Saratoga Springs,
Syracuse, Uniondale and White
Plains, as well as in New Haven, Con-
necticut and Newark, New Jersey.
MARK E.
SPUND
Davidoff Hutcher &
Citron LLP
Mark E. Spund is a partner at
Davidoff Hutcher & Citron LLP in
Garden City. Spund leads counsel
through all stages of civil litigation
including trials in state and federal
courts with emphasis on defense of
employment discrimination actions
He has represented corporate and
not-for-profit clients against claims
of race, sex, age, national original
and disability discrimination cases
before state and federal courts and
administrative agencies, including the
Equal Employment Opportunity Com-
mission, New York State Division of
Human Rights and the New York City
Commission on Human Rights. He
also represents corporate and com-
mercial clients in Fair Labor Stan-
dard Act class action cases includ-
ing government investigations; and
counsels clients with employment law
compliance and risk avoidance issues.
Spund also assists with establishing
employment policies and employee
handbooks.
Effective January 1, 2016, New
York expanded protections for women
in the workplace by amending the
New York State Equal Pay Law,
Spund noted.
“It requires the same rate of pay for
both men and women if they work in
the same establishment, on jobs that
need equal effort, skill and responsi-
bility and under similar conditions,”
he said. “The law does permit differ-
entiation based upon a ‘bona fide fac-
tor other than sex, such as education,
training or experience.’ The statute
also prohibits employers from install-
ing a wholesale restriction against
employees asking about or discussing
their wages but does permit certain
limitations on such discussion.”
“These changes in the law are
going to require New York employers
to begin an examination of their em-
ployees’ job descriptions, as they do to
analyze exempt/no-exempt employee
status, in order to determine whether
their jobs are similar regarding skills,
responsibilities and salary,” Spund
noted. “The employer will then have
to determine whether there are any of
the bona fide factors other than sex,
which would cause employees perform-
ing the same or similar jobs to be paid
different wages. Thereafter, wage ad-
justments will have to be made.”
Employers are also going to have to
review and revise their employee man-
ual’s to comply with the wage disclo-
sure requirements, Spund said. “While
they must permit employees to discuss
wages, an employer can have reason-
able policies establishing limitations
on time, place and manner of discus-
sions in the workplace including pro-
hibiting employees from disclosing the
wages of another employee without the
employee’s permission,” he said.
Prior to joining Davidoff Hutcher
& Citron, Spund was a partner at
a Long Island-based firm where he
represented diverse clients as lead
counsel through trial in varied litiga-
tion practice including personal inju-
ry, employment discrimination, dental
malpractice, , chiropractic malprac-
tice, construction and criminal law.
He earned his juris doctor from
Washington College of Law of the Amer-
ican University in Washington, D.C.
Spund is admitted to the New York
State Bar in 1975 as well as the fed-
eral courts in the Southern, East-
ern and Northern Districts of New
York, the Second Circuit Court of Ap-
peals and the United States Supreme
Court. Mr. Spund is a member of the
Employment and Labor Law Sections
of the New York State Bar and Nas-
sau County Bar Associations, has lec-
tured on civil practice for the New
York State Bar Association and is a
member of the faculty of the Benja-
min N. Cardozo School of Law Inten-
sive Trial Advocacy Program.
Davidoff Hutcher & Citron LLP

WHO’SWHO
in Intellectual Property & Labor Law
with more than 50 attorneys in offices
in New York City, Albany, Washing-
ton D.C., and Garden City, Long Is-
land, provides legal and government
relations services for a varied clien-
tele that include Fortune 500 compa-
nies, financial institutions, prominent
real estate organizations, developers,
leading health and educational in-
stitutions, associations and services
organizations, as well as other indus-
tries throughout the greater metropol-
itan area.
SHARON
STILLER
Abrams,
Fensterman,
Fensterman,
Eisman, Formato,
Ferrara & Wolf, LLP
Sharon Stiller is a partner and
director of the employment law prac-
tice at Abrams, Fensterman, Fens-
terman, Eisman, Formato, Ferrara
& Wolf, LLP (Abrams Fensterman)
in Lake Success. Stiller advises busi-
nesses and executives about employ-
ment law, represents businesses in
federal and state labor department
audits, and litigates employment
matters, including state and federal
wage and hour, discrimination, con-
tract, confidentiality, non-compete,
and similar claims.
“Pay transparency is the new buzz
word, since January 2016 when New
York jumped onto the bandwagon to
prohibit employers from preventing
employee discussions about wages,”
Stiller said. “The NLRB and the fed-
eral government had imposed similar
rules, reflecting concerns that secre-
cy prevents desirable results such as
equal pay. Under New York’s rules,
employers may not prohibit employ-
ees from inquiring about, discussing
or disclosing wage information, except
under limited circumstances. Employ-
ers may have a written policy distrib-
uted to employees, which establishes
reasonable workplace and workday
limitations on the time, place and
manner for inquiries about, discus-
sion of, or the disclosure of wages.”
“Regulations establishing param-
eters are expected, but it is not too
soon for businesses to consider adopt-
ing policies,” Stiller noted. “One pol-
icy might be to prohibit employees
who have access to compensation
information pursuant to their work
duties from disclosing information to
others who do not have access to the
information. Another possible policy
might be to prohibit disruptive be-
havior, such as constantly asking em-
ployees unwelcome questions about
their pay.”
“The new rule does not require
employers to share information about
compensation with other employees,”
she said. “Policies should protect the
right to disclose, as well as the rights
of employees who do not want their
information disclosed.”
St ille r a ls o h elp s b u sin esses
audit their employment practices,
and drafts employment contracts,
manuals, policies, and separation
23 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
and release agreements. She is a
frequent trainer for businesses in
sexual harassment, employment,
law, social media issues, disabili-
ty discrimination, and affordable
health care compliance.
Stiller is a fellow of the College
of Labor and Employment Lawyers,
and is the author of two treatises
on employment law, Employment
Law in New York (2nd Series) (West
Group 2012) (Volume 13A of the New
York State Practice Series) and the
national treatise, Expert Witness-
es: Employment Cases (Thomson
West 2008-2009). She is an author
for Practitioner Insights, a Thomson
Reuters offering on the WestlawNext
legal research platform. Stiller has
been appointed to the American Arbi-
tration Association Panel of Neutrals
for Employment Law, for both me-
diated and arbitrated claims. Stiller
has lectured about employment law
for the New York State Bar Associa-
tion, the Monroe County Bar Associ-
ation, and other organizations. She is
chair-elect of the Labor and Employ-
ment Law Section of the New York
State Bar Association.
Stiller has been recognized for her
legal work and community service,
and received the Kate Stoneman
award from Albany Law School, the
Raymond J. Pauley Award from the
Monroe County Bar Association, and
the Rochester Women’s Network’s
“W” Award. She has been named
one of the top 25 Women Lawyers in
Western New York. Stiller has been
designated a “Super Lawyer” from
2007-present, a distinction earned by
only 5% of the lawyers in the Upstate
New York area. She was selected by
her peers for inclusion in The Best
Lawyers in America® 2013, 2014 and
2015 in employment law. She has
also served as an expert witness in
the area of employment law.
Stiller earned a juris doctor from
Albany Law School where she was
notes editor, Albany Law Review;
and a bachelor’s degree, magna cum
laude, from State University of New
York at Albany. Stiller is admitted to
practice in New York and the District
of Columbia.
Abrams Fensterman is one of
the largest full service law firms on
Long Island. The firm serves clients
throughout the New York metropol-
itan area from offices in Long Is-
land, New York City, Brooklyn, and
serves upstate New York from its
Rochester office.
Abrams Fensterman has practice
areas in commercial litigation, es-
tate planning and administration,
guardianships, employment law,
real estate, elder law, personal inju-
ry litigation, and white-collar crimi-
nal defense.
The firm is a leader in repre-
senting health care providers in all
aspects of health care law, includ-
ing hospitals, nursing homes, phy-
sicians, medical societies, dentists,
podiatrists and chiropractors. It also
has practices that are widely rec-
ognized as leaders in their fields in
areas such as corporate and securi-
ties, mergers and acquisitions, mat-
rimonial and family law, and mental
health law.
LAWRENCE
TENENBAUM
Jaspan Schlesinger
LLP
Lawrence Tenenbaum is a partner
in Jaspan Schlesinger LLP’s educa-
tion, labor and municipal law practice
groups, where he provides general
counsel and labor and employment
counsel services to public school dis-
tricts, libraries and other municipal
and private entities. His services as
general counsel include employee and
student discipline, bidding issues,
budget and financial management
issues, student residency disputes,
practice before the Commissioner of
Education, policy and regulation de-
velopment, advice regarding the Free-
dom of Information Law, construction
related matters including negotiation
of contracts and contractor disputes
and day-to-day general counsel.
Tenenbaum’s labor and employ-
ment law practice includes proposal
development, negotiations, impasse,
fact-finding, contract administration,
grievance arbitration, proceedings be-
fore the Public Employment Relations
Board and representation of clients
before the State Division of Human
Rights and the Equal Employment
Opportunity Commission. He also
provides advice with respect to the
Fair Labor Standards Act, Family
Medical Leave Act, Americans with
Disabilities Act and various anti-dis-
crimination statutes.
Employers should be fully aware
of the amendment to NYS’ Equal Pay
Law that recently went into effect,
Tenenbaum said.
“The amendment to the Equal Pay
Law permits employers to look out-
side of seniority, merit, and productiv-
ity in differentiating pay among em-
ployees of the opposite sex,” he said.
“Employers may now consider a ‘bona
fide factor’ that is related to the job in
question and is consistent with busi-
ness necessity.”
It is important for employers to doc-
ument the reason an employee will be
paid at a different rate, Tenenbaum
said. “In order to demonstrate compli-
ance with the amendment, the docu-
mentation should include how the ‘bona
fide factor’ relates to the job responsi-
bilities of the specific position, as well
as why the employment decision is nec-
essary to achieve the business’ goals.
Even when the reason is document-
ed, the amendment still provides for
a disparate impact claim. Therefore,
every employee should be analyzed in-
dividually and employers should refrain
from relying on blanket qualifications
in awarding different rates of pay.”
The amendment also permits em-
ployees to discuss their wages among
themselves, Tenenbaum explained.
“Thus, employers should revise exist-
ing policies and educate all employees
responsible for the implementation
of the newly enacted policy,” he said.
“The policy may place reasonable re-
strictions on wage discussions, and
employers should consider restrictions
that would not negatively affect work-
place productivity.”
Tenenbaum earned a juris doc-
tor from Brooklyn Law School and
a bachelor’s degree from the New
York University College of Business
and Public Administration (now the
Leonard N. Stern School of Business).
Tenenbaum is admitted to practice
law in the courts of the State of New
York and in the United States District
Court for the Southern and Eastern
Districts of New York.
Prior to joining the firm, Tenen-
baum managed a software develop-
ment group at a Wall Street invest-
ment bank, and served as a contract
administrator for a large contracting
firm in private industry.
Jaspan Schlesinger LLP in Garden
City is one of Long Island’s premier
full service law firms. Founded in
1946, the firm’s 60 attorneys pro-
vide quality legal services in virtual-
ly every area of practice. The firm’s
practice areas include complex com-
mercial litigation; education and
municipal matters; creditors’ rights;
banking and financial services; cor-
porate and commercial transactions;
real estate; tax certiorari and con-
demnation matters; land use and
zoning; labor; estates and trusts; tax-
ation; and environmental matters.
Jaspan Schlesinger LLP, with of-
fices in Garden City and Wilmington,
Delaware, serves clients that operate
locally, nationally and globally. Its cli-
ents range from start-up companies to
multinational public companies, as well
as individuals, school districts, munici-
palities and not-for-profit organizations.
A.
JONATHAN
TRAFIMOW
Moritt Hock &
Hamroff LLP
A. Jonathan Trafimow is a part-
ner at Moritt Hock & Hamroff LLP
in Garden City where he chairs its
employment law practice group and
co-chairs its cybersecurity practice
group. Trafimow represents employ-
ers in all areas of workplace discrim-
ination, retaliation, harassment and
civil rights claims, and class actions.
He also provides advice and counsel
to employers on discrimination and
retaliation policies and prevention,
harassment training and prevention,
wage and hour matters, handbooks,
severance packages, employment
agreements and other employment-re-
lated documents.
Trafimow is also an experienced
trial attorney and one of a limited
number of attorneys with trial ex-
perience in the class action context.
In 2008, he co-tried Pisani v. Staten
Island University Hospital, 06-CV-
1016 (JFB), a defamation case, in the
United States District Court for the
Eastern District of New York. He pre-
viously co-tried a civil rights class ac-
tion lawsuit in the United States Dis-
trict Court for the Southern District of

WHO’SWHO
in Intellectual Property & Labor Law
New York, Dodge v. County Orange,
02 Civ. 769 (CM). He has been coun-
sel of record in numerous reported
and unreported decisions, including
Cobb and Rouse, et al. v. Pozzi, et
al. 363 F.3d 89 (2d Cir. 2004); Flem-
ing v. Verizon New York, Inc. 2006
WL 2709766 (S.D.N.Y. Sept 22, 2006);
Mayers v. New York Comm. Ban-
corp., Inc., et al., 2006 WL 2105810
(E.D.N.Y. Aug. 31, 2005); Burniche v.
General Electric Automation Services,
Inc., 306 F. Supp 2d 233 (N.D.N.Y.
2004); Moore v. City of New York,
219 F. Supp 2d 335 (E.D.N.Y. Sept.
10, 2002); Rodolico v. Unisys Corp.,
96 F. Supp 2d 84 (E.D.N.Y. May 1,
2000) and, as amicus curia, Evans v.
Stephens, 407 F.3d. 1272 (11th Cir.
2005) (en banc). Unreported decisions
include a favorable ruling before the
United States Court of Appeals for
the Eleventh Circuit, Bedoya v. Hilti,
Inc. (Dec. 13, 2005) and numerous dis-
trict courts decisions.
New York Governor Andrew Cuo-
mo’s signature of a series of bills called
the “Women’s Equality Agenda” should
remind New York employers to reex-
amine their compliance with both wage-
hour and discrimination — including
harassment— laws, Trafimow said.
“In the pay area, New York law
now requires, among other things,
equal pay for women as men for work
of ‘equal skill, effort and responsi-
bility’ but permits pay differentials
for seniority, merit and any factor
based on ‘a bona fide factor other than
sex, such as education, training or
experience’ and job related and con-
sistent with business necessity,” he
said. “The law excludes pay differen-
tial policies that cause a disparate
impact on the basis of sex; where an
alternative employment practice ex-
ists that would serve the same busi-
ness purpose and not produce such a
differential; and the employer refused
to adopt the alternative practice.”
“The new law provides for liqui-
dated damages up to 300% — that’s
right, up to 300% —for a ‘willful’ vi-
olation of this requirement of equal
pay on the basis of sex, and prevailing
employees may (still) recover their
reasonable attorney’s fees,” Trafimow
said. “The new law does allow the
employer who prevails to recover at-
torneys’ fees, but only if the claim was
frivolous and commenced or continued
in bad faith.”
“Based on this and other changes,
New York employers are incentivized
to invest further resources in review-
ing and enhancing their workplace
employment policies and training,”
he noted. “In particular, employers
should carefully review any pay dis-
parities between male and female em-
ployees and determine whether any
adjustments are necessary to come
into compliance with the law.”
In the cybersecurity space, Trafi-
mow focuses on the intersection of
technology and human resources best
practices in assisting clients with pre-
paring written information security
plans (WISPs). Companies can use
WISPs to mitigate the risk of, and po-
tentially limit legal exposure from, a
data breach. Trafimow serves as part
of a multidisciplinary team that can be
called into action when a company is
24 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
sued in connection with a data breach.
Trafimow is also an experienced
pro bono mediator for the United
States District Court for the Eastern
District of New York, and was a Fel-
low of the Coro Foundation Leader-
ship New York Program for the 1999-
2000 term. He frequently writes and
lectures on employment law topics in
venues throughout the United States,
and recently authored a book chapter,
updated annually, entitled “Discrimi-
nation,” published in the HR Guide to
Employment Law: A Practical Com-
pliance Reference (2009).
Prior to joining the firm, Trafi-
mow was a partner in a Manhattan
law firm. He has also served as an
assistant corporation counsel for the
City of New York in employment and
civil rights litigation and prior to that,
worked as a motions law clerk for the
United States Court of Appeals for the
Second Circuit.
Trafimow earned a juris doctor
from New York University School
of Law and a bachelor’s degree from
University of Chicago.
He is admitted to practice before
the United States Court of Appeals
for the Second and Eleventh Circuits,
the United States District Courts for
the Southern, Eastern and Northern
Districts of New York, the Northern
District of Illinois, and the states of
New York and Illinois.
Trafimow is a member of the Amer-
ican Bar Association, the New York
State Bar Association and the Ameri-
can Health Lawyers Association.
Among his recognitions, he was
named among NY Metro Super Law-
yers in 2013 and 2014.
Moritt Hock & Hamroff LLP, es-
tablished in 1980, is a full-service,
AV-rated commercial law practice
with offices on Long Island and Man-
hattan. The firm’s practice areas in-
clude: alternative dispute resolution,
commercial foreclosure, commercial
lending & finance, construction &
surety, copyrights, trademarks & li-
censing, corporate & securities, cred-
itors’ rights & bankruptcy, cyberse-
curity, employment, equipment &
transportation leasing and finance,
healthcare, landlord & tenant, litiga-
tion, marketing, advertising & pro-
motions, not-for-profit, patents, real
estate, tax, and trusts & estates.
EDWARD A.
TREVVETT
Harris Beach PLLC
Edward A. Trevvett is a member
of Harris Beach PLLC where practic-
es in the labor and employment law
practice group. He also serves on the
educational institutions, health care,
and municipalities and local agencies
industry teams. He is also co-leader of
the EMS and fire protection providers
industry team.
Selected as one of the Best Lawyers
in America and listed in New York
Super Lawyers, Trevvett represents
clients in both the public and private
sector, focusing his legal practice on
providing counsel to employers in all
areas of labor and employee relations;
defending employment discrimina-
tion claims and Department of Labor
matters of all types; representing em-
ployers in proceedings before adminis-
trative agencies including the Nation-
al Labor Relations Board, New York
Public Employment Relations Board,
Equal Employment Opportunity Com-
mission, New York State Division of
Human Rights, and the New York
State Education Department; nego-
tiating collective bargaining agree-
ments; arbitrating grievances; review-
ing, revising, and developing employ-
ee handbooks and policies; drafting
employment agreements; training
managers in sexual harassment and
other workplace issues; providing day
to day guidance and advice to human
resources managers on variety of em-
ployee relations concerns including
Family and Medical Leave Act, Amer-
icans with Disabilities Act, wage and
hour law, progressive discipline and
discharge, drug and alcohol testing,
union avoidance, and unemployment
insurance benefits.
Employers must be aware of the re-
cent amendment to the Fair Pay Act,
Trevvett said.
“The Fair Pay Act (FPA), amends
the existing prohibitions on sex-
based disparities in pay in New
York’s Equal Pay Act (EPA) (Labor
Law 194) in three important ways,”
Trevvett said. “First, the FPA limits
the existing defenses that an em-
ployer has to equal pay act claims.
Under the EPA, one way that an
employer could defend a wage dif-
ferential was by showing that it
was based on ‘any other factor other
than sex.’ The FPA narrows this de-
fense by modifying this language to
say ‘a bona fide factor other than
sex, such as education, training, or
experience’ that is ‘job related’ and
‘consistent with business necessity.’”
“The FPA also broadens the geo-
graphic area over which pay dispari-
ties may be compared and institutes
a new liquidated damages provision
increasing employer liable for will-
ful violations to 300% of wages due,”
Trevvett noted. “Given these changes,
we recommend that all employers do
a careful audit of all positions and for
every instance where a disparity in
pay between male and female employ-
ees exists to see whether such dispar-
ity can be defended based on relevant
lawful criteria.”
“In addition, all compensation-re-
lated policies and practices must be
reviewed to ensure that unlawful sex-
based pay disparities are eliminated,”
Trevvett explained.
“Finally, it should be noted that
the FPA bars employers from having
policies that prevent employees from
discussing their pay with other em-
ployees, similar to the prohibition in
the National Labor Relations Act cov-
ering employees in the private sector,”
he said. “Managers need to be educat-
ed regarding this employee right so as
to avoid violations.”
Among Trevvett’s many suc -
cessful cases include Matter of Ae-
neas McDonald PBA v. City of Ge-
neva (NY Court of Appeals) where
he successfully defended decision by
city to change level of health insur-
ance benefits for retirees; and Alfieri
v. Sysco Food Services (US District
Court) where he obtained summary
judgment for employer dismissing sex
discrimination case.
Trevvett earned a juris doctor,
magna cum laude, from Syracuse Uni-
versity College of Law and a bach-
elor’s degree from the University of
Notre Dame. He is admitted to prac-
tice in New York State and before
the United States Court of Appeals,
District of Columbia Circuit; United
States District Court, Western Dis-
trict of New York and Northern Dis-
trict of New York.
He is a member of the New York
State Bar Association and its Labor
and Employment Section, the Man-
agement Advocates for School Labor
Affairs (MASLA), and the New York
State School Boards Association
(NYSSBA). He has been listed in Best
Lawyers in America annually since
2009 and in New York Super Law-
yers annually since 2008. Trevvett is
a member of the Finger Lakes Cere-
bral Palsy (Happiness House) Foun-
dation Board, Thompson Health Sys-
tem Pension Subcommittee, and is
past chair/board member of the Hoch-
stein School of Music and Dance at
Canandaigua and past treasurer of
Cub Scout Pack 32.
Founded in 1856, Harris Beach
PLLC is among the country’s top law
firms as ranked by The National Law
Journal. Harris Beach and its sub-
sidiaries provide a full range of legal
and professional services for clients
across New York state, as well as na-
tionally and internationally. Clients
include Fortune 500 corporations,
privately-held companies, emerging
businesses, public sector entities, not-
for-profit organizations and individu-
als. Principal industries Harris Beach
represents include education, energy,
financial, food and beverage, health
care, insurance, manufacturing, med-
ical and life sciences, real estate de-
velopers, and state and local govern-
ments and authorities. The firm’s over
200 lawyers practice among offices
throughout New York state in Albany,
Buffalo, Ithaca, Melville, New York
City, Rochester, Saratoga Springs,
Syracuse, Uniondale and White
Plains, as well as in New Haven, Con-
necticut and Newark, New Jersey.
ERYN Y.
TRUONG
Campolo, Middleton
& McCormick, LLP
As counsel to Campolo, Middleton
& McCormick, LLP, Eryn Y. Truong
practices in the area of intellectual
property for both transactional and
litigation matters. Truong’s practice
encompasses a wide range of intellec-
tual property matters including trade-
marks, copyrights, patents, trade se-
crets, privacy rights, licensing dis-

WHO’SWHO
in Intellectual Property & Labor Law
putes, and domain name dispute res-
olution. She manages trademark port-
folios for national retail stores and
manufacturers. She is well versed in
conducting infringement analyses and
regularly counsels clients on potential
or pending infringement problems.
A Silicon Valley native, Eryn also
litigates intellectual property mat-
ters and complex business litigation
in courts on both coasts. She success-
fully represented a photographer in
a copyright infringement lawsuit, re-
sulting in a $1.32 million jury verdict.
The case was one of the first ruled
in favor of a photographer under the
Digital Millennium Copyright Act.
Other noteworthy litigations include
conducting a high stakes trade se-
cret trial for an emerging medical de-
vice company in Delaware Chancery
Court, as well as obtaining a verdict
against sub-brokers on RICO claims
in the Agape Ponzi scheme litigation.
Truong also serves as outside coun-
sel for a major retailer, managing
their local counsel and the direction
of their litigation across the United
States and abroad.
The registration of so-called “dis-
paraging” trademarks is arguably the
hottest issue in intellectual property
law today, Truong said.
“In December 2015, the United
States Court of Appeals for the Federal
Circuit determined that the section of
the Lanham Act barring registration of
‘scandalous, immoral, or disparaging’
trademarks violates the First Amend-
ment,” she said. “This decision opens
the door to reconsideration of countless
trademarks previously deemed too of-
fensive for registration. It also has the
potential to bring some order to the
inconsistent treatment of ‘offensive’
trademarks by the USPTO, since what
offended one examiner may not have
offended another. The withdrawal of
trademark protection for the Wash-
ington Redskins name has been in the
headlines for a while, and it will be
interesting to see if the Fourth Circuit,
which is hearing the Redskins’ appeal,
follows the ruling or charts their own
course. We may end up seeing the Su-
preme Court tackle the issue in 2016.”
Truong earned a juris doctor from
Seattle University School of Law and a
bachelor’s degree from the University
of California, Davis. She is admitted to
practice in New York state and Wash-
ington and before the United States
District Court, Southern District of
New York; the United States District
Court, Eastern District of New York;
and the United States District Court,
Northern District of New York.
She is a member of the Trademark
Committee of the New York Intellectual
Property Association and the American
Intellectual Property Law Association.
Located in both the heart of Long
Island in Ronkonkoma and on the
East End in Bridgehampton, Cam-
polo, Middleton & McCormick, LLP
(CMM) is a premier law firm in Suf-
folk County. Over the past generation,
CMM attorneys have played a central
role in the most critical legal issues
and transactions affecting Long Is-
land. The firm has earned the presti-
gious HIA-LI Business Achievement
Award, a spot on the U.S. News &
World Report list of Best Law Firms,
25 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
and the coveted title of Best Law Firm complex civil and criminal white-collar Versocki earned a juris doctor
on Long Island. prosecutions involving the construc- from Emory University School of Law
tion industry. His prosecutions focused and a bachelor’s degree, magna cum
on prevailing wage and wage-and-hour laude, from Lehigh University.
enforcement throughout NYS and re- Archer, Byington, Glennon &
JAMES sulted in numerous criminal convic-
tions, civil settlements, and the re-
Levine, LLP (ABGL) was formed by
a group of attorneys well-versed in
VERSOCKI covery of tens of millions of dollars for
the residents of NYS. This experience
the areas of labor, and employment
law, ERISA and employee benefits
Archer, Byington,
Glennon & Levine, allowed Versocki to assist in the draft- law. Its attorneys have developed
LLP ing of proposed legislation and pro- considerable national reputations not
vide guidance to Department of Labor only in handling traditional labor,
investigators in prevailing wage and employee benefit and employment
wage-and-hour enforcement matters. issues, but in working on cutting
As counsel to Archer, Byington, For his exemplary performance, he edge topics of concern to employ-
Glennon & Levine, LLP, James Ver- was awarded the Attorney General’s ers, unions and working people. The
socki regularly advises clients on all as- highest award for prosecutors. firm’s expertise expands into areas
pects of NYS, U.S., and NYC labor and Versocki is a member of the Nas- such as real estate, personal inju-
employment laws and actively litigates sau County Bar Association, the ry, medical malpractice, construction
matters before the National Labor Re- Labor & Employment Committee of accidents and all areas of litigation,
lations Board and NYS and U.S. courts. the New York County Lawyer’s As- including collection practices.
Versocki has worked extensively sociation, a member of the New York The firm is located in Melville, but
with state, federal and local regulatory National Employment Lawyer’s As- its practice is regional and national
bodies, including the NYS Department sociation, and he was appointed as a in scope. ABGL is licensed to practice
of Labor’s Apprenticeship Council, to member of the Professionals Commit- and serve the needs of its clients in
develop and promote effective programs tee for the International Foundation New Jersey, as well as in New York.
for the development of NY’s workforce of Employee Benefit Plans where he
and the enforcement of labor laws. writes and lectures on current topics
As the amendment to NYS’ Equal impacting Taft-Hartley funds, espe- LIBN’S DAILY NEWS ALERT IS FREE.
Pay Law went into effect early this cially apprenticeship funds.
year, Versocki said employers must In 2009, he was appointed to the
have a distinct pay scale and well-de- NYS Restaurant and Hotel Industry
fined policies within their company. Wage Board where he helped work
“The enactment of the Achieve Pay toward the restructuring of the two
Equity Act, commonly referred to as separate industry wage orders into
a Fair Pay Act, requires employers one wage order with a focus on clear,
to conduct substantial and serious
reviews of their policies and current
concise guidance to employees and
employers.
libn.com
compensation structures,” Versocki
said. “In addition to reviewing inter-
nal pay policies, and the factors used
to determine pay scales, raises, and
bonuses, employers will be required
to consider differences in pay scales
between business locations within
the same geographic region, general-
ly by county. Because of heightened
penalties — up to 300% of the wages
deemed due and the collection of at-
torneys’ fees in successful employee
lawsuits – the ramifications for not
reviewing pay scales and policies to
ensure gender neutrality in such deci-
sion-making are very high.”
“Employers should immediately de-
velop clear guidance for their supervi-
sors and decision-makers on how pay
rates, raises, and bonuses will be made
in a gender neutral manner,” he said.
Prior to joining Archer, Bying-
ton, Glennon & Levine LLP in 2008,
he was in private practice handling
complex internal investigations,
white-collar criminal defense matters,
and litigation matters for clients be-
fore NYS and Federal courts. Versocki
also guided clients through regula-
tory investigations by the NYS and
U.S. Departments of Labor, the U.S.
Department of Justice, and numer-
ous NYS District Attorney offices. He
also handled matters for clients before
administrative boards, including the
NYC Office of Administrative Trials
and Hearings and matters involv-
ing NYC’s Procurement Policy Board
rules and regulations.
From 1998 through 2006, Versocki
was an assistant attorney general for
the State of New York in the Attor-
ney General’s Labor Bureau where his
practice focused on the enforcement of
a wide range of labor and employment
laws, including handling numerous

WHO’SWHO
in Intellectual Property & Labor Law
KEITH
WELTSCH
Scully, Scott,
Murphy & Presser,
P.C.
Keith Weltsch is a partner at Scul-
ly, Scott, Murphy & Presser, P.C. in
Garden City. Weltsch specializes in
U.S. and foreign trademark prosecu-
tion and clearance. He is experienced
in oppositions and cancellations be-
fore the Trademark Trial and Appeal
Board, as well as in federal trade-
mark litigation matters. Weltsch is
also experienced in the copyright reg-
istration, enforcement and counseling
fields. He also has significant knowl-
edge with respect to the rapidly ex-
panding and changing domain name
26 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
laws, as well as the important legal
interplay between domain names and
trademarks. He was also nominat-
ed as an intellectual property “Super
Lawyer” in 2016.
The ability to register trademarks
that may be deemed to be “disparaging”
is one of the hottest issues in intellectu-
al property in 2016, Weltsch said.
“In the case of In re Tam, an indi-
vidual named Simon Tam, who is of
Asian descent, filed a trademark ap-
plication for the mark THE SLANTS,
referring to the name of a musical
group of which he was a member,” he
said. “The Trademark Office refused
the application on the grounds that
the word ‘SLANTS’ was deemed to
be disparaging of persons of Asian
descent. Mr. Tam appealed his refusal
to the Court of Appeals for the Feder-
al Circuit, where it was reversed on
the grounds that the statutory lan-
guage preventing the registration of
a mark that was considered ‘dispar-
aging’ to be unconstitutional on the
grounds that the Trademark Office’s
denial of registration of such marks
constitutes a denial of important
legal rights to protect private speech
based on the Trademark Office’s view-
point-dependent disapproval of the
message conveyed by the trademark.”
“It will be very interesting to see
the impact the Federal Circuit’s rul-
ing has on a more well-known trade-
mark registration battle, namely, the
on-going battle between several Na-
tive Americans and the Washington
professional football team over the
registrability of the term Redskins,”
Weltsch noted. “A petition to can-
cel the Redskins’ trademark on the
grounds that it is disparaging of Na-
tive Americans was granted by the
Trademark Office, but has been ap-
pealed by the Washington profession-
al football team to a separate Court of
Appeals. A decision is expected later
this year.”
Weltsch earned a bachelor’s degree
in history from Pennsylvania State
University and graduated with honors
and with distinction, Phi Beta Kappa.
He earned a juris doctor from George
Washington University. For 4 years,
he was a Trademark Examining At-
torney at the U.S. Patent and Trade-
mark Office. He is admitted to prac-
tice in New York and the U.S. District
Court for the Eastern District of New
York and District of Columbia, and is
a member of AIPLA and INTA.
Celebrating its 43rd year as a pre-
eminent intellectual property law
firm SSMP confidently sits at the
crossroads of cutting edge science,
technology and law where it offers de-
tailed, insightful opinions and secures
and enforces intellectual property for
its clients.
The firm continues to grow in the
areas of biotechnology, materials sci-
ence, chemistry, electronics, electri-
cal engineering, computer science,
internet, business methods, mechan-
ical arts, pharmaceuticals and nano-
technology.
 27 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
WHO’s WHO
CAROL A.
ALLEN
People’s Alliance
Federal Credit
Union
in Banking & Finance
Carol A. Allen is president and
chief executive officer of People’s Alli-
ance Federal Credit Union (PAFCU).
With a spotlight on product offerings and Allen has more than 25 years of ex-
service, many banks and credit unions perience with PAFCU and held titles
of accounting manager, vice president
continue to develop new product lines and of finance, chief financial officer, and
executive vice president/COO.
ideas to meet the needs of their customers. Allen has full responsibility for the
operations of the credit union. She
has handled the financial consolida-
In this Who’s Who in Banking section, many of tions resulting from mergers, interfac-
Long Island’s financial professionals provide es with the financial examiners and
works closely with the executive staff
details about what their banks/credit unions are on product development. With more
than $250 million in total assets,
doing to optimize products and services in 2016. PAFCU offers financial services to the
employees of over 400 companies and
several select geographical areas.
In 2016, PAFCU’s main goal is to
attract new membership while plac-
ing greater focus on its current mem-
bership, as they are the reason for
INDEXINDEXINDEX PAFCU’s continued success, Allen
said. “With the advent of the Internet
and innovative technologies, it is now
possible for PAFCU to offer services
27 CAROL ALLEN People’s Alliance Federal Credit Union and products that provide our mem-
bers with a high degree of control and
27 ROBERT ALLEN Teacher’s Federal Credit Union convenience,” she said.
“By monitoring and managing our
28 ED BLASKEY TD Bank
online presence, coupled with the
28 THOMAS M. BUONAIUTO Empire National Bank launch of our new Home Banking
tool and Mobile Phone application,
28 JOHN FENNELL New York Community Bancorp, Inc./ PAFCU will gain more visibility in
the social media arena, ensuring a
New York Community Bank
competitive advantage in the financial
29 MARJORY GIORDANI Valley National Bank industry,” she noted.
“The ability to deliver communi-
29 STEVEN E. GLASS Flushing Bank cations, interact with members, and
29 WAYNE GROSSÉ Bethpage Federal Credit Union facilitate information sharing on a
24/7 basis at the member’s conve-
30 JOSEPHINE HUGHES Suffolk County National Bank nience is invaluable commodity and
is becoming a new business standard,
30 ROBERT ISAKEN Bank of America one which will help us expand our
30 JANE KNEITEL Suffolk Federal membership and attract Millennials:
the largest generation in U.S. history
31 ROBERT MILAS Wells Fargo who are entering their peak spending
years,” Allen explained. “Our motto,
31 EILEEN NOLAN NEFCU
‘We put people first, even in our
31 MONTE N. REDMAN Astoria Bank/Astoria Financial Corporation name,’ is a testament to our commit-
ment to our members, and we are con-
32 STEPHEN SHERIDAN Bridgehampton National Bank fident our product and services will
32 SCOTT SKOROBOHATY People’s United Bank optimize their financial experience in
2016 and beyond.”
Allen has been a member of the
HIA’s Small Business Development
committee and participates in Long
Island LIVE. She currently serves as
treasurer on the board of directors for
the HIA-LI and on the credit union ad-
visory board for Enterprise Car Sales.
Allen earned a bachelor’s degree in
accounting from Hofstra University
and a master’s degree in finance from
Adelphi University.
People’s Alliance Federal Credit
Union is a full service financial insti-
tution. PAFCU has been serving its
members for over 75 years. At PAFCU,
there are no customers – everyone is a
member and owner of the credit union.
As a not-for-profit cooperative, PAF-
CU’s earnings are returned to mem-
bers in the form of higher dividends
paid on deposit accounts and lower
interest rates on loans.
People’s Alliance Federal Credit
Union is headquartered in Haup-
pauge. PAFCU operates eight New
York branches with locations in
Hauppauge, Ronkonkoma, Westbury,
Jamaica, Brooklyn, and Yonkers and
has one branch in Miami, FL. Mem-
bers also have access at more than
5,000 shared service centers located
across the country.
ROBERT G.
ALLEN
Teachers Federal
Credit Union
Robert G. Allen is president/CEO
of Teachers Federal Credit Union
(TFCU). Allen has held this position
since 1988 and has a total of 45 years
working in credit unions. TFCU, one
of the country’s largest credit unions,
is a full service not-for-profit finan-
cial institution, founded in 1952 by
a small group of teachers and has
grown to more than $5 billion in
total assets. TFCU serves more than
265,000 members, has 25 branch lo-
cations and more than 600 employees.
TFCU has invested heavily in tech-
nology upgrades, having completed
a core system conversion earlier this
year. Further upgrades are planned
in 2017 for their ATMs, as is contin-
ued emphasis on fraud protection for
their members. This is evident with
EMV (chip) card technology for cred-
it cards, as well as PIN protection
shields installed on their ATMs, and
the ability to receive e-mail alerts
about account activity.
As interest rates have remained
low, TFCU has helped many of their
members save money by refinanc-
ing their mortgages, buying cars and
homes, using home equity loans for
major purchases or college tuition.
Allen shares his expertise with-
in the community. He is a trustee of
the State University of New York Old
Westbury Foundation; member of the
Staller Center for the Arts Advisory
Council (Stony Brook University); and
president of Advancement for Com-
merce, Industry & Technology (ACIT).
Allen earned a bachelor’s degree
in finance from SUNY Old West-
bury and an associate’s degree from
Queensborough Community College.
Teachers Federal Credit Union
has full-service branches throughout
Long Island including Amityville, Bay
Shore, Brookhaven National Labora-
tory, Central Islip, Commack, East
Northport, Farmingville, Hauppauge,
Holbrook, Huntington, Manorville,
Merrick, Nesconset, North Babylon,
North Massapequa, Oakdale, Pat-
chogue, Port Jefferson Station, Riv-
erhead, Rocky Point, Selden, Shir-
ley, Smithtown, South Setauket, and
Wading River. Members also have
access to services at more than 5,000
shared service centers and 55,000 All-

WHO’SWHO
in Banking & Finance
point ATMs located across the coun-
try. TFCU offers financial services to
all people and businesses located in
Nassau and Suffolk counties.
ED BLASKEY
TD Bank
Ed Blaskey is TD Bank’s market
president for suburban New York and
Long Island. Blaskey is responsible
for commercial lending activities in
Long Island, Westchester and the
Lower Hudson Valley. His responsi-
bilities and partnerships include the
expansion of the wealth, retail, con-
sumer and government banking busi-
ness lines.
Blaskey has more than 30 years
of banking experience. He joined TD
Bank (formerly Commerce Bank) in
2001 as regional vice president to help
launch the Long Island market for
the bank. He was instrumental in ex-
panding TD Bank Long Island’s re-
tail franchise and commercial lending
business lines. Blaskey contributed to
establishing the brand, model and cul-
ture of what has become “America’s
Most Convenient Bank.”
TD Bank keeps up with the chang-
ing world, Blaskey said.
“Our customers are looking for
faster, on-the-go access to their bank
and they expect us to offer the fea-
tures they need in a secure environ-
ment,” he said. “At TD Bank, we con-
tinue to invest heavily in technolo-
gies that offer added convenience. For
example, our mobile application for
small businesses offers mobile depos-
it, which allows customers to depos-
it checks by simply taking a picture
from their cellphone, and online bill
pay so that, upon setup, users can
manage payments for utilities, credit
cards and other services directly from
the app. These are the services that
customers today are looking for; this
is what leads to a better banking ex-
perience overall.”
“At TD Bank, we place an empha-
sis on bringing together all of our
channels — online, mobile, in-store,
ATM and phone — to give customers
the legendary service they’ve come to
expect from us,” Blaskey said. “It’s a
challenge for banks to keep pace with
the technology at customers’ finger-
tips, but we must continue to make
investments in the kinds of technolo-
gy that are right for our customers.”
Prior to joining TD, Blaskey spent
10 years at EAB in numerous com-
mercial lending capacities, the most
recent as group vice president of
the Long Island community lending
group. Prior to that, he spent 10 years
at Chase (legacy Chemical Bank) in
numerous lending roles on Long Is-
land and in NYC.
Blaskey earned a bachelor’s de-
gree in banking and finance from
Adelphi University.
Blaskey is a past president of Ad-
vancement for Commerce, Industry
28 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
& Technology, one of Long Island’s
most prominent networking organi-
zations. He is a member of the board
of trustees of SUNY Old Westbury
College Foundation and a member
of the board of trustees for the DNA
Dolan Learning Center, an operating
unit of Cold Spring Harbor Laborato-
ry. Blaskey served as chairman of the
American Heart Association’s 2014
Heart Walk.
TD Bank is one of the largest
banks in the U.S., providing more
than 8 million customers with a full
range of retail, small business and
commercial banking products and
services at approximately 1,300 con-
venient locations throughout the
Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, Metro D.C.,
the Carolinas and Florida. In addi-
tion, TD Bank and its subsidiaries
offer customized private banking and
wealth management services through
TD Wealth ® , and vehicle financ-
ing and dealer commercial services
through TD Auto Finance. TD Bank is
headquartered in Cherry Hill, N.J.
TD Bank has 260 locations, includ-
ing 61 on Long Island. It is ranked #8
retail bank in New York by deposits,
$27 billion; #9 retail bank in the five
boroughs of New York City by depos-
its, $8.4 billion.
THOMAS M.
BUONAIUTO
Empire National
Bank
Thomas M. Buonaiuto is presi-
dent, chief operating officer and di-
rector of Empire National Bank, a
full service commercial bank head-
quartered in Islandia.
Prior to joining the Empire National
Bank, Buonaiuto held the title of exec-
utive vice president and chief financial
officer of Union State Bank. Prior to
that, he served as executive vice presi-
dent and chief financial officer of Long
Island Commercial Bank. Buonaiuto
began his career specializing in bank-
ing as an auditor for KPMG.
In today’s electronic environment,
banks need to remember that prod-
ucts and services must reach far be-
yond offering the latest technology,
Buonaiuto said.
“While technology can help opti-
mize product and service offerings,
both community and large money
center banks virtually offer the same
product line,” Buonaiuto noted. “What
differentiates one bank from another
is the quality of service they offer,
their given sense of urgency, and ul-
timately their application of solutions
to customer’s business and personal
life-cycle financial needs.”
“Any bank can obviously enhance
their product and service pricing and
positioning; however, optimization
truly happens when bankers ask the
right questions, get to fully know the
financial needs of each and every cus-
tomer and then put together the ap-
propriate package of financial solu-
tions,” he said.
“Our communications strate -
gy needs to accentuate this brand-
ing in order to present our bankers
with the opportunity to demonstrate
our service quality,” Buonaiuto said.
“With the proper frequency and reach
of communication, we can plant the
seeds that what we promise we will
deliver. Once our customers and fu-
ture prospects experience first-hand
our service quality, they are much
more apt to take advantage and op-
timize our full complement of highly
competitive deposit, loan and cash
management products.”
Buonaiuto earned a bachelor’s de-
gree in accounting from LIU Post. He
is also licensed by the State of New
York as a certified public accountant.
A graduate of the Bank Administra-
tion Institute’s School of Operations
and Technology, his professional
memberships include the American
Institute of Certified Public Accoun-
tants and the New York State Society
of Certified Public Accountants.
A firm believer in giving back to
the Long Island community, Buonai-
uto is chairman of the Long Island
Museum Board and has also served
the organization as trustee, treasurer
and investment committee chairman.
A past board president and current
board member of the Child Care Coun-
cil of Suffolk, he is a current ALS Ride
for Life board member. Buonaiuto was
recently appointed to LIU Board of
Trustees and also serves on LIU Post
College of Management’s Executive
Board of Advisors and is a member of
the Energeia Partnership, a leadership
academy dedicated to identifying and
addressing the serious, complex and
multi-dimensional issues challenging
the Long Island region.
Recognized for his dedication to the
community, Buonaiuto was named
New Ground’s 2013 Golf Tournament
honoree and currently serves on the
group’s golf committee. The organi-
zation is dedicated to meeting the
needs and challenges of Long Island’s
homeless population. He was the 2016
Long Island Museum Golf Honoree.
Empire National Bank is a Long
Island-based independent bank that
specializes in serving the financial
needs of small to mid-sized businesses,
professionals, nonprofit organizations,
real estate investors and consumers.
With four banking branches located in
Islandia, Shirley, Port Jefferson Sta-
tion and Mineola, New York, Empire
National Bank also has a Manhat-
tan-based private banking office.      York Commercial Bank, a New York
The financial institution’s bank-
ers take pride in understanding the
needs of each customer, so the bank
can deliver the highest quality of ser-
vice with a sense of urgency. As a
Long Island-based bank dedicated to
helping local communities, Empire
place your business
card in the pockets
of premier industry
professionals
libn.com
Contact our advertising
department to discuss options
for your business at 631.737.1700
National consistently supports nu-
merous not-for-profit and charitable
organizations.
JOHN
FENNELL
New York
Community
Bancorp, Inc./New
York Community
Bank
John Fennell is first senior vice
president, director of retail bank-
ing for New York Community Bank
in Westbury. As director, Fennell
oversees the day-to-day operations,
growth and leadership of the bank
branches and its employees. He joined
the bank in 1995 and has worked his
way up through the company to his
current position.
When Fennell originally started
with the bank there were 14 branches
in Queens and Nassau, today he over-
sees 258 banking branch locations in
New York, New Jersey, Florida, Ohio
and Arizona.
New York Community Bancorp,
Inc. is leveraging its relationship
based products and services to in-
crease share of wallet and retention,
Fennell said.
“We offer value-added banking and
non-banking products and services
bundled together, that increase in
benefits as you grow your banking
relationship with us,” he said. “We
strive to be the bank that you are
with at every stage of life, offering
customers basic needs such as check-
ing, savings and loans, to planning
for retirement with investments and
insurance. We are leveraging tech-
nology to provide our customers with
the ability to bank with at their con-
venience, and continue to evolve our
online and mobile channels.”
Fennell serves on the Town of
Hempstead Workforce Board and vol-
unteers with many other worthy caus-
es such as the YMCA, Island Harvest
and Ronald McDonald House.
With assets of $50.3 billion at De-
cember 31, 2015, New York Commu-
nity Bancorp, Inc. is the holding com-
pany for New York Community Bank,
a New York State-chartered savings
bank serving customers throughout
metro New York, New Jersey, Flor-
ida, Ohio, and Arizona; and New
State-chartered commercial bank
serving consumers and businesses in
the New York City boroughs of Man-
hattan, Queens, and Brooklyn, and
the counties of Nassau, Suffolk, and
Westchester – all in New York.
New York Community Bank is
among the largest thrift in the na-
tion and one of the leading thrift de-
positories in most of the markets its
serve. Its roots go back to 1859, when
the bank was chartered by the State
of New York in Queens. Since then,
the bank has grown from a single
branch in Flushing to 258 branch of-
fices in five states.
It operates its branches with an
emphasis on convenience, with 250
locations that feature 24-hour ATM

WHO’SWHO
in Banking & Finance
banking, and over 210 of its commu-
nity bank branches open at least six
days a week. The bank also offers
customers 24-hour access to their
accounts with online banking, mo-
bile banking and the ability to bank
24/7 by phone.
MARJORY
GIORDANI
Valley National
Bank
Marjory Giordani is a communi-
ty lending officer at Valley National
Bank. Giordani is responsible for the
origination of commercial credit and
developing and deepening new and
existing business relationships.
Giordani began her career in bank-
ing 17 years ago with Bank of New
York and has spent most of her career
developing new business in retail and
commercial banking. She is a long
time resident of Nassau County and
very familiar with the Long Island
market place.
“As the economic recovery contin-
ues to gain momentum, Valley’s com-
mercial lending professionals have
recognized a need to develop a group
that is specifically designed to serve
the needs of these diverse areas of
the bank’s communities,” Giordani
said. “Valley’s Community Lending
Sales Team will be responsible for
the bank’s New Jersey and New York
markets and will support Valley’s
commitment to providing loans to
small businesses and nonprofit orga-
nizations. This experienced and mo-
bile sales team will focus on develop-
ing personalized financing solutions
for businesses with annual sales be-
tween $500,000 and $15 million, and
borrowing needs between $100,000
and $1 million throughout New Jer-
sey, Manhattan, Long Island and the
outer boroughs of New York.”
Giordani earned a bachelor’s de-
gree and master’s degree in finance
and banking from Adelphi University.
Valley National Bancorp is a re-
gional bank holding company head-
quartered in Wayne, New Jersey with
more than $20 billion in assets. Its
principal subsidiary, Valley National
Bank, currently operates 227 branch
locations serving 31 counties through-
out northern and central New Jersey,
the New York City boroughs of Man-
hattan, Brooklyn, Queens and Long
Island, and Florida.
Valley National Bank is one of the
largest commercial banks headquar-
tered in New Jersey and is commit-
ted to providing the most convenient
service, the latest in product innova-
tions and an experienced and knowl-
edgeable staff with a high priority on
friendly customer service 24 hours a
day, 7 days a week.
29 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
STEVEN E.
GLASS
Flushing Bank
Steven E. Glass is senior vice pres-
ident, director of retail business de-
velopment at Flushing Bank. Joining
Flushing Bank in 2013, Glass man-
ages a team of business development
officers and branch-based business
specialists who identify new business
opportunities and recommend appro-
priate deposit, cash management, and
credit solutions.
Glass is part of Flushing Bank’s
management team establishing strat-
egies to serve new business segments
and participating in community, civic,
and business functions.
In 2016, Flushing Bank’s business
development officers and business
specialists will continue to utilize a
consultative sales approach to engage
clients in collaborative credit conver-
sations and to identify new business
opportunities, Glass said.
“While other banks and credit
unions have consolidated personnel in
their retail branches, Flushing Bank
has expanded the team that serves
our business clients,” he said. “Our
Business Development Team provides
resources and information on depos-
its, lending, cash management, and
related services, and can communi-
cate with our clients in nearly a dozen
foreign languages. The Business De-
velopment Team is also the link to
Flushing Bank’s strong commercial
real estate and mixed-use and resi-
dential lending services; our Complete
Banking for Professionals program
for doctors, attorneys, and CPAs; and
Premier Banking for consumers.”
“Flushing Bank is expanding
the Universal Banker model in our
branches with skilled and responsive
service, knowledgeable needs-based
selling, cutting edge technology, and
a smaller physical footprint,” Glass
said. “The future is already evident
at our two newest branches at RXR
Plaza in Uniondale and 99 Park Ave-
nue in Manhattan.”
“We value our clients and the com-
munities where we work and live,”
Glass noted. “We are actively involved
in business and charitable events and
are committed to expanding finan-
cial literacy through programs in local
schools and other institutions.”
Glass started his banking career at
Citibank, in 1999, as Division EVP for
downtown Brooklyn, where he helped
grow the borough’s business hub. From
2010 to 2013, Glass was small busi-
ness market manager in the tri-state
region. His Long Island-based team
of business bankers was among Citi-
bank’s top performers in the nation.
Prior to Citibank, Glass worked in
New York City government for more
than 10 years as special assistant to
former Brooklyn Borough President
Howard Golden. In this role, he ad-
vised many local development corpora-
tions, business improvement districts,
community organizations and busi-
ness owners on essential public safety
and economic development activities.
He later worked in marketing, sales,
and management positions for various
businesses in the private sector.
Glass holds several FINRA financial
investment securities and New York
State insurance agent licenses. He has
lectured in business entrepreneurship
programs at Brooklyn College and the
Nassau and Suffolk County Small Busi-
ness Development Centers.
Glass was recently appointed to the
New York State Independent Judicial
Election Qualification Commission for
the 2nd and 13th Judicial Districts. His
voluntary efforts have also included
the board of trustees of the Brook-
lyn-Queens Conservatory of Music;
past vice chairman of the Brooklyn
Chapter of the American Red Cross
in Greater New York; and teaching
financial literacy to private and public
school students.
Flushing Financial Corporation
is the holding company for Flushing
Bank, a New York State-chartered
commercial bank insured by the Fed-
eral Deposit Insurance Corporation.
The bank serves consumers, business-
es, and public entities by offering a
full complement of deposit, loan, and
cash management services through its
19 banking offices located in Queens,
Brooklyn, Manhattan and Nassau
County. Flushing Bank’s Business
Development Team is comprised of
a group of experienced bankers who
work to provide a personalized and
professional level of service. The
team focuses on building long term
relationships with its customers and
takes the time to understand their
business to provide competitive lend-
ing and banking solutions.
WAYNE
GROSSÉ
Bethpage Federal
Credit Union
Wayne Grossé is president and
chief executive officer of Bethpage
Federal Credit Union. He joined Beth-
page Federal Credit Union, in 1999,
as senior vice president of operations
and was named its fourth president
and CEO, in 2015. Over the course of
his years at the credit union, Grossé
has also held the positions of chief
operating officer, as well as executive
vice president in charge of operations,
overseeing the management of the
lending, business development, oper-
ations, marketing, business analysis,
and information services department.
Grossé held a leading position
during the credit union’s charter con-
version, which allowed Bethpage to
serve nearly all residents who live,
work or go to school on Long Island.
He has also overseen Bethpage’s
growth into the largest credit union
on Long Island and in New York
State, with over $6.8 billion in assets
and 298,000 members.
“It is Bethpage’s vision to enrich the
lives of its members, employees and
communities,” Grossé said. “Over the
course of the next year, we will look
for opportunities to bring value to all
market segments on Long Island by
expanding our residential mortgage
product portfolio and increasing our
reach through consumer lending. We
will also build upon member service by
delivering consistent experiences and
effortless end-to-end member journeys
regardless of the channel a member
chooses to interact with us.”
“As financial institutions become
pressured to provide digital user ex-
periences similar to Apple Google and
Amazon, we will implement new dig-
ital capabilities and improve existing
capabilities, which will allow us to
widen our reach within the market
and deepen member relationships,”
Grossé explained. “Additionally, we
will research new ways to acquire
checking accounts and engage mem-
bers, as well as revisit our brand prom-
ise to ensure it reflects our organiza-
tion’s character and what members
expect from us with every interaction.”
Within the credit union industry,
Grossé has played an active role in
numerous associations and has been
instrumental in spearheading two
breakthrough shared-service opera-
tions. Most recently, he was named
to the CUNA Government Affairs
Committee, where he will serve with
key credit union leaders as an advisor
to the industry in Washington, DC.
He was also a board member for the
NYCE ATM Network for four years
and has served on the Long Island
Council of the New York State Credit
Union League for more than 11 years.
Grossé began his career more than
35 years ago with the Pan Am Federal
Credit Union, now known as People’s
Alliance Federal Credit Union. After
10 years with Pan Am, he moved on
to Island Federal Credit Union as ex-
ecutive vice president, serving the em-
ployees of KeySpan.
Grossé earned an undergraduate
degree in political science from Oswe-
go State University of New York and
a master’s degree in business from
Dowling College. He has held posi-
tions on the Huntington Chamber of
Commerce, and currently sits on the
board of the Farmingdale Foundation
and is the chair-elect of the Family
Service League. He was also recently
appointed to the Governmental Af-
fairs Committee at CUNA, and was
elected to the CO-OP Board.
Bethpage Federal Credit Union is a
premier community financial institu-
tion committed to enriching the lives
of its members, employees and the
communities it serves for the past 75
years. Bethpage is the largest cred-
it union in New York State, as well
as 16th in the nation, according to
Peer-to-Peer by Callahan & Associ-
ates. Bethpage is a federally char-
tered credit union, which is open to
new members who open a member-
ship account with $5. As a financial
cooperative, Bethpage offers top mar-
ket rates, low fees and world-class
service, and a full menu of person-
al and commercial financial services.
Bethpage maintains 34 full service
branches, including its newest branch
in New York City.

WHO’SWHO
in Banking & Finance
JOSEPHINE
HUGHES
Suffolk County
National Bank
Josephine Hughes is senior vice
president and team leader of the busi-
ness banking relationship manage-
ment group and small business lend-
ing group at Suffolk County National
Bank (SCNB) in Riverhead. Hughes is
responsible for leading her team of 10
professionals to develop new business
opportunities, grow the loan portfolio
and deposit base for the bank, and ser-
vice and maintain the existing custom-
er base throughout Suffolk County.
SCNB is entering an exciting 2016
with a new initiative that has been
put in place specifically to optimize
the customer experience, Hughes said.
“The desire for efficiency and tight-
er integration across delivery chan-
nels drove the decision for SCNB to
consolidate its technology infrastruc-
ture into one platform that will create
top shelf, consistent service that in-
corporates an enhanced digital experi-
ence for customers,” she said.
“From a more robust suite of cash
management products to a stream-
lined loan process, SCNB’s improved
technology infrastructure will make
its products more efficient and easier
to use,” Hughes explained. “New ATM
and debit card programs, enhanced
mobile banking, remote deposit and
bill pay products are some of the op-
timized services SCNB’s clients can
look forward to as the year unfolds.”
Technology is just one half of the
equation, she said.
“Along with its investment in op-
erations, the company is expanding
its staff and physical footprint to sup-
port its ability to deliver products
and services face to face to an even
wider client base,” Hughes explained.
“Knowing that people are the heart
of client relationships, the bank con-
tinues to expand its talented team of
banking professionals with additional
relationship managers and support
staff whose mission is to continue pro-
viding the highest level of service that
SCNB strives to deliver every day to
every client.”
Since beginning her banking ca-
reer in 1989, Hughes has worked in
a number of diverse roles including
commercial lending, business devel-
opment, financial analysis, operations
and administration.
Prior to joining SCNB, she worked
at Roslyn Savings Bank, Roosevelt
Savings Bank and KeyBank.
Hughes earned a bachelor’s degree
in business administration, with a con-
centration in economics, finance and
banking, from Hofstra University. She
is a member of the Risk Management
Association and Hauppauge Industrial
Association and is a supporter of local
chambers throughout Suffolk County
and various charitable organizations.
Founded in 1890, Suffolk County
National Bank, which is headquar-
tered in Riverhead, NY, offers a full
30 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
range of products and services includ-
ing deposit accounts, commercial and
consumer lending, residential mort-
gages, cash management, mobile
banking and more. SCNB is one of the
largest community banks headquar-
tered on Long Island with 26 branch
locations in Nassau and Suffolk and an
additional branch and regional com-
mercial lending office in Long Island
City. The bank’s market niche includes
small and middle market businesses,
as well as retail clients ancillary to
these commercial relationships.
Recognized for its long history of
commitment to businesses and con-
sumers - and its financial support and
services to local municipalities and
not-for-profits – SCNB is also known,
along with its employees, for its cul-
ture of active community involvement.
ROBERT
ISAKSEN
Bank of America
Robert “Bob” Isaksen is Bank of
America’s Long Island market pres-
ident. In addition to his responsibil-
ities as market president Isaksen is
responsible for coordinating Bank of
America’s Go-To-Market strategy on
Long Island.
Isaksen is also market executive
for the Long Island Business Banking
team where he leads a team of client
relationship managers to deliver stra-
tegic financial advice and solutions to
help locally-based small to mid-sized
companies grow, improve liquidity
and cash flow, manage U.S. and in-
ternational payments and invest for
the future. He most recently served
as senior credit products manager in
specialized industries-northeast.
Bank of America focuses on brining
customers its services on demand.
“Currently, 32 million customers
access their Bank of America accounts
via mobile banking, online banking or
both — a sign that customers are be-
coming increasingly mobile,” Isaksen
said. “We’re continuously focused on
providing customers ease and conve-
nience, and recently we made a num-
ber of updates to these platforms. For
example, Bank of America is one of the
first major U.S. banks to offer debit
card lock/unlock for customers to pro-
tect their accounts. Additional updates
include streamlined card management
pages, two-way fraud email alerts and
flexible deposit applications.”
With more mobile and online bank-
ing services being made available to
customers, the bank launched a pro-
gram in many of its financial centers
that guide customers through these
services, Isaksen explained.
“Our strategy is to deliver a seam-
less experience for customers across
all channels, and be there for them
when and where they need us,” Isak-
sen said. “We are committed to being
open, flexible and fast to invest in
state-of-the-art digital banking tech-
nology to help our clients manage
their financial lives, and are doing
more than ever to create a seamless,
integrated experience across chan-
nels. We’ve also recently launched
cardless ATMs nationwide, with the
number of machines that have the
technology growing on Long Island.”
Prior to Bank of America’s merg-
er with Fleet Bank, Isaksen was the
senior team leader for Fleet’s Metro
New York Healthcare and Institu-
tions group focusing on healthcare
providers and all other not-for-profits
located in New York City, Long Is-
land and the northern suburbs. Prior
to this, he managed the Fleet Bank
Middle Market line credit process for
Metro New York.
Isaksen also held a number of line
and credit positions at NatWest. From
1993 to 1996, he was the division se-
nior credit officer for the National and
Structured Finance Divisions. The na-
tional division focused on a national
corporate lending practice and also
included NatWest’s for-profit national
healthcare specialty.
Isaksen earned a bachelor’s degree
in business economics from the State
University of New York at Oneonta
and a master’s degree in finance from
Pace University’s Lubin Graduate
School of Business.
He is a member of the Long Island
Association, United Way of Long Is-
land, Cold Spring Harbor Labs Cor-
porate Advisory Board, Long Island
Housing Partnership and Stony Brook
Children’s Hospital Task Force.
Bank of America is one of the
world’s largest financial institutions,
serving individual consumers, small-
and middle-market businesses and
large corporations with a full range of
banking, investing, asset management
and other financial and risk manage-
ment products and services. From
supporting local nonprofits to hosting
personal finance workshops, Bank of
America is committed to strengthening
Long Island communities.
In neighborhoods across Long Is-
land, the company supports organi-
zations that address housing, hunger
and jobs, providing services that meet
the basic needs of individuals and
families, as well as those that foster
education and employment opportu-
nities. In 2015, Bank of America pro-
vided about $1.5 million in grants and
other support to Long Island nonprof-
its, and employees volunteered more
than 6,000 hours of their time to local
causes. One of the largest employers
on Long Island, Bank of America and
its predecessor banks began serving
the region more than 125 years ago.
JANE
KNEITEL
Suffolk Federal
Jane Kneitel is chief administra-
tion officer at Suffolk Federal where
she assists the CEO and board with
the strategic planning process.
Kneitel has been with the credit
union since 1995. She coordinated
ATM operations until 2002 at which
time she assumed management of
the Compliance and Security Depart-
ments. When she advanced to assis-
tant vice president of administration,
in 2004, she accepted the additional
responsibilities of human resources,
staff development and facilities.
Suffolk Federal continually devel-
ops its consultative service culture,
Kneitel said. “The overall success of
our members, our staff, and Suffolk
Federal is determined by our ability
to grow and adapt to the current mar-
ket and financial environment,” she
said. “At Suffolk Federal, our caring
and experienced team is committed to
helping our members achieve their fi-
nancial goals throughout their person-
al journey. This creates lifelong, loyal
members who understand that our
commitment to their financial stability
far surpasses the competition. With
each personal and financial achieve-
ment, they can feel confident to say
that Suffolk Federal was the beacon
that guided them to such success.”
Suffolk Federal is faced with the
ongoing challenge of aligning employ-
ees with the corporate mission and
goals, she noted.
“My team helps Suffolk Federal
meet that challenge by identifying
competencies at every level of the or-
ganization that support our corpo-
rate strategy of superior member ser-
vice,” she said. “Once identified, we
established protocols to hire for these
skills, and we develop them on an
ongoing basis with both formal train-
ing programs and mentoring. Every
employee is part of the credit unions’
success and our policies and programs
engage employees in ongoing conver-
sations to continually improve skills,
improve processes and ultimately de-
liver superior member service. “
The credit union also focuses on
succession and next generation devel-
opment. “Maintaining Suffolk Feder-
al’s bench strength can prevent dis-
ruption in the attainment of the credit
union’s strategic and financial goals
while providing consistency in deci-
sion making,” Kneitel explained.
Suffolk Federal, headquartered in
Medford, is a not-for-profit coopera-
tive financial institution chartered in
1967 by the National Credit Union
Administration (NCUA), and is owned
and operated by its members. Suf-
folk Federal has nine branch locations
throughout Suffolk County and be-
lieves that every member has a voice.
Suffolk Federal’s earnings are re-
turned to its members in the form of
lower rates on business loans, person-
al loans, higher rates on savings, and
reduced fees, allowing us to help our
more than 55,000 members achieve
greater financial stability.
The volunteer-directed credit
union, with assets in excess of more
than $1 billion, offers membership to
anyone who lives, works, worships
or attends school  in Suffolk County
NY. The credit union provides a wide
range of financial services. In addition
to savings and loans with Suffolk Fed-
eral, it offers insurance products, free
financial planning, online banking
and bill payment to name a few—and
easy access to cash.

WHO’SWHO
in Banking & Finance
Suffolk Federal is committed to a
relationship with its members based
on trust and respect.
ROBERT
MILAS
Wells Fargo
Robert Milas is a senior vice pres-
ident and the loan team leader for
Wells Fargo’s Commercial Bank in
Melville. For the past 25 years, Milas
has cared for commercial banking cus-
tomers as a portfolio manager, a rela-
tionship manager, the BDO and now
the LTL for the team. In his current
role, he is responsible overseeing a
team of RMs and for sourcing and
closing commercial transactions in-
cluding loans, treasury, FX, equip-
ment finance, trade banking and in-
surance for the group.
Milas began his banking career
with Chemical Bank back in 1991
and completed their 10 month Credit
Training Program in 1992. He then
spent 10 years with Fleet Bank/BoA,
starting in 1994. In 2004, he was
part of a five-person team, which was
formed to start and grow the commer-
cial banking business for the former
North Fork Bank, now Capital One.
He joined the Wachovia/Wells
Fargo Commercial Banking team
in 2007 and has helped to grow the
bank’s commercial business through-
out Nassau and Suffolk counties.
“With over 85 different product
partners throughout the bank, includ-
ing treasury management, equipment
finance, insurance and investment
banking to name a few, we are able
to bring a broad breadth of products
and services to the core middle mar-
ket here on Long Island,” Milas said.
“With over 100 regional commercial
banking offices throughout the U.S.,
it is highly likely that we have knowl-
edge and experience in most indus-
tries served.”
“In addition to the core wholesal-
ers, manufacturers, distributors and
retailers, our commercial bank serves
the specific needs of a variety of indus-
tries including beverage, agriculture,
technology, healthcare and higher ed-
ucation,” Milas noted. “We are always
asking our customers for their input
about their specific business priorities
to ensure our offerings remain compat-
ible with their evolving needs. All our
bankers, here on Long Island, are com-
mitted to supporting the communities
in which we live through social events
and volunteerism.”
Milas earned a bachelor’s degree
in business administration from
Pace University. He is a supporter of
local charities including the March of
Dimes, the Ronald McDonald House,
the American Cancer Society Hope
Lodge and the Child Care Council of
Nassau County.
Milas has served on the board of
the Risk Management Association for
the past nine years and is a board
member for the Long Island Chapter
31 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
of the Arthritis Foundation for more
than eight years.
Wells Fargo & Company is a di-
versified, community-based financial
services company with $1.8 trillion in
assets. Founded in 1852 and headquar-
tered in San Francisco, Wells Fargo
provides banking, insurance, invest-
ments, mortgage, and consumer and
commercial finance through 8,700 lo-
cations, 13,000 ATMs, the internet and
mobile banking, and has offices in 36
countries to support customers who
conduct business in the global economy.
Wells Fargo & Company has approxi-
mately 265,000 team members and was
ranked No. 30 on Fortune’s 2015 rank-
ings of America’s largest corporations.
EILEEN
NOLAN
NEFCU
Eileen Nolan is executive vice pres-
ident, chief marketing and sales offi-
cer for NEFCU. Nolan is responsible
for the direction of NEFCU’s sales,
service, marketing, business develop-
ment, branch and call center opera-
tions. These responsibilities are inclu-
sive of expansion and transformation
strategies within the branch and call
center channels, as well as the stra-
tegic oversight for sales, marketing,
branding, public relations and com-
munity outreach activities.
This year, NEFCU is implement-
ing a multi-year progressive and cre-
ative approach to branch banking with
the emergence of Interactive Teller
Machines (ITMs). “We are the first
credit union on Long Island to roll-out
ITMs, the first of which were intro-
duced in our new Bay Shore location.
These ITMs will allow us, over time,
to create efficiencies by centralizing
our teller staff in one location and have
them service multiple branch locations
through video technology. This will
ensure consistency of service and effec-
tive utilization of the skills of all of our
tellers while decreasing member wait
times and supporting our ability to
open even more branch locations.”
“In addition to technology, one of
our primary goals remains the com-
mitment to continued that make it
easy to do doing business with us,”
Nolan said. “We continue to evaluate
our products and services to ensure
that they that reflect an understand-
ing and appreciation for the depth
and breadth of member relationship
with NEFCU. Our deposit and loan
rates have historically always been
among the best in the marketplace
and our stance will not change. We
are here for our membership and we
continually seek ways to derive strong
competitive value.”
“With a membership comprised
of so many early adopters, we’re also
ushering in a variety of new enhance-
ments to enrich our members’ online
experience,” Nolan noted. “From en-
hanced mobile solutions that help
manage money ‘on the go,’ to more
convenient ways to access mobile pay-
ment methods via Apple Pay or from a
digital wallet, our members can enjoy
a more robust menu of online offer-
ings. We are also utilizing technology
to make banking more secure with the
introduction of EMV fraud protection
on our debit and credit cards.”
“Our goals in 2016 remain centered
in our mission, to provide high value
financial products and exceptional
service that enable our members to
build financial success,” Nolan said.
Nolan previously served as NEF-
CU’s chief branding officer, as well as
senior vice president for marketing
and community relations, since join-
ing the credit union in 2007. Prior to
joining NEFCU, she was a managing
director at HIP Health Plan of New
York. Her experience also includes
senior management roles at European
American Bank (EAB) and as director
of marketing for Chase Long Island.
Nolan serves on the board of UsNet,
a national credit union shared branch-
ing network and has previously served
as a long-time member of the executive
board of Advancement for Industry,
Commerce and Technology.
She earned a bachelor’s degree,
summa cum laude, from St. Joseph’s
College and a master’s degree from
Hofstra University. She is also recog-
nized as a Certified Chief Executive
through the Credit Union Executives
Society (CUES) Executive Training
CEO Certification Program, success-
fully completing study at the Wharton
School of Business, Cornell University
and the Darden School of Business at
the University of Virginia.
Nolan also has accreditations from
Six Sigma, Outward Bound, as well as
an executive leadership program pro-
vided by the University of Colorado at
Colorado Springs.
NEFCU is one of Long Island’s
leading not-for-profit full-service fi-
nancial institutions that offers ser-
vices to all Long Islanders. With more
than $2.5 billion in assets and over
160,000 members, NEFCU is head-
quartered in Westbury, NY and has
branches and a shared branch net-
work throughout Nassau and Suffolk
counties. To join NEFCU, eligible
members must live, work, worship, at-
tend school, or regularly conduct busi-
ness in Nassau and/or Suffolk coun-
ties (excluding the townships of East
Hampton, Southampton and Shelter
Island). Existing NEFCU members
may also sponsor in immediate family
members or household members.
MONTE N.
REDMAN
Astoria Bank/
Astoria Financial
Corporation
Monte N. Redman is president and
chief executive officer, and a member
of the board of directors of Astoria
Financial Corporation and its sub-
sidiary Astoria Bank. Redman joined
Astoria in 1977. He served in various
accounting, investment and treasury
positions during his tenure, including
executive vice president and chief fi-
nancial officer, and was most recently
president and chief operating officer.
He was appointed president and chief
executive officer and elected to the
board of directors in 2011.
“Since 2011, Astoria Bank has fo-
cused on building and strengthening
its Business Banking Group through-
out the New York area,” Redman said.
“In addition, we expanded our branch
network over the last few years, most
recently adding a Melville Branch in
2014, as well as a Long Island City
branch in 2015, which is in a rapidly
growing residential and established
commercial neighborhood of Queens.
As a result of these and other efforts,
Astoria’s core business deposits con-
tinue to grow, having increased by
double digits each year and now total-
ing over $1.15 billion.”
“Astoria remains focused on provid-
ing New York area businesses of all
sizes with local expertise, direct ac-
cess to decision makers and hands-on,
consultative advice to help improve
their cash flow and grow,” Redman
noted. “We continue to build our rela-
tionships with both new and existing
business clients by providing access to
capital, convenient day-to-day bank-
ing and cash management services,
as well as helping them prepare for
those ‘what if’ situations. To achieve
this, our experienced relationship
and branch managers not only help
business owners utilize a full suite of
treasury management services, but
also combine those options with local
market knowledge and connections to
help businesses succeed.”
“In essence, Astoria is able to offer
business owners a unique combina-
tion of the customization, access and
attention of a small bank with the
experience, reach and services of a
larger bank,” Redman said.
In order to continue its commit-
ment to growth and deepening its per-
sonal relationships with customers,
Astoria Bank is offering convenient
technology that customers want and
need, Redman explained.
“Our new Touch ID® for iPhone of-
fers the convenience of logging into the
Astoria Bank Mobile Banking app to
quickly access certain features of mo-
bile banking, such as viewing balanc-
es and activity, with the convenience
of only using a fingerprint to log in,”
he said. “Astoria Bank has also intro-
duced chip technology for its credit/
debit cards, ensuring a higher level of
security while making transactions.”
“Additionally, through our Busi-
ness Banking Professionals Program,
Astoria Bank continues to work with
an array of professionals, such as
attorneys, CPAs and physicians, to
provide cash management services
– including consolidating funds, con-
trolling disbursements, and more,” he
said. “Special benefits and offers are
available for each group to cater to
their specific needs.”
Redman is a member of the board
of directors for the Federal Home
Loan Bank of New York and the New
York Bankers Association, address-
ing issues of importance to the New
York banking community. He is also a
member of the American Bankers As-
 32 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM

WHO’SWHO
in Banking & Finance
sociation’s American Bankers Council. the regional business customers has community banks in the country. It ly growing loans and deposits, while
A magna cum laude graduate of helped to achieve continued steady has assets of about $3.8 billion and maintaining excellent asset quality
New York Institute of Technology, growth. He was integral to the suc- operates 40 retail branch locations across all of our portfolios. In 2016,
Redman is a member of the NYIT cessful integration of the 11 Commu- serving Long Island and the greater we continue to focus on supporting
Board of Trustees, and is a director nity National Bank (CNB) branches New York metropolitan area. In ad- the growth and success of our cus-
and former chairman of the board of recently acquired by BNB. He has dition, BNB has two loan production tomers through products and services
the Tourette Association of America. also been involved in the opening of 4 offices: one in Manhattan, and one in that support their individual needs.”
Astoria Financial Corporation, de novo branches, as well as the man- Riverhead, New York. “We know that our business is built
with assets of $15 billion, is the hold-
agement of total deposits of $673MM. Using a relationship based model, on our ability to exceed our customer’s
ing company for Astoria Bank. Es- Banking products and services BNB’s banking professionals offer flex- expectations,” Skorobohaty said. “We
tablished in 1888, Astoria Bank, with are often very much the same, Sher- ible programs designed to help both tailor our checking, savings, mobile
deposits in New York totaling $9 bil- idan noted. commercial and individual customers banking, commercial including real
lion, is among the largest thrift depos- “Optimizing them comes down to meet their financial needs. Lending estate, small business, middle mar-
itories in New York with 88 banking the solid partnership between banker is proactive, and decisions are local ket, large corporate, specialty finance,
branch locations, a business banking and customer,” he explained. “In this – made on Long Island by a lending treasury management and govern-
office in Manhattan, and multiple de- age of technology, it’s still the ability team that understands the market- ment banking and wealth manage-
livery channels, including its flexibleto have a conversation with someone place and the unique challenges of the ment products and services to deliver
mobile banking app. Astoria Bank who understands the unique challeng- area. Banking products and services unique customer solutions. We don’t
commands a significant deposit mar- es of a business that supports suc- include effective technologies like on- just sell; we use our know-how to cre-
ket share in the Long Island mar- cess. We stay in close touch with our line banking, online bill pay, remote ate innovative solutions to address
ket, which includes Brooklyn, Queens, customers to make sure we have the deposit capture and lockbox, as well our customer’s financial needs and
Nassau, and Suffolk counties. products and services that help move as the traditional menu of deposit those of their family.”
Astoria Bank originates multi-fam- their business forward. It’s a person- and loan products. In addition, Title Prior to joining the bank in 2015,
ily and commercial real estate alized experience as opposed to an off Insurance is offered through Bridge Skorobohaty was executive vice pres-
loans, primarily on rent controlled the shelf approach.” Abstract and investment direction is
ident, chief banking officer at Hud-
and rent stabilized apartment build- “That being said, we recognize the provided by Bridge Financial Services.
son Valley Bank, chiefly responsible
ings, located in New York City and need to make sure BNB is able to Throughout its history, BNB has es-
for sales and marketing across the
the surrounding metropolitan area provide a full array of products and tablished a reputation for personal ser-
company, including overall direction,
and originates residential mortgage services to our customers,” Sheridan vice, access to decision makers and en-
management and administration. He
loans through its banking and loan said. “Our product suite includes re- gaged involvement in the community.
drove organizational strategy and ac-
production offices in New York, a bro- mote capture, lock box and other cash
ker network in four states, primarily countability for annual sales goals
management tools. We recently part-
along the East Coast, and correspon- while optimizing organizational man-
nered with a third party FX company
dent relationships covering 13 states agement and business line planning
to provide foreign exchange services,
up to the bank’s acquisition by Ster-
and the District of Columbia. Astoria
has entered into a strategic merger
including forward contracts. We are
also now offering Foreign Letters of
SCOTT ling Bancorp in June 2015. Previous-
ly, Skorobohaty was a substantial
agreement with New York Communi-
ty Bancorp (NYCB) and, once the deal
Credit. And, we have put in place new SKOROBOHATY contributor to the growth of North
departments to address the needs of a People’s United Bank
is closed, looks forward to working Fork Bank by designing, creating and
growing business marketplace, which
with NYCB to continue to serve the implementing strategic initiatives to
for BNB has expanded in the last year
communities which have come to rely enhance the experience of that com-
from Montauk to Manhattan. Two
on us for the past 127 years. new departments are now in place, pany’s New York metro client. A focus
to facilitate expedited SBA lending, on optimizing commercial banking
Scott Skorobohaty is executive vice
and we have initiated an equipment relationships during Skorobohaty’s
president, commercial banking at
financing division.” tenure resulted in significant growth
People’s United Bank. Skorobohaty is
“Optimization really means being at the bank until its acquisition by
responsible for the New York City and
STEPHEN nimble and responsive to your cus- Long Island markets. Skorobohaty
Capital One in 2006.
tomer,” Sheridan said. has 20 years of experience in banking People’s United Bank is a subsidi-
SHERIDAN A graduate of Hofstra University and financial services, including prov- ary of People’s United Financial, Inc., a
Bridgehampton in Business Administration and Dow- en capability in executive leadership, diversified financial services company
National Bank ling College with an MBA, Sheridan as well as administrative and opera- with over $39 billion in assets. People’s
brings 26 years of banking experience, tional experience. He is responsible United Bank, founded in 1842, is a pre-
in both the loan and deposit areas, to for driving the commercial business in mier, community-based, regional bank
his position. He began his career as a coordination with other bank leaders in the Northeast offering commercial
Stephen Sheridan, senior vice pres- management trainee at The Bank of throughout the New York market. and retail banking, as well as wealth
ident, director of branch and private New York, in 1990, and has since held Together with Mark Melchione, management services through a net-
banking, Bridgehampton National various positions of increasing respon- executive vice president, commercial work of nearly 400 retail locations in
Bank (BNB), is responsible for BNB’s sibility. Most recently, he served as a real estate and Steve Santino, first New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts,
40 branch network that spans Long senior vice president, middle market vice president, retail banking, Sko- Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine.
Island into New York City. Along with  relationship manager at Capital One robohaty helps lead the bank and its Its over 5,000 employees focus on
his team of talented, professional re- Bank, formerly North Fork Bank, in customers into growth and success. providing an extraordinary custom-
gional managers, Sheridan has suc- the Middle Market Lending Group, “People’s United Bank continues to er experience through a network of
cessfully focused on building deposit delivering a high level of service to focus on delivering an extraordinary branches located in New York, Con-
growth and strengthening customer the commercial client base. customer experience throughout our necticut, Massachusetts, Vermont,
relationships. Established in 1910 by farmers and footprint, particularly in New York New Hampshire and Maine. In addi-
Managing branches from Shirley merchants, BNB has been serving the through a locally experienced team of tion, seven-day banking is available
to Great Neck, Sheridan’s under- needs of Long Island businesses and business professionals,” Skorobohaty at more than 140 convenient People’s
standing of the local economy and the communities for more than 100 years. said. “This talented team continues to United Bank Stop & Shop locations in
importance of working closely with BNB is recognized as one of the top move the company forward organical- New York and Connecticut.
 33 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
WHO’s WHO
KRIS
ALMSKOG
P.W. Grosser
Consulting, Inc.
in Environmental Consulting
& Engineering
Kris Almskog is vice president of
P.W. Grosser Consulting, (PWGC)
Inc. in Bohemia. Almskog focuses on
Long Island’s environmental consulting and assisting public and private entities
engineering firms offer an array of professional address environmental issues related
to property transaction due diligence
services geared toward making the Earth a and soil, groundwater, and soil vapor
impact. He also provides permitting,
better place to live. compliance, and environmental moni-
toring services for the New York met-
ropolitan region’s mining and com-
In this Who’s Who in Environmental Consulting
& Engineering section, some of Long Island’s
posting operations.
For more than two decades, Almsk-
og has been promoting the reuse of
top environmental and engineering specialists environmentally challenged proper-
ties. His career at PWGC began at
describe a recent project or an industry issue Brookhaven National Laborato-
their firm is currently focusing on to enhance ry where he tracked contaminated
groundwater plumes and designed
the quality of life in the region. and constructed state of the art treat-
ment systems to address issues as-
sociated with chemical and radioac-
tive contamination. More recently,
his focus has been on the growth of
PWGC in New York City by assisting
property developers investigate, reme-
diate, and redevelop environmental-
INDEXINDEXINDEX ly-challenged properties.
Almskog has been active assisting
clients navigate through the regulato-
ry requirements associated with the
33 KRIS ALMSKOG P.W. Grosser Consulting, Inc. New York City Office of Environmental
33 THOMAS BROWN CA RICH Consultants, Inc Remediation’s E-designation program
and the New York State Department
34 BEN CANCEMI, CPG FPM Group of Environmental Conservation (NYS-
DEC) Brownfield Cleanup Program, to
34 MICHAEL GIANCHETTA, LEED AP GIANCO Environmental Services
minimize construction downtime and
34 DANE C. KENNY, P.E. Sidney B. Bowne & Son, LLP maximize financial incentives.
Among top issues Almskog is fo-
35 CHUCK MERRITT Merritt Environmental Consulting Corporation cused on include proposed revisions to
36 ANDREW L. NARUS, P.E. Cameron Engineering and Associates, LLP waste management.
“The recent spotlight on the dump-
36 FRANK PEARSON Greenman-Pedersen, Inc./GPI ing of construction debris in the Town
of Islip, illegal sand mining activities,
36 DEBORAH SHAPIRO, QEP AKRF and the growing concern related to ef-
37 KIM THRELFALL, PMP, LEED AP VHB fects of mulch and compost on Long Is-
land’s aquifers has led to the recent re-
37 ROCCO TROTTA, P.E. The LiRo Group lease of proposed revisions to NYSDEC
regulation (Part 360),” Almskog said.
38 RICHARD ZAPOLSKI, P.E. Prime Engineering, P.C.
“These revisions will raise the permit-
ting and monitoring requirements for
activities involved in production, pro-
cessing, handling, and transportation
of construction materials and recycla-
ble organic waste streams.”
“The final regulations will likely
have a significant impact on these in-
dustries in the coming years,” Almsk-
og explained. “PWGC is well-versed in
these new regulations and will be able
to assist our clients as these new reg-
ulations are implemented.”
Almskog has served on the board
of the Long Island Association of Pro-
fessional Geologists, the NYC Brown-
field Partnership, and serves on the
environmental committee in the New
York State Construction Material As-
sociation.
P. W. Grosser Consulting, Inc. is
a multidisciplinary engineering firm
based in Bohemia, with offices in
Manhattan, Syracuse, Seattle and
Shelton, CT. Founded by Paul Gross-
er, PhD., PE in 1990, PWGC’s growth
and success results from creating
value through the application of inno-
vative environmental and engineering
solutions for its clients. Dedicated to
being responsive in the design and
application of cost-effective environ-
mental and engineering solutions,
PWGC’s areas of expertise include
structure vulnerability and resilience,
civil/general engineering, sustainable
energy solutions, wastewater and
water supply, natural resource stud-
ies, geographical information system
capabilities and expert counseling and
client representation.
THOMAS
BROWN
CA RICH
Consultants, Inc.
Thomas Brown is a geologist at CA
RICH Consultants, Inc. (CA RICH)
in Plainview. Brown joined CA RICH
in 2012 and as a project environmen-
tal scientist with the company, his
responsibilities include the conduc-
tance of Phase I and Phase II Envi-
ronmental Site Assessments (ESAs).
Brown has also conducted all aspects
of environmental investigations in-
cluding supervision of drilling and
well installation, sanitary system or
dry well clean-outs, groundwater, in-
door air, soil gas, subslab vapor, and
soil sampling, soil delineation, exca-
vation, UST removals, petroleum and
hazardous waste disposal, analytical
interpretation, groundwater contour-
ing, mapping, and report preparation.
Brown has also assisted with the
start-up tests for soil vapor extraction
(SVE) systems for the remediation of
PCE contamination on Federal Super-
fund sites.
“CA RICH often works in conjunc-
tion with insurance companies and
state agencies to remediate contam-
ination that may create a hazard to
human health or the environment,”
Brown said, adding that during the
aftermath of hurricane Sandy, the
company quickly responded to and
corrected many potentially harmful
situations, including an oil spill.
“CA RICH was contacted about
a spill that occurred over two resi-
dential properties located close to a
tidally-influenced inlet in Nassau
County with canals located to the
east and west,” Brown said. “During
the storm, a 275-gallon fuel oil tank
was overturned and spilled heating
oil across two properties. The extent
of the contaminated areas was de-
termined by measuring the volatile
organic compounds in the suspect soil
with a MiniRAE 2000 Photoionization
Detector (PID), using visual cues such
as discoloration of soil and grass, and
fuel oil odors.”
CA RICH then excavated the soil,
and power-washed the walkways con-
taminated with the heating oil, Brown
noted. “Confirmatory endpoint sam-
ples were collected to determine that

WHO’SWHO
in Environmental Consulting & Engineering
the spill had been completely cleaned
up,” he said. “After receipt of clean
endpoint sample results, CA RICH
returned to the site and backfilled the
excavated areas with clean top soil. A
spill closure report was then created
and submitted to the New York State
Department of Environmental Con-
servation (NYSDEC). The NYSDEC
determined the remedial activities
conducted at the site were satisfactory
and closed the spill.”
Brown’s certifications include 40-
hour OSHA Hazardous Waste Op-
erations and Emergency Response
Training (OSHA 29 CFR 1910.120)
and 8-hour OSHA Hazardous Waste
Operations and Emergency Response
Refresher Training
CA RICH Consultants is a full-ser-
vice environmental consulting firm
providing strategic consulting and
on-site support to help business own-
ers manage all their environmental
issues. Independently-owned since
1982, CA RICH provides environ-
mental consulting; Phase I & II As-
sessments; compliance audits; inves-
tigation; remediation; groundwater
resource management; storage tank,
indoor air quality & hazardous waste
management; soil vapor intrusion mit-
igation; brownfield redevelopment;
property acquisition; sustainability,
expert testimony; strategic thinking &
dispute resolution; and all other pro-
fessional services related to evolving
regulations and client needs.
BEN
CANCEMI,
CPG
FPM Group
Ben Cancemi, CPG is a senior
hydrogeologist/department manag-
er of hydrogeology at FPM Group in
Ronkonkoma. Cancemi joined FPM in
2001 and has diversified experience in
geology and hydrogeology.
Cancemi’s professional experience
includes Phase I Environmental Site
Assessments (ESAs), subsurface in-
vestigations, soil vapor intrusion as-
sessments, design and management of
soil remediation projects, installation
and maintenance of groundwater re-
mediation systems, aquifer testing
and analysis, geotechnical studies,
environmental compliance, and litiga-
tion support.
Investigating and remediating
blighted and underutilized proper-
ties across the metropolitan New York
area and Long Island for redevelop-
ment are some of the most interesting
projects Cancemi said he is currently
involved with at FPM Group.
“One of my most challenging proj-
ects included the redevelopment of
a formed aerospace manufacturing
facility, which as the senior hydroge-
ologist, I was tasked with the inter-
viewing facility personnel to evaluate
historic operations and their poten-
tial impacts to subsurface media (soil,
groundwater and soil vapor), develop-
ing and implementing subsurface in-
34 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
vestigations to identify and determine
the nature and extent of identified
impacts,” Cancemi said.
“Upon completion of this investi-
gation, these data were used to deter-
mine the most cost effective solutions
to remediate the site and meet regu-
latory requirements,” he noted. “The
solution at this site included the prop-
er closure of aboveground and under-
ground storage tanks, the excavation
and proper disposal of contaminated
soils, and the development of envi-
ronmental plans to manage residual
contaminated soil.”
Cancemi earned a master’s degree
in hydrogeology from SUNY Stony
Brook and a bachelor’s degree in geol-
ogy from SUNY Stony Brook. He is a
Certified Professional Geologist from
the American Institute of Professional
Geologists and is a NYC Office of En-
vironmental Remediation Gold Certi-
fied Professional.
FPM Group is a full service multi-dis-
cipline engineering and environmental
consulting firm launched in 1968. FPM’s
headquarters is located in Ronkonkoma,
NY with regional offices in Rome, NY,
San Antonio, TX and Lancaster, CA.
FPM’s clients include federal, state, mu-
nicipal and private entities including the
US Air Force, NYC Transit Authority,
New York State Office of General Ser-
vices, New York State Office of Parks,
Recreation and Historic Preservation
and several municipalities in Suffolk
County.
MICHAEL
GIANCHETTA,
LEED AP
GIANCO
Environmental
Services
Michael Gianchetta, LEED AP is
vice president of GIANCO Environ-
mental Services, a NYS, NYC and
WBENC Certified Women Owned
business that recently relocated to
new corporate offices in Melville.
Gianchetta is an active member of
the U.S. Green Building Council
(USGBC) and is a past chair of the
Long Island Chapter. The USGBC
is the leading authority on LEED
and Green Building both locally and
nationally. The national organiza-
tion was founded to transform the
way buildings and communities are
designed, built, operated and main-
tained. He is a member of IFMA,
HIA, LISWA, SWANA and WBENC,
as well as other business networking
affiliations.
In 1999, Gianchetta was select-
ed by his peers to Chair New York
State’s first NY States Plastic Sum-
mit. Recognized as an expert in his
field, with more than 30 years of en-
vironmental and recycling experience,
he holds many relevant certifications
including 40 Hour HAZWOPER,
FEMA Incident Command, Confined
Space Awareness, Blood Borne Patho-
gen Awareness, Asbestos Supervisor,
as well as Anthrax Awareness.
When asked about the recession,
he noted it was a wakeup call to ev-
eryone. “It again highlighted the im-
portance of waste reduction, ener-
gy efficiency and health and safety,”
Gianchetta said. “Owners, facility
managers and developers of manu-
facturing, distribution and commer-
cial properties have and need to con-
tinue to become more aware and in-
volved in these important areas. For-
ward thinking, proactive efforts and
a commitment to increased corporate
responsibility have enabled our cli-
ents to continue to see the benefits
of these initiatives with us. These ef-
forts have proven to reduce operating
costs, as well as the risk and expense
associated with non-compliance. The
most significant areas we continue
to see interest and improvement is
in our environmental and health and
safety capabilities.”
“Each day, our clients are becom-
ing more aware of the importance of
these areas for their social, environ-
mental and economical benefits, and
as a result are streamlining more
services with us,” he said. “Each of
our services and programs are tai-
lored to meet specific needs of clients
in the multiple disciplines of environ-
mental, engineering, waste manage-
ment and health and safety.”
“When addressing the environ-
mental impact of recycling and the
stewardship of these materials it is
just as important to discuss the uni-
versal waste streams such as light
bulbs, old computers, electronics and
other potentially hazardous items
from finding their way into our wa-
ters and landfills,” Gianchetta ex-
plained. “This is good news for both
the economy and the environment.
Green Building and the US Green
Building Council LEED building ini-
tiatives have also played an import-
ant role in creating greater aware-
ness of these important areas.”
“Our energy and recycling pro-
grams for commodities such as
plastic stretch wrap and OCC (Old
Corrugated Cardboard) help clients
reduce costs, generate revenue and
meet these goals,” Gianchetta said.
Gianchetta earned a bachelor’s de-
gree in business management and
marketing from Western New En-
gland College in Springfield, MA. He
also currently serves as an active
member of the United States Coast
Guard Auxiliary with certifications
in communications, personnel ser-
vices and vessel examiner.
GIANCO Environmental Services
is a NYS, NYC and WBENC Certified
Women Owned Business. As a lead-
er in the environmental, engineering
and health and safety community,
GIANCO Environmental Services pro-
vides sustainable practices and prod-
ucts. GIANCO Environmental Ser-
vices is a uniquely positioned, well-re-
spected diversified environmental
management and service firm spe-
cializing in multiple disciplines. The
firm’s broad range of services include
hazardous and non-hazardous, uni-
versal waste disposal; certified prod-
uct destroy; comprehensive recycling
and engineering services; health and
safety compliance and training; waste
management equipment; emergency
management and preparedness initia-
tives and products.
DANE C.
KENNY, P.E.
Sidney B. Bowne
& Son, LLP
Dane C. Kenny, P.E., is an associ-
ate partner with Sidney B. Bowne &
Son, LLP in Mineola. Kenny has more
than 35 years of civil engineering ex-
perience and is head of the private
site development department where
he oversees the design of private site
projects and is also responsible for
preparing engineering reports and
construction documents, and for de-
signing stormwater management fa-
cilities, arterial highways, wastewater
collection and treatment systems.
Kenny has successfully completed
the design for the construction of
numerous developments including a
wide variety of health care facilities,
senior living and mixed-use com-
munities, retail shopping centers,
naval and private housing, air cargo
facilities and bus maintenance and
storage depots. In addition to super-
vising engineering and drafting per-
sonnel, Kenny prepares proposals,
confers with clients and regulatory
agencies and represents clients at
public hearings.
Sidney B. Bowne & Son enjoys long
standing relationships with its cli-
ents, Kenny said.
“Bowne has had a long and produc-
tive relationship with the Northwell
Health, previously known as North
Shore-LIJ Health System,” he said.
Bowne provides engineering ser-
vices to Northwell, demonstrating
Bowne’s commitment to the develop-
ment of first class health care facilities
to serve Long Island’s growing and
aging population, Kenny explained.
“Bowne has worked on numerous
projects for Northwell, which is com-
prised of 21 hospitals, long-term care
facilities, a major medical research
institute and other health-related fa-
cilities,” Kenny noted. “We completed
site development plans and provided
surveying services for the construc-
tion of the Feinstein Institute for
Medical Research in Manhasset. Fein-
stein is a Northwell research institute
with 55 laboratories staffed by clini-
cians, scientists, and other research-
ers conducting approximately 2,000
studies annually on such topics as
immunology, neuroscience, behavioral
medicine, oncology, cardiopulmonolo-
gy, and molecular genetics of disease.”
Additionally, Bowne is providing
engineering and surveying services as
part of the master planning and devel-
opment of Northwell’s Southside Hos-
pital campus in Bay Shore, Kenny said.
“Bowne has provided surveying,
site design, planning, and structural
engineering for many of Northwell’s
and other hospital facilities over the
past decades,” Kenny noted. “We have
worked with hospital administrations
on department expansions and build-
ing extensions, site drainage and util-
ity improvements, parking field and
garage design evaluations, striping

WHO’SWHO
in Environmental Consulting & Engineering
and signage projects, and emergency
power improvements.”
Sidney B. Bowne & Son, LLP is
one of the oldest and largest engineer-
ing consulting firms in the New York
metropolitan area with more than 150
professional engineers, surveyors, and
technicians. Since 1895, the firm has
been providing surveying and civil engi-
neering services to Long Island munic-
ipalities and private industry, particu-
larly in the areas of road and drainage
projects, design and maintenance of
water supply facilities, and municipal
engineering for local towns and villages.
In recent years, Bowne has added
thriving practices in private sector site
development, architecture, stormwater
management, environmental engineer-
ing, municipal planning, structural en-
gineering, MEP, traffic engineering
and construction management.
Sidney B. Bowne & Son is part of
the Bowne AE&T Group, which also
features Bowne Management Systems,
an information technology/geograph-
ic information systems company, and
RouteSmart Technologies, Inc., a route
optimization software developer. The
Bowne AE&T Group also has offices in
Albany, NY and Columbia, MD.
35 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
CHUCK
MERRITT
Merritt
Environmental
Consulting
Corporation
Chuck Merritt is founder and sole
owner of Merritt Environmental Con-
sulting Corporation (MECC), which
is headquartered in Hauppauge with
satellite offices in Florida and Ver-
mont. Merritt first developed an en-
vironmental division at a New York
City-based engineering firm in 1993.
He spent the next 20 years building
the department until branching out
onto his own to form MECC in 2009.
Merritt is a recognized expert in
the field of environmental consult-
ing and an Environmental Profession-
al (EP) as defined by the American
Society of Testing Materials (ASTM)
governing body, and a Leadership
in Energy & Environmental Design
(LEED) Accredited Professional (AP)
as defined by the United States Green
Building Council.
Over his 25-year tenure, he has seen
many changes to the environmental
consulting industry including the evo-
lution of the ASTM standard, which
was first released in 1994. He has been
called upon by lending institutions to
help draft internal guidelines used to
evaluate the potential environmental
risk a site may present prior to making
a loan. He has also traveled much of
the United States advising shopping
center owners of environmental issues
including asbestos regulations when
removing roofing felts.
Among MECC’s many recent proj-
ects include a multi-building package,
Merritt said.
“In the fourth quarter of 2015, Mer-
ritt Environmental Consulting Corp
was retained by a seller who was
marketing a multi-building industri-
al package located in central Nassau
County,” he said. “As with many build-
ings of this vintage, there was a litany
of historical issues ranging from light
manufacturing to industrial printers
that had operated over the decades.”
“A potential buyer had many en-
vironmental concerns that were out-
lined in the Phase One report pre-
pared on their behalf and requested
a Phase 2 Investigation,” Merritt ex-
plained. ”The scope of the work pro-
posed included testing the soil, dry-
wells and former septic sanitary sys-
tems at several of the buildings.”
“MECC consulted with the seller on
their regulatory obligations should any
impacts — contamination — be dis-
covered during the due diligence work
being requested,” Merritt said. “Since
the Nassau County Department of
Health, New York State Department
of Environmental Conservation and
the Federal Environmental Protection
Agency all have jurisdiction depend-
ing on the compounds detected, it was
important for the seller to understand
these nuances. After discussing the
proposed scope of work with the buy-
er’s consultant, MECC’s client, and
their legal team, an agreement was
reached and the testing commenced.”
“The outcome revealed some im-
pacts present but minimal in se-
verity,” Merritt noted. “MECC then
worked with a qualified firm to ad-
dress the impacts in an expeditious
manner. The transaction is scheduled
to close in the second quarter of 2016.”
Merritt has guest lectured for
the Community Bankers Mortgage
Forum; Metropolitan Mortgage Of-
ficers, NYU Masters in real estate
program; and has presented a Con-
tinuing Legal Education (CLE) credit
approved program for real estate at-
torneys. He has served as chairman
of the Young Mortgage Bankers As-
sociation and governor for both the
Mortgage Bankers Association and
the National Realty Club.
Chuck graduated from Adelphi
University. In 2009, Chuck put on the

WHO’SWHO
in Environmental Consulting & Engineering
boxing gloves to help raise money at
the annual Fight for Charity boxing
tournament.
Merritt Environmental Consult-
ing Corporation was formed in 2009,
under the direction of Chuck Merritt
who has been assisting lending insti-
tutions, insurance companies, attor-
neys, property owners and real estate
investors for over two decades. The
firm’s primary service is determin-
ing if environmental issues exist at a
property. MECC is typically engaged
to conduct a Phase One Environmen-
tal Site Assessment. MECC provides
a written assessment of the property
utilizing historical maps, database
reports and experienced personnel to
conduct the site Reconnaissance. Its
staff has represented clients on com-
mercial real estate, including indus-
trial sites, multi-family buildings, pro-
fessional office complexes and retail
shopping centers.
MECC can visit a site within 48
hours of an initial request and can
provide a summary of findings within
a few days of the site visit. Its reports
provide clients with the data neces-
sary to make business risk decisions
regarding potential environmental is-
sues that may exist.
ANDREW L.
NARUS, P.E.
Cameron
Engineering and
Associates, LLP
Andrew L. Narus, P.E. is an as-
sociate in Cameron Engineering and
Associates, LLP’s (Cameron Engineer-
ing) municipal civil engineering and
construction management division in
Woodbury. Narus has more than 30
years of experience in land planning,
land development & remediation,
major municipal environmental en-
hancement, and due diligence services
beginning with permitting through
legal interpretations.
Narus delivers projects from con-
ception through design and construc-
tion management to ensure that the
full intent and functionality of the de-
sign concept materialize. The projects
range from major wastewater treat-
ment facilities and associated pumping
stations and infrastructure, to the de-
velopment of lower intensity uses such
as residential communities, office com-
plexes and commercial retail centers,
to the development of road and high-
way rehabilitation and reconstruction.
Narus is actively engaged in each
phase of a project and often issues
planning and engineering analysis for
internal study as well as public pre-
sentations. As needed, he negotiates
with agencies and clients to best serve
the purposes of the project applica-
tion. He has been in charge of oper-
ations management, responsibilities
that include training both staff and
executives. Narus has prepared and
monitored project and business bud-
gets, schedules and timelines, busi-
ness plans, and profit & loss reports.
His main areas of expertise include
36 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
civil and environmental engineering,
design services during construction,
site planning and development, yield
studies, and program management.
Quality of life has always been the
top item on Narus’ agenda.
“As a civil engineering and environ-
mental professional I take pride in my
responsibility of contributing to enhanc-
ing our day-to-day and future quality
of life,” he said. “Locally, Superstorm
Sandy has brought public awareness
to our climate change issue. As a direct
result of Superstorm Sandy private and
public space were adversely impacted.”
Shoreline restoration and harden-
ing have been on the present forefront
of Long Island communities to resist
stormwater surge, Narus explained.
“The Long Beach North Shore Bulk-
head project is a prime example of the
effort needed to protect the public, as
well as an example of the challenges
we face as design professionals,” he
said. “The City of Long Beach, recog-
nizing the value of flood protection, is
proactively hardening against future
events by raising the north shore bulk-
head two-feet above the Base Flood
Elevation, with a provision for future
enhancement should the need be real-
ized. Working with the city, the com-
munity, and the governor’s office of
storm recovery, we are presenting a
zoning overlay, educating the commu-
nity of the enhancements, aiding in
mitigating the community’s concerns,
working with the NYSDEC to mitigate
environmental issues, and preparing
the design and construction planning
for the new bulkhead.”
“Tackling this major environmen-
tal quality of life enhancement is es-
pecially challenging and satisfying,”
Narus said.
Narus earned a bachelor’s degree
in civil/environmental engineering
from Clarkson College and an mas-
ter’s degree, with distinction, in con-
struction management from New
York University . He is a member of
ACEC (American Council of Engineer-
ing Companies); ASHE (American
Society of Highway Engineers); and
Construction Managers Association of
America (CMAA).
Established in 1985, Cameron En-
gineering and Associates, LLP (Cam-
eron Engineering) is one of Long Is-
land’s leading consulting engineering
firms offering multidiscipline services
in mechanical and electrical engineer-
ing, security/CCTV engineering, site
development and landscape architec-
ture, planning and environmental en-
gineering, stormwater/ecological res-
toration, solid waste engineering and
water and wastewater engineering,
civil and structural engineering, traf-
fic and transportation engineering,
and construction management.
Operating from offices in Wood-
bury, Manhattan, and White Plains,
the firm possesses a diversified range
of experience in various facets of mu-
nicipal, institutional, educational,
commercial, industrial and environ-
mental engineering. The firm is com-
prised of experienced and qualified
engineers, landscape architects, plan-
ners, facility operators, and environ-
mental scientists dedicated to provid-
ing professional, timely and respon-
sive services to its clients.
FRANK
PEARSON
Greenman-Pedersen,
Inc./GPI
Frank Pearson is director of trans-
portation safety at Greenman-Peder-
sen, Inc. (GPI) in Babylon. Pearson
joined GPI after a 32-year career with
NYSDOT serving in several positions
— most notably as Region 10 Traf-
fic Engineer for 11 years and as act-
ing regional director for nine months.
Pearson joined GPI, in 2014, and pro-
vides senior project management re-
lated to traffic operations, safety stud-
ies, expert testimony, and is involved
with staff- and industry-wide training
sessions in the areas of vehicular and
pedestrian safety and traffic calming,
as well as overall QA/QC for the firm.
His experience in traffic engineer-
ing has led him to become a known
expert in the field. While at NYSDOT,
one of his main responsibilities as
the regional traffic engineer was to
review all private development pro-
posals that impacted state highways,
approve developers’ traffic mitigation
plans and issue highway work permits
to construct roadway improvements
to address impacts. Projects varied in
size from fast food restaurants to large
multi-use developments.
Pearson always worked closely
with the development community in
order to balance his support of eco-
nomic development on Long Island
with making sure that developers
properly identified impacts and miti-
gated them.
Pearson has brought this experi-
ence to GPI and is supporting private
developers seeking highway work
permits. His understanding of the
process and technical skills makes
him an asset in weaving through the
permitting process. He is currently
working on a large multi-use devel-
opment that requires coordination
and approvals from NYSDOT, Suffolk
County Dept. of Public Works, and
the Town of Brookhaven.
Pearson is a member of the Amer-
ican Society of Civil Engineers, Insti-
tute of Transportation Engineers and
the New York State Association of
Transportation Engineers.
Greenman-Pedersen, Inc. is a
multi-discipline engineering and con-
struction services firm, specializing
in civil and transportation planning
and engineering design, as well as
construction management. This year,
the firm celebrates its milestone of 50
years in business. From a two-person
firm that started in Babylon Village
in 1966, GPI has grown to more than
1,200 professionals company-wide and
230 in its Babylon office, which also
serves as the company headquarters.
With its diverse staff, GPI is able
to develop transportation planning
and design that requires expertise in
various disciplines including main-
tenance of traffic, construction stag-
ing, permanent traffic feature design,
traffic safety and calming, evacuation
planning, geometric improvements,
accident analyses and mitigation, ITS
design and planning, traffic signal de-
sign, closed loop systems, alternatives
and cost-benefit analyses, transpor-
tation systems management, signal
timing coordination plans, traveler
information systems, CCTV surveil-
lance systems, pedestrian/bicycle
studies and safety design, air quality
impact assessment, highway capacity
assessments, traffic demand, system
and congestion management, roadside
design, round-about studies and de-
sign, simulation modeling, and asset
management, asset inventories and
infrastructure management.
GPI offers a combination of exper-
tise, as well as in-depth knowledge
of acceptable state and federal guide-
lines. GPI’s planning and engineering
expertise has provided opportunities
for the firm to participate on a vast
array of projects, from large contracts
to smaller projects.
DEBORAH
SHAPIRO,
QEP
AKRF
Deborah Shapiro, QEP is a senior
technical director at AKRF in Bohe-
mia. Shapiro supervises project teams
and manages all aspects of assessment
and remediation projects. She works
with developers, non-profit organi-
zations, architects, local community
groups, local businesses, and govern-
ment agencies. Her projects fall under
the regulatory oversight of NYSDEC,
NYCDEP, and NYCOER including the
New York State Brownfield Cleanup
Program (BCP), New York City Vol-
untary Cleanup Program (VCP), NYS-
DEC petroleum spills program, RCRA/
UIC closures, and NYCOER’s E-desig-
nation program.
Shapiro has also assisted com-
mercial and industrial property own-
ers with maintaining the integrity of
their portfolios by providing compli-
ance related cleanup and chemical
storage management services.
She manages all aspects of rede-
velopment projects from the initial
Phase I ESA, Phase II, and remedia-
tion through post-remedial site man-
agement. In addition, her experience
includes groundwater investigations,
monitoring, and sampling programs;
Brownfield and hazardous waste site
investigations; In-Situ Chemical Ox-
idation; underground storage tank
studies, including soil contamination
delineation, classification, removal and
disposal; waste characterization sam-
pling; exposure assessments; on-going
remedial action (including AS/SVE)
and permitting.
Among issues Shapiro has been fo-
cusing on include affordable housing
in the region.
“Over the past four decades, Long
Island has been experiencing a steady
decline of residents aged 18 to 34 due
to a variety of factors, including a
lack of affordable housing,” she said.

WHO’SWHO
in Environmental Consulting & Engineering
“However, the affordable housing crisis
doesn’t just affect Long Island. This
issue extends throughout the NY met-
ropolitan area.”
The NYS Brownfield Cleanup Pro-
gram (BCP) was established to en-
courage the private-sector to remedi-
ate and redevelop brownfields state-
wide as an alternative to greenfield
development by providing incentives
including liability relief and tax cred-
its to the developer, Shapiro said.
“Recent reforms to the BCP require
sites located within NYC to meet cer-
tain eligibility criteria to qualify for
the tangible property tax component,”
she said. “The development of afford-
able housing is one of the criteria.”
“Margins on affordable housing are
very small compared to market rate
projects, and the creation of afford-
able housing requires a tremendous
amount of public investment from
government subsidies and private eq-
uity,” she said. “At AKRF, we’ve been
advising numerous affordable — and
supportive — housing developers on
redeveloping and remediating brown-
fields under the BCP.”
The BCP’s liability protections and
tax credits can be a saving grace to a
project requiring remediation, as the
additional costs and risks could sig-
nificantly impact its financial feasibil-
ity, Shapiro noted.
“Participation in the BCP provides
comfort to lenders concerned about li-
ability, as the remediation is conduct-
ed under a NYSDEC-approved plan,
and the tax credits can off-set the ad-
ditional cost of remediation,” she said.
With 17 years of experience in the
assessment and remediation of haz-
ardous waste issues, Shapiro has been
a moderator and panelist at numer-
ous conferences.
Shapiro earned a master’s degree
and bachelor’s degree at American Uni-
versity and has been a recipient of the
Big Apple Brownfield Award as part of
three different development teams.
AKRF is a multidisciplinary con-
sulting firm specializing in envi-
ronmental, planning, and engineer-
ing services. AKRF tackles a wide
range of complex, controversial, and
time-sensitive projects for public
agencies, private clients, and munici-
palities. AKRF provides the full range
of environmental services related to
site assessment and remediation. Its
services include brownfield redevel-
opment, due diligence, compliance
evaluation of a facility’s operations,
and asbestos surveys. The company
also offers monitoring and oversight
during construction.
AKRF site assessment and remedi-
ation specialists include a team of sci-
entists, engineers, and geologists with
decades of experience; effective rela-
tionships with local, state, and federal
agencies; and a thorough familiarity
with environmental regulations.
AKRF’s projects range from small
site assessments to large, complex re-
mediation projects. Site assessment &
remediation expertise includes site in-
vestigations, Brownfield remediation,
remedial design, storage tank man-
agement and petroleum spills, (E) des-
ignations, asbestos & lead paint, soil
vapor intrusion and indoor air quality
investigations and litigation support.
37 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
approximately 40,000 tons annual- 500 Design Firms nationwide, and
KIM ly,” she said. “The recent completion
of the sPower Sutter and Sterling-
VHB is a frequent recipient of proj-
ect awards for planning, engineering,
THRELFALL, ton solar projects in Riverhead are
also emblematic of VHB’s ongoing
and environmental excellence. Over
1,100 engineers, scientists, planners,
PMP, contribution to renewable energy on
Long Island. This combined 6.3 MWac
and designers provide a wide range of
services in many disciplines including
LEED AP fixed-tilt solar photovoltaic facility
will produce more than 12 million
environmental review, permitting and
restoration; transportation planning,
VHB
kilowatt-hours of clean, safe solar en- engineering and design; land planning
ergy with zero emissions annually — and site design; civil engineering and
Kim Threlfall, PMP LEED AP enough to power 1,100 homes.” permitting; highway and bridge de-
is director of environmental services Threlfall has contributed to nation- sign and inspection; urban design and
at VHB’s Long Island office in Haup- al research efforts for the Transpor- landscape architecture; sustainability,
pauge. Threlfall has more than 15 years tation Research Board including the resiliency and climate action planning;
of experience in the environmental con- “Guidebook of Practices for Improving community and regional planning; and
sulting industry and has worked on Environmental Performance at Small public outreach and engagement.
a wide range of projects both locally Airports,” published in 2011 by the
and nationwide, specializing in the New National Academy of Sciences. She
York State Environmental Quality Re- earned a bachelor’s degree in geology
view Act (SEQRA) and National Envi- at Colgate University, and she is a cer-
ronmental Policy Act (NEPA).
Threlfall’s work has been primar-
tified Project Management Profession-
al and LEED Accredited Professional.
ROCCO
ily focused on the development and
management of large-scale, complex,
VHB is a premier consulting firm of
engineers, scientists, planners, and de-
TROTTA, PE
The LiRo Group
high-profile environmental studies, in- signers that partners with public- and
cluding Environmental Assessments private-sector clients to provide the
(EA) and Environmental Impact State- best technical skills in each practice
ments (EIS) for real estate develop- area through a seamless, integrated
ments, airports, institutions, national team approach. VHB partners with As chairman of The LiRo Group in
parks, rail systems, telecommunica- clients from its 23 offices across the Syosset, Rocco Trotta, PE, has molded
tions facilities, and other types of proj- East Coast to improve mobility, en- the firm from a small group specializ-
ects. She has experience in nearly all hance communities and economic vi- ing in construction administration to
aspects of preparing and managing tality, and balance development and one of the top construction manage-
environmental compliance documents infrastructure needs with environ- ment and engineering firms in the re-
including developing purpose and need mental stewardship. Premier indus- gion. With over 800 employees, LiRo
statements, identifying and evaluating try publication Engineering News-Re- provides construction management,
alternatives, preparing and reviewing cord ranks the firm among the Top engineering, environmental, archi-
technical analyses and associated mit-
igation recommendations, and public
and agency involvement.
She is also managing and/or assist-
ing with the preparation of a variety
of SEQRA documents for a variety of
clients, including developers, munici-
palities, and institutions. She is expe-
rienced in the preparation of SEQRA
documentation, including Environ-
mental Assessment Forms (EAFs),
EISs and Expanded EAs for commer-
cial, residential and mixed-use devel-
opment projects, as well as wireless
communications facilities.
Threlfall sees developing new sourc-
es of domestic energy to fuel the grow-
ing needs of society becoming a priority.
“As a result, diversity of renewable
and conventional sources of power has
taken center stage locally and nation-
ally and has become a focal point for
VHB,” she said. “Diversity is key to
energy conservation and efficiency,
and our Long Island team has been
working on a wide variety of solar,
wind, biomass/bio-gas, and battery
storage projects to foster a smart and
sustainable energy future for Long
Island. Our involvement in siting,
transmission, and distribution proj-
ects for renewable energy sources has
involved a range of professionals from
our Hauppauge office—including en-
vironmental scientists, planners and
civil engineers.”
Long Island Compost’s proposed
new anaerobic digester in Suffolk
County is an example of developing
sources, Threlfall said. “The state-of-
the-art facility would be the first of its
kind on Long Island and produce 2.0
MW of electricity and approximate-
ly 1.9 million diesel gallons equiva-
lent of compressed natural gas, and
reduce greenhouse gas emissions by

WHO’SWHO
in Environmental Consulting & Engineering
tectural, disaster management, and
virtual design & construction services
for a wide range of public and pri-
vate clients. As LiRo’s majority owner
and shareholder, Trotta is actively
engaged in operations, and his lead-
ership has been invaluable in guiding
the development of the firm.
A seasoned engineer, Trotta has
more than 40 years of design and con-
struction management for large mu-
nicipal and industrial facilities. He
has been involved in the oversight of a
wide variety of project types including
transportation, infrastructure, water
pollution control plants, hospitals,
correctional facilities, garages, public
buildings, and site development.
Following the devastation of Super-
storm Sandy, The LiRo Group has fo-
cused on assisting Long Island and
Metropolitan New York communities
in ongoing recovery efforts, Trotta said.
“LiRo mobilized immediately fol-
lowing the storm, performing emer-
gency assessments of damaged prop-
erties and coordinating the provision
of temporary power and cleanup ef-
forts for Nassau County Department
of Public Works, under the Shelter-
ing and Temporary Essential Power
(STEP) program, as well as separate-
ly for several NYC public agencies,”
he said. “We are currently managing
several long term projects to guide
property owners through the funding
application process and subsequent
reconstruction work. Serving as mas-
ter construction manager for the NY
Rising Housing Recovery Program,
we are coordinating a comprehensive
team of design professionals, environ-
mental inspectors, cost estimators,
and contractors, and have conducted
damage assessments and provided
construction oversight for over 15,000
Long Island homeowners. Our work
has continued under the NYCDDC
Build It Back Brooklyn program, pro-
viding similar services for hundreds
of damaged properties. Our multi-dis-
cipline staff has been instrumental
in providing the services required to
accomplish necessary design and con-
struction work while maximizing fed-
eral funding reimbursements.”
38 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
LiRo was also the designers and con-
struction manager for the fast-paced
reconstruction of the Long Beach
Boardwalk, and coordinated emergency
repairs at Nassau County sewage treat-
ment plants., Trotta noted.
“As a Long Island based firm, we are
proud to be a partner with our neigh-
bors in attaining their recovery goals,”
he said.
Trotta earned a bachelor’s degree
in civil engineering from the Univer-
sity of Miami. He is a registered engi-
neer in New York, New Jersey, Con-
necticut and Delaware.
Established in 1983, LiRo has
grown from a local resident engineer-
ing company to a multi-disciplinary
and award-winning firm. It is cur-
rently ranked by Engineering News
Record as one or the top 20 nation-
al Construction Management-for-Fee
firms. LiRo is privately-owned and
headquartered in Long Island with
offices in the Northeast and Cali-
fornia. The company’s expertise in
transportation, infrastructure, and
public building projects have led to
its involvement with some of the re-
gion’s top projects and landmarks,
including the post 9/11 rebuilding
of Lower Manhattan, the Number 7
Subway Line Extension, East Side
Access, High Line Park, Long Beach
Boardwalk Reconstruction, Stony
Brook University Medical and Re-
search Translation (MART) and the
new Tappan Zee Bridge.
RICHARD
ZAPOLSKI,
P.E.
Prime Engineering,
P.C.
Richard Zapolski, P.E. is director
of engineering at Prime Engineering,
P.C. in Holtsville. Zapolski has more
than 25 years of experience in civil
engineering, planning and land de-
velopment with strengths in urban
planning, national retail development
programs and engineering design of
high-end residential, commercial, in-
dustrial and educational land devel-
opment projects in the tri-state and
New England areas.
Prior to joining Prime Engineering,
he worked for the Town of Islip where
he served as Commissioner of Plan-
ning & Development for four years.
“Since making the switch to the
private sector, I’ve become more
aware of the opportunity for develop-
ers to partner with municipalities in
order to help facilitate their long-term
goals and improve communities,”
Zapolski said. “Municipalities devel-
op numerous community studies that
were commissioned by the governing
politicians based on the needs voiced
by the public and communities they
serve. These goals consist of tran-
sit-oriented development, work force
housing, improved downtowns and
improved infrastructure, such as sew-
ers & roadways. In my work, I look for
opportunities to connect a developer’s
project to the needs of the community
in which it lies. By doing so, we create
a mutually beneficial relationship be-
tween the developer, community, and
municipality.”
“It also creates an opportunity for
developers to be seen by the public
as part of their communities, while
helping to fulfill their long term goals
by bringing support to a project that
will result in economic growth for the
area,” Zapolski noted. “For example,
when Tritec Real Estate began to de-
sign sewer connections to the Suffolk
County Treatment Plant at Bergen
Point for their development at the
Ronkonkoma HUB, an opportunity
for sewer connection for a much larger
area became available to help resolve
several environmental and economic
issues to surrounding communities.
MacArthur Airport has permission to
connect to this line, eliminating the
need for Southwest Airlines to haul
their sanitary waste by truck 20-miles
to Bergen Point.”
“The connection also allowed the
Hamlet of Holbrook in Islip to move
forward with a true downtown plan
that is not limited by sanitary density
and can include sidewalk shops and
restaurants, with professional offic-
es and residential dwellings above,
Zapolski explained. “In addition,
sanitary waste will no longer leach
into the ground, and eventually into
our drinking water supply, reducing
groundwater nitrogen loading and
pollutants, meeting a Suffolk County
regional goal.”
Zapolski earned a bachelor’s de-
gree in civil engineering from the
University of Massachusetts and a
master’s degree in civil engineering
from Manhattan College. He holds
his professional engineering license
in New York and is active with sever-
al local Chamber of Commerce, civic
organizations and other professional
organizations.
Prime Engineering, a profession-
al consulting firm specializing in civil
engineering and land development ser-
vices, is revered for its quality plans,
in-depth industry knowledge, custom-
er service, integrity, and passion for
the engineering profession. As a New
York State and New York City Certi-
fied Woman-Owned Business Enter-
prise, Prime Engineering continues to
develop partnerships with many orga-
nizations, so as to best serve their cus-
tomers. Additionally, the company has
kept a focus on maintaining a talent-
ed staff to handle current workloads
while also planning for the growth
of its workforce to help sustain their
continued success in the future. Since
their start in late 2009, Prime has tri-
pled their staff of full-time employees
in an effort to better meet the needs of
their customers and has also worked
with local universities to provide in-
ternship opportunities for engineering
students. Project Manager Mary Grace
Caneja is a recent Prime hire, valued
as much for her 20+ years of industry
experience as she is for her strong abil-
ities at training new staff and being
a valuable mentor to the less experi-
enced employees.
 39 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
WHO’s WHO
CYNTHIA
AMATO,
LMSW
in Not for Profits
Economic
Opportunity
Council of Suffolk
Not for profit organizations are often considered As Economic Opportunity Coun-
cil of Suffolk’s (EOC) director of
the “heart and soul” of the community. Not youth and adolescent services, Cyn-
for profits focus on raising awareness for their thia Amato, LMSW, oversees a broad
range of services aimed at helping
cause while directly helping people they serve. young people become healthy, self-suf-
ficient, successful adults. Amato also
supervises the SNUG Violence Pre-
In this Who’s Who in Not for Profits section, vention program, facilitates the intern
program for the agency, assists with
leaders of many Long Island nonprofit groups marketing and website maintenance,
discuss an upcoming event/fundraiser they are and participates in grant writing and
strategic planning for program en-
hosting — or an initiative/issue their organization hancement and expansion.
For the past 15 years, the Econom-
is working on —that will benefit the individuals ic Opportunity Council of Suffolk has
they assist. been a driving force behind the An-
nual Butch Dellecave Awards, which
recognizes student athletes in Suffolk
County who are not only at the top
of their game, but also score high in
their classroom performance and in
their commitment to community ser-
vice. There was record attendance at
INDEXINDEXINDEX this year’s award ceremony, which
took place on June 12 at West Lake
Inn in Patchogue.
Named in memory of the legendary
39 CYNTHIA AMATO, LMSW Economic Opportunity Council of Suffolk educator, official, and coach Gaeta-
no “Butch” Dellecave, the award is
39 DIANE BURKE Habitat for Humanity of Suffolk
the product of a highly successful 15-
40 DEBORAH CARIOTO National Multiple Sclerosis Society year partnership between local school
districts in Suffolk County and the
40 LAURA A. CASSELL Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Rockville Centre
award organizers: EOC, the Butch
40 ROBERT E. CAULFIELD Jefferson’s Ferry Dellecave Foundation and Newsday.  ted diseases. Adolescent sexual health
“The result is a spirited application
41 JOY DeDONATO Nassau Community College Foundation process that engages hundreds of stu-
dents and educators across the county
41 BARBARA FARON, LMSW, CPRP Federation of Organizations
culminating in an exciting awards
41 JON FEINGOLD The Hagedorn Little Village School, ceremony attended by more than 500
students, their families and friends,
Jack Joel Center for Special Children as well as educators and athletic di-
rectors,” Amato said.
42 JANICE L. FRIEDMAN Variety Child Learning Center
“Butch Dellecave was an educa-
42 STEPHEN H. FRIEDMAN United Cerebral Palsy Association of Long Island tor and counselor in the Connetquot
43 CHARLES J. FUSCHILLO, JR. Alzheimer’s Foundation of America
School District for 30 years,” she said.
“He was an All-City point guard at St.
Johns University, a top-rated basket-
43 ROBERT C. GOLDSMITH ACLD
ball and lacrosse official, the founder
43 TOM HOPKINS EPIC Long Island and administrator of countless Long
44 JANET KOCH Life’s WORC
Island youth sports programs, and was
the catalyst behind the drive to estab-
44 BERNARD MACIAS AARP Long Island lish the Suffolk Sport Hall of Fame.”
For more information about
44 BOB MCGUIRE Cerebral Palsy Association of Nassau County, Inc. next year’s Butch Dellecave
45 PAULE T. PACHTER, A.C.S.W., L.M.S.W. Long Island Cares, Inc., Awards, Amato said to call EOC.
Amato serves on a number of oversight
The Harry Chapin Food Bank boards and committees, including
chair of the Suffolk Teen Pregnancy
45 STANFORT J. PERRY AHRC Nassau
Advisory Board; member of the Suf-
45 THERESA A. REGNANTE United Way of Long Island folk Youth Board Coordination Coun-
cil, member of the New York State
46 MICHAEL SMITH ACDS Council on Adolescent Pregnancy;
46 ANTHONY SPEELMAN Leukemia & Lymphoma Society co-chair of the Central Islip Schools
Health and Wellness Committee; and
46 MICHAEL STOLTZ, LCSW ASSOCIATION Association for Mental Health & Wellness board treasurer for Patchogue-Med-
ford Youth and Community Services.
47 DAWN JESSICA STRAIN Long Island Elite Amato has extensive experience
working in teen pregnancy preven-
tion and youth development. For the
past five years, she has directed the
state Health Department’s Compre-
hensive Adolescent Pregnancy Preven-
tion program where EOC provides af-
ter-school programming, in-school ed-
ucation, and family planning services. 
Amato earned a bachelor’s degree in
social work from James Madison Uni-
versity. She then went directly into
the Advanced Standing program at
New York University for a master’s
degree in social work, and became a
licensed social worker one year later.
The Economic Opportunity Council
of Suffolk, Inc. is a not-for-profit com-
munity-based organization founded in
1967 in the wake of the War on Pov-
erty, a comprehensive set of legisla-
tion passed by Congress in 1964 to
“…eliminate the paradox of poverty
in the midst of plenty in this Nation
by opening to everyone the opportu-
nity for education and training, the
opportunity to work, and the oppor-
tunity to live in decency and dignity.”
EOC of Suffolk is the county’s desig-
nated Community Action Agency with
a mission to promote a goal of self-suf-
ficiency by broadening the minds of
children, revitalizing communities,
and assisting families and children in
need through the provision of services
and to coordinate available federal,
state, local and private resources.
EOC of Suffolk’s Youth and Adoles-
cent Services promotes leadership, ad-
olescent sexual health, pregnancy pre-
vention, and assists youth and young
parents to become healthy, self-suffi-
cient, successful adults. It’s achieved
by developing, strengthening, and
advancing clinically-proven policies
and programs based on industry best
practices. EOC of Suffolk offers a wide
range of youth development, profes-
sional, and community education ser-
vices focused on adolescent pregnan-
cy, HIV/AIDS, and sexually transmit-
education services are provided at the
request of school districts, communi-
ty-based agencies, religious institu-
tions and civic organizations.
DIANE
BURKE
Habitat for
Humanity of Suffolk
Diane Burke is executive director
and CEO of Habitat for Humanity
of Suffolk (Habitat Suffolk) in Mid-
dle Island. Burke had held this po-
sition for the past four years bring-
ing her many years of corporate fi-
nance expertise and community
volunteerism to Habitat Suffolk.
With her drive and determination for
results, coupled with her love of com-
munity, Burke has enhanced stabili-
ty of the organization so that Habitat
Suffolk is ready to accept the challenge
of creating much needed additional
affordable housing in Suffolk County.
It is her hope that Habitat Suffolk is
able to fulfill the dream of homeown-
ership for hardworking families in Suf-
folk County for many years to come.

WHO’SWHO
in Not for Profits
“Habitat for Humanity of Suffolk
began construction of the first afford-
able home in 1988 as an independent
local affiliate of Habitat for Humani-
ty International, a non-profit afford-
able housing organization and recent-
ly began construction of the 185th
home,” Burke said. “Habitat Suffolk
builds homes from the ground up, but
it’s the foundation we give a family
that is at the heart of our mission.
Through many acts of volunteerism
and philanthropy, we are able to cre-
ate a place to call home for many hard-
working families in Suffolk County. “
“As we build a home for a family, it
is easy to think that we are helping
just one family,” Burke noted. “In fact,
with that one home, we create a ripple
effect that can be felt throughout that
family for generations to come. Much
like a pebble in a pond, the ripples
move farther and farther away from
the center touching not only the family
but the surrounding community.”
Burke encourages the community
to call Habitat for Humanity of Suf-
folk, or visit its website for more infor-
mation about the organization.
DEBORAH
CARIOTO
National Multiple
Sclerosis Society
Deborah Carioto is president of the
National Multiple Sclerosis Society
(MS), Long Island Chapter in Mel-
ville. Having held this position since
2014, Carioto is credited for stream-
lining operational functions and fo-
cusing positively on revenue streams.
She works with volunteer leadership
toward diversifying and reinvigorat-
ing board engagement and has re-de-
signed staffing structure to incorpo-
rate a regional approach toward op-
erational functions, allowing greater
resources to be focused on revenue
generation efforts.
Carioto and her team are preparing
for Walk MS being held at Jones Beach,
Field 6, on Saturday, May 21 at 8 am.
“Walk MS is a rallying point of the
MS Movement, a community coming
together to raise funds and celebrate
hope for the future, Carioto said. “The
event brings together a community of
passionate individuals to connect and
raise funds to change the world for
everyone affected by MS.”
“Anyone can participate in Walk
MS,” she said. “Our accessible routes
and location ensure there is some-
thing for everyone. Participants will
reach the finish line knowing they
raised critical funds toward vital MS
research, programs focused on phys-
ical and mental wellness, and essen-
tial services.”
“More than 8,000 participants, vol-
unteers and supporters will take part
in Walk MS, Jones Beach 2016, to
aid in reaching our goal of raising $1
million here on Long Island,” Cario-
to explained. “These funds will help
support the research and service pri-
orities of the National MS Society so
40 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
that each person with MS can live
their best life with more connections
to information, resources and others
with shared experiences.”
For more information about the
Walk MS, interested parties can call
the National Multiple Sclerosis Soci-
ety, Long Island Chapter, she said.
Carioto is also an adjunct professor
in the Department of Political Science
at St. Joseph’s College in Patchogue.
She teaches one to two courses each
semester, including state and local
government and politics, American de-
mocracy, introduction to political sci-
ence and American political thought
to undergraduate students. She also
developed and implemented hybrid
courses for political science majors.
Prior to joining the National Mul-
tiple Sclerosis Society, Long Island
Chapter, she was vice president at the
Community Development Corpora-
tion of Long Island in Centereach, a
$73 million not-for-profit corporation
aimed at fostering vibrant and sus-
tainable communities. She was also
executive director at JDRF in Melville,
a $2 million chapter of a nationwide
foundation dedicated to raising money
to fund research for Type 1 diabetes.
Carioto earned a master’s degree in
political science, with concentration
in public policy, from SUNY Stony
Brook and a bachelor’s degree in busi-
ness administration, with a minor in
human resources management from
Excelsior College. She also studied in
the Executive Juris Doctor Program
at Concord Law School.
The National Multiple Sclerosis So-
ciety mobilizes people and resources
so that everyone affected by multiple
sclerosis can live their best lives. The
organization strives to stop MS in its
tracks, restore what has been lost and
end MS forever. Last year, through the
organization’s comprehensive nation-
wide network of services, the Society
devoted $122 million to connect more
than one million individuals to the
people, information and resources they
need. To move closer to a world free of
MS, the National Multiple Sclerosis
Society also invested $54 million to
support more than 380 new and ongo-
ing research projects around the world.
During the past five years, MS
activists across the country have
achieved enhanced levels of funding
directed specifically to MS research;
increased coverage for physical thera-
py sessions; and helped inspire fewer
restrictions on insurance formular-
ies. The society has also enhanced
its focus on the benefits of wellness
initiatives – including nutrition and
exercise, which have been proven to
improve the well-being of those living
with MS.
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LAURA A.
CASSELL
Catholic Charities
of the Diocese of
Rockville Centre
Laura A. Cassell is executive direc-
tor/CEO of Catholic Charities of the
Diocese of Rockville Centre in Hicks-
ville. Cassell is responsible for the ser-
vice and administrative operations of
this health and human service agency
with an annual operating budget of
more than $37 million that serves over
60,000 individuals each year. Cassell
has held this position since 1999 and
is the first female to hold this position
in the Diocese of Rockville Centre —
and the first lay female to serve in this
capacity in any of the eight dioceses
throughout New York State.
In 2001, Bishop Murphy appoint-
ed Cassell to the Bishop’s Cabinet as
secretary for social services. In this
capacity, she has additional oversight
responsibility for the Diocesan Office
of Prison Ministry.
Under Cassell’s leadership, Cath-
olic Charities activated a Special
Needs Shelter during both Hurricane
Irene and Superstorm Sandy and is
actively involved in working with
families impacted through the agen-
cy’s Disaster Response & Prepared-
ness program.
Catholic Charities is currently pre-
paring for its annual Caritas Dinner,
Cassell said.
“Our annual Caritas Dinner is
one of our most notable fundraisers
with 100% of proceeds supporting our
vast array of ministries, everything
from nutrition services for infants to
housing for seniors with programs
for everyone in between,” Cassell ex-
plained.  “As Pope Francis designated
2016 a Jubilee Year of Mercy it was
particularly important that this year’s
dinner honoree be someone who truly
personifies the church’s commitment
to the needy, so our clear choice was
Barbara Townsend. She’s a long-time
Catholic Charities trustee, former
CEO of Family Residences and Essen-
tial Enterprises (FREE) and currently
the president of Breakthrough Lead-
ership Techniques. Many Long Is-
landers also know her from her work
for numerous other human service
organizations that benefited from her
compassion and expertise.”
“So, we’re inviting everyone who’s
been touched by this remarkable
woman to join us in honoring her at
our new venue, Carlyle on the Green
at Bethpage State Park, on Thursday,
May 19 at 6 p.m.”  son’s Ferry’s outstanding industry rat-
As a ministry of the Roman Cath-
olic Church, Catholic Charities of the
Diocese of Rockville Centre assists in
serving the basic needs of the poor,
troubled, weak, and oppressed and is
committed to addressing the causes of
injustice. “Since its founding in 1957,
the agency has grown to one of the
most extensive human service net-
works on Long Island. With nearly 650
employees, more than 60 sites from
Elmont to the East End and an aver-
age annual operating budget of $38
million, Catholic Charities provides a
full range of services in program areas
that include chemical dependence, food
and nutrition, housing, immigrants
and refugees, mental health, materni-
ty, residential services for people with
developmental disabilities and senior
citizens. In 2015, Catholic Charities
provided nearly 1.5 million caring,
face-to-face services to 55,917 neigh-
bors of every faith and background
and in partnership with Parish Social
Ministry programs at local catholic
parishes, and reached tens of thou-
sands more people directly in their
own communities.
Cassell joined Catholic Charities
in 1988 and previously held positions
as chief operating officer and director
of finance. Prior to joining Catholic
Charities, she was on the staff at the
accounting firm, Price Waterhouse
(now PricewaterhouseCoopers) in
New York City. She was also an inter-
nal auditor and assistant controller at
Southside Hospital in Bay Shore.
Cassell serves on many committees
and boards including the Diocesan Lay
Pension Committee and the Cleary
School for the Deaf. She holds the office
of president for the 16 Diocesan Hous-
ing Development Fund Companies.
She is licensed as a CPA and is a
member of the American Institute of
Certified Public Accountants. She has
also taught an evening accounting cur-
riculum at the Grumman Data Sys-
tems Institute. She graduated, summa
cum laude, from Manhattan College
with a bachelor’s degree in business
administration.
ROBERT E.
CAULFIELD
Jefferson’s Ferry
Robert E. Caulfield is president
and CEO of Jefferson’s Ferry in South
Setauket. Caulfield’s involvement
with Jefferson’s Ferry began 15 years
ago as a member of its development
team. Today, he is recognized for his
deep commitment to Jefferson’s Ferry
and advocacy for the aging services
industry.
Caulfield joined Jefferson’s Ferry’s
management team, in 2009, as CFO/
COO and, in 2014, was named presi-
dent and chief executive officer.
His understanding and perspective
on senior life coupled with his integ-
rity, oversight, and accountability are
contributing factors toward Jeffer-
ings and overall resident satisfaction.
Caulfield focuses on successful aging
through many avenues, including the
Jefferson’s Ferry Foundation. The Jef-
ferson’s Ferry Foundation provides
funds for capital projects, and assists
residents and employees in need.
“The Jefferson’s Ferry Founda-
tion’s signature initiative is ‘Suc-
cessful Aging,’” Caulfield said. “The
foundation’s ongoing fund drive
provides the means to offer com-

WHO’SWHO
in Not for Profits
prehensive, multi-disciplinary pro-
grams to Long Island’s older adult
population to help them reach their
fullest potential for overall health
and well-being. “Programs and ser-
vices are based on the principles of
whole-person wellness — good nutri-
tion, intellectual stimulation, physi-
cal activity, safety and security and
socialization,” he noted.  “The pro-
grams are designed to improve inde-
pendence, maintain or reinvigorate
a sense of purpose, provide mean-
ingful engagement with others and
opportunities to contribute to life in
a significant way.”
Activities including overall health
assessments and screenings, an outpa-
tient medical clinic, immunizations, oc-
cupational and physical therapy, a cer-
tified fitness program, recreation, cre-
ative expression, mind, body and soul
services, cognitive improvement and
maintenance, continuing education,
seminars on clinical, social and other
issues affecting older adults, support
groups, volunteer opportunities, trans-
portation, and the use of technology.
“Successful aging is about avoiding
disease and disability, maintaining
high cognitive and physical function
and engaging with life,” Caulfield
said. “We want to make that a real-
ity for as many individuals as possi-
ble. This is a program we all have a
stake in, for our parents, ourselves
and the next generation.”
A strong advocate for senior issues
and a Certified Aging Services Profes-
sional (CASP), Caulfield serves on the
board of directors and in other leader-
ship roles for Leading Age New York,
the education and leadership organi-
zation of the aging services industry.
Prior to joining the Jefferson’s
Ferry management team, Caulfield
developed and managed retirement
communities throughout the country
as a partner of New Life Management
and Development, Inc. He launched
his professional life as a CPA in the
healthcare and real estate divisions at
Ernst & Young.
He is a member of the Healthcare
Financial Management Association,
the American Institute of Certified
Public Accountants, the New York
State Society of CPAs and the Penn-
sylvania Institute of Certified Pub-
lic Accountants. He is a graduate of
Drexel University.
Jefferson’s Ferry is a non-profit
lifecare continuing care retirement
community that successfully inte-
grates all the elements of an active re-
tirement with a mix of recreation and
activities, readily available health
care and peace of mind. Residents pay
a one-time entry fee and thereafter, a
predictable monthly fee.
More than 400 residents aged 62
years and older live in either inde-
pendent living residences (248 units
include cottages and apartments); en-
hanced assisted living apartments (60
units); or skilled nursing (60 private
suites, 20 of which are memory care).
With attractive and spacious pri-
vate enhanced assisted Living stu-
dio and one-bedroom apartments
and state-of-the-art-private nursing
and rehabilitation suites, the Vin-
cent Bove Health Center at Jeffer-
son’s Ferry offers comfort and com-
41 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
passionate care. Whether a resident as well as growing its academic pro- “This agency was founded at a time
requires short-term rehabilitation, or grams. The Foundation also supports when people spent long stays in psy-
long-term nursing care, personalized faculty development, as well as a va- chiatric hospitals,” she said. “Then in
health care plans or memory support, riety of the college’s cultural and lead- the early 1970s there was a tremen-
every resident receives the assistance ership activities. dous change, which involved the in-
they need. troduction of psychotropic medication
Resident amenities include a fit- that allowed people who had previ-
ness center with a full-time fitness ously been kept in hospitals for many,
instructor, indoor swimming pool,
extensive activity and wellness pro-
BARBARA many years to be returned to the com-
munity. But there was no real place
grams, formal dining room, café and
pub, spa services, country store, li-
FARON, to receive them. Two-thirds of the in-
dividuals were returned to their fam-
brary, billiards, theater, card room,
computer room and 50 acres of at-
LMSW, ilies of origin. Their families were not
prepared to assist their loved ones who
tractive grounds with ponds, water
features and walking paths.
CPRP had been outside of the mainstream of
society for such a long time, in addi-
Federation of
Organizations tion to having a mental illness or some
other developmental disability.”
“At that point the families incorpo-
rated Federation and became one of
JOY Barbara Faron, LMSW, CPRP is ex- the strong voices in the recovery move-
ecutive director of Federation of Orga- ment and the effort to develop commu-
DeDONATO nizations (Federation), a multi-service, nity-based services,” Faron said.
Nassau Community community-based social welfare agency A leader in her field, she received
College Foundation in West Babylon operating programs the 2004 Distinguished Alumni
that utilize peer support within a self- Award from the School of Social Wel-
help model. Federation develops pro- fare at Stony Brook.
grams that improve services to people For the last several years, Faron
Joy DeDonato is executive director with disabilities through education, in- has been working with NYS OMH,
at the Foundation at Nassau Commu- formation and referral services, legisla- adult home staff, other providers to
nity College (NCC). DeDonato has an tive action and program development. develop enriched services in adult
extensive background in the non prof- Faron is a licensed social worker homes. The pilot project developed at
it industry in both management and and a graduate of the School of Social Queens Adult Care Center with the
income development. Welfare at the State University of cooperation of the operator became
Over the past 15 years, she has suc- New York at Stony Brook. She is a the basis of the model that OMH is
cessfully helped many organizations Certified Psychiatric Rehabilitation now implementing. Under her lead-
raise millions of dollars to help support Practitioner and has extensive expe- ership, Federation has also success-
their mission, causes and programs. rience in criminal justice, community fully implemented service enhance-
Her expertise includes fundraising, organizing, aging and mental health. ment projects in three different adult
operational management, strategic When Faron graduated from the homes in the downstate area.
planning, event planning, promotion, School of Social Welfare, in 1978, and A front-runner in her field, Faron
marketing and public relations. began working at Federation of Or- received SmartCEO’s 2016 Future
DeDonato has helped nearly double ganizations she was inspired by the 50 Award for leading Federation of
the income raised at her current posi- social justice agenda that informed Organizations to be among the fast-
tion at NCC over the past 3 years. Prior the school’s mission. Faron believes est growing mid-sized companies;
to her work at the college, she was a in looking at the person, not the di- and SmartCEO’s 2016 Brava Award,
National Award Winning Fundraiser agnosis, and that belief has guided which celebrates high-impact female
at the American Cancer Society for a her work in developing programs at business leaders.
decade serving the Eastern Division.  Federation. She started as a direct As a leading provider of cost effective
DeDonato earned a Master of Science services worker in its Foster Grand- evidence based services, Federation of
Degree in Counseling, Specializing in parent Program and developed con- Organizations partners with individu-
Higher Education with Honors from sumer-driven social model community als, families and communities to pro-
Long Island University. She has been mental health programs that focused mote wellness and enrich quality of life.
teaching event planning for St. Joseph’s on recovery and consumer empower- Federation collaborates with communi-
College in Patchogue for their summer ment. She is committed to involving ty leaders and progressive healthcare
workshop series for the past 4 years. the people being serviced in the devel- providers to educate and motivate peo-
She is also on the board of direc- opment and delivery of services. ple to improve their health.
tors for Dress For Success-Long Island Faron was appointed executive di-
(501c3), serves as a creative advisory rector of Federation in 1986 — and the
board member for the Long Beach In- growth of the agency has continued
ternational Film Festival (501c3), a ever since. Under her leadership, Fed- JON
committee member for the Mondays eration of Organizations grew from a
at Racine Organization (501c3, which small not-for-profit with a budget of FEINGOLD
began from the work highlighted in the under $2 million serving Suffolk Coun- The Hagedorn Little
Academy Award Nominated Documen- ty to a multi-service agency serving Village School,
tary) and volunteers as a troop leader Suffolk, Nassau, Queen and Brooklyn Jack Joel Center for
for the Girl Scouts of Suffolk County. with a budget of over $12 million. Special Children
DeDonato is passionate about so- She has developed a strong staff
cial responsibility and giving back to and infrastructure to support program
her community in any way she can. development and operation. During Jon Feingold is executive direc-
Nassau Community College Foun- her service to Federation she has tor at The Hagedorn Little Village
dation is a not-for-profit corporation brought the agency from an advocacy School, Jack Joel Center for Special
created in 1983 to support the mis- group operating a Foster Grandpar- Children in Seaford, which provides
sion of the college by providing an ent Program in Suffolk County to a educational and therapeutic programs
independent avenue to receive philan- large multi-faceted social service agen- to infants, pre-school and elementary
thropic aid. The purpose of the Foun- cy serving Suffolk Nassau Queens and school children with a wide range of
dation is to receive, hold, invest, and Brooklyn with the mission of “Helping developmental delays and disabili-
administer gifts and donations for people help themselves.” ties. Feingold has held this position
Nassau Community College, as well Faron is proud of Federation’s strong since 2009 and is responsible for the
as its students and faculty.  NCC’s history of developing programs that are school’s consistent achievement of its
responsibilities include, but are not designed to meet the needs of special mission and financial objectives.
limited to, fundraising and the dis- populations, such as people recover- He provides leadership in develop-
tribution of those funds in support ing from mental illness, the homeless, ing programs, organizational and fi-
of student scholarship opportunities, low-income seniors and at-risk children. nancial plans with the board of trust-

WHO’SWHO
in Not for Profits
ees and staff, and carries out plans
and policies authorized by the board.
Feingold ensures compliance with fed-
eral, state and local regulations. He
develops and maintains sound finan-
cial practices and is responsible for
development of annual budget and for
meeting and reporting all relevant fis-
cal organization activities to the board.
Feingold joined The Hagedorn Lit-
tle Village School, Jack Joel Center
for Special Children in 1995, as an as-
sistant teacher and has held various
positions including director of psycho-
logical and social services, coordinator
of psychological services and school
psychologist.
Over the years, Feingold has
watched The Hagedorn Little Village
School, Jack Joel Center for Special
Children and its services grow.
“In 2002, The Hagedorn Little
Village School, Jack Joel Center for
Special Children moved into its new
location in Seaford, Feingold said.
“We were able to create an expanded,
permanent, state-of-the-art facility
thanks to the generosity of our ex-
tended community of supporters.”
“Less than 10 years later, we were
faced with a dilemma,” Feingold said.
“Thanks to the outstanding work of
our staff, we were receiving referrals
for far more students than we had the
capacity to serve. In response, we un-
dertook a project to expand our current
facilities. Three years ago, we opened
our newest wing, and have since added
eight new classrooms, a second occu-
pational/physical therapy center, and
several speech therapy suites.”
“We are now providing services, both
on site and in the community, to more
than 1,500 families in any given year,”
Feingold said. “To fund this expansion,
we are seeking support from individu-
als and/or organizations that share our
vision of providing the finest education-
al and therapeutic services to children
with developmental disabilities.”
Those interested in learning more
about The Hagedorn Little Village
School, Jack Joel Center for Special
Children can visit its website or contact-
ing Feingold directly, Feingold noted.
Feingold is also a psychologist in
his private practice in Merrick where
he provides therapy for children, ad-
olescents, and adults with a variety
of psychological, behavioral and emo-
tional disorders. He is also a school
psychologist/psychologist/early in-
tervention provider with the Nassau
County Department of Health provid-
ing family training, behavior modifi-
cation counseling, and psychological
services to families of children, ages
birth to three, with various develop-
mental delays, disorders and deficits.
Among his professional affiliations,
Feingold is an elected member of the
Agency Executives Council of the Unit-
ed Way of Long Island and a member
of the Community Advisory Council of
the Junior League of Long Island.
The Hagedorn Little Village
School, Jack Joel Center for Special
Children is a publicly funded, not-for-
profit school that provides education-
al and therapeutic services for chil-
dren with developmental disabilities.
These disabilities may include cogni-
tive delays, social/emotional deficits,
autistic spectrum disorders, speech/
42 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
language delays, orthopedic and/or
motor impairments, visual impair-
ments and/or significant medical is-
sues. The school provides year round
programs and services that include
diagnostic evaluations and treatment,
early intervention, a preschool and an
elementary school. The school serves
children ranging in age from birth
through elementary school.
Little Village has an absolute char-
ter from the New York State Board of
Regents and is approved as a preschool
and elementary school by the New
York State Education Department.
JANICE L.
FRIEDMAN
Variety Child
Learning Center
Janice L. Friedman, MA is chief
executive officer of Variety Child
Learning Center (VCLC) in Syosset.
Friedman joined VCL, in 1975, as a
teacher and has held various posi-
tions in the organization, including
director of research and training and
chief operating officer. Friedman was
named VCLC’s chief executive officer,
in 2009, and provides leadership and
oversight of program operations to
achieve VCLC’s mission to promote
the development, education and inclu-
sion into the community of children
with, or at risk of disabilities.
Friedman works with the board and
staff on meeting many goals, including
positioning VCLC as a state-of-the-art
facility; matching agency resources to
program priorities; maintaining effi-
cient internal operation and effective
delivery of services; expanding and in-
volve supportive constituencies; and
increasing donor support.
VCLC is celebrating its 50th Anni-
versary and planning a year of cele-
bratory events, Friedman said.
“Our first event will be on April
15th at Crest Hollow Country Club in
Woodbury, New York, featuring a live
performance by The Movin’ Out Band,”
she said. “The evening will include a
sit-down dinner, raffles and silent and
live auctions. Our emcee for the third
year is Ellis Henican. Tickets are $150
and sponsorship and E-Journal oppor-
tunities are still available.”
For more information, tickets or
sponsorships opportunities, interested
parties can call VCLC.
“During VCLC’s 50-year history,
there have been many distinguished
people who have shaped the path of
the organization,” Friedman noted.
“We will be honoring some of these
individuals with awards given in their
name and honor: Judith S. Bloch,
Founder and CEO (1966-2008), Arnold
K. Greenberg, member of the Board
of Trustees and Abraham Lurie, First
Chairperson of the Board of Trustees.”
“Award winners were chosen be-
cause they exemplify and carry on the
spirit, passion and the work of Judith
Bloch, Arnold Greenberg and Abra-
ham Lurie,” Friedman said. “Don-
nalynn Darling, Esq., a member of the
board of trustees, will receive the Ju-
dith S. Bloch award; Alice Tan Rouse,
a member of the board of trustees,
will receive the Arnold K. Greenberg
award; and Mary Fasano, an alumni
parent and retired employee, will re-
ceive the Abraham Lurie award.”
Friedman has written many arti-
cles on relevant parenting and chil-
dren and education topics and is a
sought after guest lecturer. She
earned a master’s degree in early
childhood special education from
George Washington University,
Washington, D.C. and a bachelor’s
degree in psychology, with distinction,
from the University of Rochester.
She also holds a New York State
Permanent Certification in Special
Education N-12.
Founded in 1966, Variety Child
Learning Center is a not-for-profit
center that provides special educa-
tion programs and support services
for children with developmental and
learning disabilities and their fam-
ilies who reside in Nassau and Suf-
folk Counties and New York City.
VCLC also provides professional de-
velopment training and workshops for
early childhood educators, profession-
als, and pediatric residents. VCLC
promotes the development, education,
and inclusion in the community of
children with or at risk of disabilities,
including autism, through a combina-
tion of early identification, family in-
volvement and support, research, and
collaboration with professionals.
Each year, VCLC serves over 750
children and their families with a
staff over 400 in two sites, Syosset
and Levittown. Programs and ser-
vices, provided on and off-site, in-
clude: Applied Behavioral Analysis
(ABA) Home Program; Special edu-
cation preschool and kindergarten -
second grade; Early Intervention for
infants and toddlers; Evaluation Cen-
ter to determine if children have dis-
abilities; Special Classes in an Inte-
grated Setting (SCIS); SEIT (Special
Education Itinerant Teachers) pro-
vided at over 50 nursery schools and
child care locations each year, and at
home; Family Center Sunday Respite/
Recreation Program for children up to
age 10; Social Skills Training Groups;
Lufrano Training Program that has
reached more than 1,000 early child-
hood personnel with seminar titles
including ABA Boot Camp; Vacation/
Recreation Programs and collabora-
tions with Winthrop University Hos-
pital that bring pediatric residents to
VCLC for training.
STEPHEN H.
FRIEDMAN
United Cerebral
Palsy Association of
Long Island
Stephen H. Friedman is pres-
ident and CEO of United Cerebral
Palsy Association of Long Island in
Hauppauge. Since 2003, Friedman
has been providing leadership and
guidance to all facets of the agency’s
operations. His goal is to assure that
all programs and services continue to
strive and attain the agency’s 65-year
mission to advance the independence,
productivity, and full citizenship of
people with disabilities by creating
“Life Without Limits.”
UCP of Long Island, through the
dedicated work of its over 1,000 em-
ployees, has been committed to pro-
viding a wide range of programs and
services to meet the individual needs
of persons with a disability. These
include pre-school and school age
education programs; day treatment,
day habilitation, respite programs;
group and independent residential
opportunities and employment
training and placement services.
UCP of Long Island hosted its Sec-
ond Annual Casino Night on Thurs-
day, April 21 st at the Larkfield in
East Northport. Attendees enjoyed
a wonderful night of casino games,
delicious food and networking while
benefiting a great cause.
“Proceeds from the event will sup-
port UCP of Long Island programs
and services for people with disabili-
ties,” Friedman noted.
Casino Night was chaired by UCP
of Long Island Board Chair Thomas
Pfundstein. Pfundstein became in-
volved with the organization more
than 10 years ago through his son,
Joseph, who attends The Chil-
dren’s Center at UCP of Long Is-
land. Pfundstein credits the center
with helping his son thrive and en-
courage his love of learning in a stim-
ulating and social setting.
“The Children’s Center is in the
forefront of early intervention, pre-
school, and school age programming,
serving 74 infants and children with
disabilities,” Friedman said. “The cen-
ter uses specialty programs such as
a feeding program - food exploration
and sensory techniques (F.E.A.S.T.)
and assistive technology services. The
school continues to introduce new and
innovative programs designed to meet
the needs of Long Island’s children
and their families.”
Prior to becoming president and
CEO of UCP of Long Island, Friedman
worked in executive positions in cor-
porate administration and human re-
sources. These included vice president
for administration and human resourc-
es for Empire Office Equipment, Inc.
and the Movado Group, Inc.
Friedman earned a B.B.A. in public
accounting and management from Hof-
stra University; an M.S. ED. in train-
ing and development, counseling from
Hofstra University; and an M.B.A. in
human resources management and
labor relations from New York Insti-
tute of Technology.
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WHO’SWHO
in Not for Profits
CHARLES J.
FUSCHILLO,
JR.
Alzheimer’s
Foundation of
America
Charles J. Fuschillo, Jr., is president
& chief executive officer of the Alzhei-
mer’s Foundation of America (AFA).
Appointed to this position in 2014, Fus-
chillo is credited for expanding AFA’s
national presence, increasing critical
assistance to individuals confronting
dementia, caregivers and their families.
Under his leadership, the organization
has grown to be more than 2,400 mem-
ber organizations strong.
Alzheimer’s Foundation of America
(AFA) is a national not-for-profit foun-
dation that provides optimal care and
services to individuals confronting de-
mentia, and to their caregivers. AFA
fills the gap that exist on a national
level to assure quality of care and excel-
lence in service to individuals with Alz-
heimer’s disease and related illnesses,
and to their caregivers and families.
“At the Alzheimer’s Foundation of
America, we strive to help more peo-
ple each day than we did the day be-
fore,” Fuschillo said.
To that end, AFA offers national
toll-free helpline, staffed by licensed
social workers who have demen-
tia-specific training.
“AFA’s helpline offers support and
referrals to local services in both En-
glish and Spanish,” he said. “Callers
run the gamut from individuals whose
parents or spouses have just been di-
agnosed with Alzheimer’s disease to
individuals in the early stages of the
disease seeking advice; from caregiv-
ers looking for strategies to help navi-
gate the behavioral changes — includ-
ing wandering and aggression — that
may occur as the disease progresses,
to caregivers who just need to vent.
AFA’s social workers treat each caller
with compassion, respect and dignity.
No question is too small, no concern
insignificant.”
AFA’s helpline staff is also available
via e-mail and Skype, Fuschillo noted.
“In addition, AFA helps people
through its free, educational confer-
ences, offered in cities nationwide,” he
said. “AFA’s Concepts in Care educa-
tional conference visits New York City
on May 13. The conference is free and
breakfast and lunch will be provided.”
For information or to register for
the Concepts in Care event, inter-
ested parties should call the Alzhei-
mer’s Foundation of America or visit
its website.
Prior to joining AFA, Fuschillo
served as a member of the New York
State Senate for nearly 16 years.
During his tenure in the senate, Fus-
chillo authored more than 200 state
laws and chaired the Senate Consumer
Protection and Transportation Com-
mittees. He also served on the Senate
Health committee. Prior to that, he was
chief operating officer of a nonprofit
family service agency that served Long
Island and New York City.
In his capacity as a member of the
43 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
New York State Senate, Fuschillo
had been a champion against drunk
driving in New York State. He spon-
sored “Leandra’s Law,” which makes
it a felony to drive drunk with a child
in the car and requires all convicted
drunk drivers to use ignition inter-
locks to prevent them from drinking
and driving again. He also authored
New York State’s Telemarketer “Do
Not Call” Registry law, which served
as the model for the federal govern-
ment’s “Do Not Call” registry and au-
thored New York State’s Clean Indoor
Air Act to make worksites and public
places smoke-free.
Additionally, he authored a law,
signed on November 1, 2011, to pre-
vent insurance companies from de-
nying treatments and therapies for
autism. Autism Speaks, a national
autism advocacy organization, named
Fuschillo a “legislative champion” in
2012 for authoring the law.
Fuschillo has also been recognized
for his lifetime of community service
and his work at AFA with awards
including The Harry Chapin Human-
itarian Award - Long Island Cares,
Inc.’s; and the Pendl Badge of Cour-
age Award, Lifetime Achievement
Award from the New York State
Grand Lodge Foundation.
The Alzheimer’s Foundation of
America is a non-profit organization
that unites more than 2,400 member
organizations nationwide with the goal
of providing optimal care and services
to individuals confronting dementia,
and to their caregivers and families.
Its services include a national, toll-
free helpline staffed by licensed social
workers; educational materials; and a
free quarterly magazine for caregivers
and professional training.
ROBERT C.
GOLDSMITH
ACLD
Robert C. Goldsmith is chief exec-
utive officer at ACLD, a not-for-profit
agency in Bethpage whose mission is
to provide opportunities for children
and adults with autism, learning and
developmental disabilities to pursue
enviable lives, increase independence
and foster supportive relationships
within the community. Goldsmith
is responsible for the organization’s
achievement of its mission and finan-
cial objectives.
Goldsmith provides leadership in
developing programs, organizational
and financial plans with the board
of trustees and staff, and carries out
plans and policies authorized by the
board. He promotes active and broad
participation by volunteers in all
areas of the organization’s work and
maintains official records and docu-
ments, and ensures compliance with
federal, state and local regulations.
Goldsmith works closely with the
finance committee, the board and
staff in preparing a budget. He ensues
that the organization operates within
budget guidelines and ensures ade-
quate funds are available to permit
the organization to carry out its work.
“ACLD supports individuals in their
pursuit of an enviable life, and with
Earth Day here we’re very proud of our
new green program, RewearABLE, an
initiative that helps the environment
while providing sustainable employ-
ment for adults with developmental
disabilities,” Goldsmith said. “ACLD
has one of the largest supported em-
ployment programs on Long Island,
and RewearABLE gives us a way not
just to find jobs for individuals, but to
actually provide jobs for adults with
disabilities alongside employees with-
out disabilities in an integrated work-
place of our own creation.”
“Further, by collecting and recy-
cling unwanted clothing we’re keeping
that material out of landfills, and the
money RewearABLE makes from sell-
ing the collected clothing goes right
back into ACLD programs,” Gold-
smith explained. “So, RewearABLE
is good for the environment, good for
ACLD and good for the individuals
who turn to us for support.”
RewearABLE accepts clothing of
all types and sizes, and all donations
are tax-deductible.
“Anyone looking to schedule a pick
up of unwanted clothing can call Re-
wearABLE (ACLD) or they can come
to Heckscher State Park at 9 a.m. on
Sunday, May 22, when we’ll be accept-
ing donations to RewearABLE as part
of our 1st Annual Walk/Run Journey
to an Enviable Life,” Goldsmith said.
Prior to joining ACLD in 2014,
Goldsmith was associate executive
director of AHRC Nassau where he
is credited for refinancing $32 mil-
lion of properties that resulted in $3.5
million in savings. Maintain a work-
ing knowledge of significant develop-
ments and trends in the field.
He earned a M.A. Educational Psy-
chology (Special Education) from New
York University; an M.S. in Guidance
and Counseling from Long Island
University; and a B.A. from Rider Col-
lege where he majored in history and
political science.
Founded in 1957, ACLD is a 501(c)
(3), ACLD has more than 1,100 em-
ployees who work collaboratively
with a person-centered approach to
ensure the more than 3,000 people
it serves each year live with digni-
ty everyone strives for. ACLD oper-
ates 77 different program sites in-
cluding group homes and apartment
programs across Nassau and Suffolk
counties, and provides a continuum
of services including early childhood
services, day habilitation, residential
alternatives, vocational training and
job placement, recreation programs,
respite, family support services, Med-
icaid service coordination, and medi-
cal and behavioral health services.
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TOM
HOPKINS
EPIC Long Island
Tom Hopkins is president & CEO
of EPIC Long Island in East Meadow.
Hopkins is a human services profes-
sional with more than 30 years of expe-
rience working with adults with devel-
opmental disabilities and their families.
Hopkins began his career working
for the New York State Office of Men-
tal Retardation and Developmental
Disabilities in 1980. In 2003, Hopkins
retired from state service to become
chief operating officer at the Center
for Family Support, a not-for-profit
agency providing services to people
with developmental disabilities and
brain injuries. After increasing rev-
enue 50%, Hopkins left that agency,
in 2008, to become executive direc-
tor and CEO of the Epilepsy Founda-
tion of Long Island — currently EPIC
Long Island.
In January 2016, EPIC Long Island
entered a corporate relationship with
South Shore Child Guidance Center,
a mental health counseling center for
children located in Freeport. Hopkins
currently serves as president & CEO of
both agencies, overseeing a combined
budget of $27 million.
EPIC Long Island continuously
seeks to improve and expand its ser-
vices, Hopkins said.
“An exciting recent accomplishment
here at EPIC Long Island was the ex-
pansion of the license of our mental
health clinic to include the treatment
of children, Hopkins explained. “To
prepare for this new population, we
identified a clinic supervisor, began
hiring highly trained clinicians who
specialize in working with children
and their families, and networked with
local hospitals, school districts, the
Nassau County Department of Human
Services and pediatricians.”
“We have also brightened up our
clinic environment to make it more
child-friendly and comfortable,” Hop-
kins noted. “This accomplishment was
one of our strategic goals and positions
us as an agency that can provide a full-
er array of services to individuals and
families in need here on Long Island.”
Hopkins was educated at Loyola
University, the University of Illinois
and the University of Hartford.
EPIC Long Island, formerly known
as the Epilepsy Foundation of Long
Island, has served the Long Island
community for 60 years, beginning as
a small agency dedicated to helping
families affected by epilepsy. Through
the years, its services have expand-
ed to meet the evolving needs of the
communities it serves and, today, the
organization provides services to hun-
dreds of individuals with developmen-
tal disabilities, mental health chal-
lenges and epilepsy.
EPIC Long Island’s wide range of
services for adults with developmen-
tal disabilities includes 18 residen-
tial facilities throughout Nassau and

WHO’SWHO
in Not for Profits
Suffolk counties; a weekday program
for day habilitation and Saturday re-
spite program; community services
that offer Medicaid service coordina-
tion and community habilitation; and
specialty developmental disabilities
clinics. Its mental health clinics pro-
vide therapeutic services to children
and adults for challenges that range
from temporary, short-term issues to
severe psychiatric disorders.
The organization’s staff trains and
provides informational materials —
at no cost —to teachers, healthcare
professionals, and community groups.
EPIC Long Island offers tailored ed-
ucational programs for students from
elementary through high school that
demonstrate what epilepsy is, what it
isn’t and how to administer first-aid
when someone is having a seizure.
JANET
KOCH
Life’s WORC
Janet Koch is CEO of Life’s WORC,
a 501(c) (3) organization in Garden
City that supports individuals with
developmental disabilities inclusive of
those on the autism spectrum.
Prior to being named CEO in 2104,
Koch served as the agency’s chief fi-
nancial officer for six years. In her ten-
ure as CFO, she displayed an ability to
identify new funding opportunities, as
well as an ability to maintain an exem-
plary quality of service to individuals
with special needs despite a reduced
revenue stream from funding sources.
Koch also displayed a keen under-
standing of the need to position Life’s
WORC for the impending transition
to a managed care model of govern-
ment partnership. It is as a result of
this foresight and a proven track re-
cord of positive outcomes in all agency
related financial matters that result-
ed in Koch being selected as CEO of
Life’s WORC.
Since being selected as CEO, Koch
has spearheaded an organization re-
structuring; overseen the acquisition
of four more homes; opened the new
Life’s WORC Family Center for Au-
tism (FCA); launched a new three-
year strategic plan; and introduced a
comprehensive marketing initiative.
The agency has also earned the Soci-
ety for Human Resource Management
2016 Best Companies to Work for in
New York State Award, 2015 HIA-
LI Business Achievement Award in
the Not-for-Profit category, LEAD2016
for Leadership Excellence Award and
the American Heart Association’s Fit
Friendly Worksite Gold Status Award.
Koch’s career began about 20 years
ago in the not-for-profit industry in
the field of developmental disabilities.
She earned a Bachelor of Business
Administration Degree from Dowling
College and a Master of Science in Ac-
counting from Long Island University,
CW Post.
Koch serves on the board of direc-
tors of the InterAgency Council. She is
44 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
a member of NYSACRA; is a NYSRA
NYSACRA Managed Care Council
member; a member of LIA; and serves
on the audit committee for the Com-
mack Union Free School District. She
is also a recipient of the 2015 LI Power
Women in Business Award.
Life’s WORC — and its Family
Center for Autism — are approved
New York State 501(c) 3 organiza-
tions that support individuals with
developmental disabilities. The agen-
cy was founded in 1971 by Vicki
Schneps, the mother of a former Wil-
lowbrook State institution resident.
She established an organization dedi-
cated to ensuring that those with de-
velopmental disabilities and autism
are afforded opportunities to live life
to the fullest.
Life’s WORC offers comprehensive
services to more than 1,200 individuals
and families in Queens, Nassau, Suf-
folk counties and provide supportive
homes to over 250 people. Additional
programs for both families and individ-
uals include at-home supports, skills
development and behavioral interven-
tion, social recreation programs and
vocational training opportunities. The
organization also offers collaborative
school linkage programs with Long
Island school districts supporting indi-
viduals and families in need of Applied
Behavior Analysis interventions.
Coordinated and focused through
its ‘Person-Centered’ planning ap-
proach, all of Life’s WORC services
are provided with one goal in mind: to
enable the individual to achieve their
personal best, no matter what their
abilities or challenges.
BERNARD
MACIAS
AARP Long Island
Bernard Macias is associate state
director at AARP Long Island. Most
recently, Macias was the account di-
rector on the AARP account manage-
ment team at d’exposito & Partners
in New York City, managing AARP’s
multicultural markets and engage-
ment account, for all Hispanic/Lati-
no campaign national initiatives. His
work and interest on AARP’s advo-
cacy, volunteerism and hyper-local
grass roots community work, led him
to his new, recent post as AARP’s as-
sociate state director for Long Island,
serving Nassau and Suffolk counties.
AARP strengthens communities
and fights for the issues that matter
most to families such as healthcare,
employment and income security, re-
tirement planning, affordable utilities
and protection from financial abuse,
Macias said.
“We advocate for individuals in the
marketplace by selecting products
and services of high quality and value
to carry the AARP name, as well as
help our members obtain discounts on
a wide range of products, travel, and
services,” he said. “AARP Foundation
is an affiliated charity of AARP that
is working to win back opportunity for
struggling Americans 50+ by being a
force for change on the most serious
issues they face today: housing, hun-
ger, income and isolation.”
Prior to joining d’exposito & Part-
ners, Macias worked as management
supervisor at GlobalWorks, a New
York multicultural ad agency, man-
aging the Cablevision account, for
residential mass, direct marketing
and business-to-business initiatives.
He began his advertising career at
Wunderman Worldwide in the area
of media planning and buying. Later,
he worked for Marti Flores Prieto &
Wachtel/New York, a division of J Wal-
ter Thompson, on Rums of Puerto Rico
and Puerto Rico Tourism Company.
His interest in the Hispanic mar-
ket led him to work at The Bravo
Group/Young & Rubicam, where he
was responsible for the planning and
execution of several direct market-
ing accounts at BravoDirect, servic-
ing clients such as AT&T, Citibank,
H&R Block, and USPS. Macias later
moved to McCann Erickson where he
brought with him his combination of
advertising and direct marketing ex-
perience to work on UPS Internation-
al managing all the efforts in Latin
America. His agency work has led him
to work in Argentina, Brazil, Chile,
Mexico and Puerto Rico.
His passion for understanding all
marketing disciplines later led Ma-
cias to work at Long Island headquar-
tered - Don Jagoda and Associates,
a 50-year-old and industry-respect-
ed full-service promotion marketing
agency, where he served as direc-
tor of new business development for
Hispanic Market contest promotion/
sweepstakes marketing.
AARP is a nonprofit, nonpartisan
organization, with a membership of
more than 37 million, that helps peo-
ple turn their goals and dreams into
real possibilities. AARP NY is at the
vanguard of social change, the Dis-
ruptor of the status quo advocating on
behalf of our 2.6 million members and
the larger community on issues of rel-
evancy: financial resilience, caregiv-
ing, age-friendly communities and af-
fordable housing. New Yorkers value
AARP NY in a myriad of ways, as
an assertive voice and champion for
the Gen Xers and the 50+ and as the
provider of experiential interactions,
that not only delight, but help people
50+ live their best life looking through
a lens of real possibilities. AARP has
staffed offices in all 50 states, the Dis-
trict of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and
the U.S. Virgin Islands.
BOB
McGUIRE
Cerebral Palsy
Association of
Nassau County, Inc.
Bob McGuire is executive direc-
tor of Cerebral Palsy Association of
Nassau County (CP Nassau) in Roo-
sevelt. McGuire joined the not-for-
profit health agency serving children
and adults with cerebral palsy, de-
velopmental and other disabilities
nearly 34 years ago. He has held vari-
ous roles within the agency that have
made a difference in the lives of peo-
ple with life challenges, including his
role as executive director which he
has held for 19 years.
When McGuire joined CP Nassau,
it employed about 250 individuals,
had a budget of $3 million and served
about 500 children and adults. Today,
he oversees a staff of 850 who provide
programs and services that assist al-
most 1,800 individuals with a budget
of $50 million.
Cerebral Palsy Association of Nas-
sau County, Inc. was established in
1948 as a small, outpatient health
clinic by parents who wanted a bet-
ter life for their children. Over six
decades later, CP Nassau has earned
distinction as one of the nation’s pre-
eminent non-profit healthcare agen-
cies. The school at CP Nassau, known
as the Children’s Learning Center,
provides special education for early
intervention, preschool and school-age
children. Each child has an individ-
ualized educational plan that coordi-
nates academic and therapeutic needs
to maximize our children’s opportuni-
ties to prosper. The school adds to its
rich environment by hosting a myr-
iad of special programs that include
ballet, chorus, a prom, homecoming
parade, adaptive physical education,
as well as music and art therapy, and
scouting to name a few.
Medical Services include primary
care and a host of specialties that in-
clude dentistry, podiatry, cardiology,
psychiatry and psychiatry. Over 300
adults are provided various types of
day programs designed and tailored
to their needs. Therapeutic inter-
ventions and community outings are
common, as well, as the use of a high
tech sensory room and a recording
studio that complements the exten-
sive music program.
Residential settings are designed
to promote independence, individuali-
ty and choice. In the agency’s 48-per-
son ICF (intermediate care facility),
24-hour nursing ensures expert and
prompt response to residents. In
smaller homes, individuals establish
their own schedules and utilize com-
munity services, accordingly.
The organization’s highly regarded
sports team, led by USA Paralympics
Weight Lifting Coach, Mary C. Hodge,
travels the world competing in Bocce.
McGuire began his career in the
Bronx working with young adults liv-
ing in group homes. Early in his ca-
reer, his ability to relate to people and
be a positive, effective mentor was ev-
ident. He has dedicated his career to
assuring that individuals with disabili-
ties accomplish things great and small
with dignity and increased self-esteem.
“Support from the community is
vital to our agency and to all orga-
nizations who work to improve the
lives of people with disabilities,” stat-
ed McGuire, “in addition to a variety
of fundraising events, we hold an an-
nual Dignitary Awards luncheon and
our annual Forget Me Not Ball. These
events provide opportunities for our
agency to recognize and thank indi-
viduals, businesses and organizations

WHO’SWHO
in Not for Profits
who have gone above and beyond in
helping CP Nassau carry out its mis-
sion of providing the highest quality
programs and services to the children
and adults we serve.”
McGuire reported, “We are faced
with dramatic philosophical differ-
ences with the state and federal gov-
ernment when it comes to providing
the supports that individuals with
disabilities deserve and are entitled
to. Decision makers often view the
world of services as ‘one size fits all.’
Our agency is dedicated to advocating
for choice. We have been a leader in
supporting the rights of individuals
with disabilities for almost seven de-
cades. With a proven track record of
commitment, expertise, persistence
and fortitude you can count on us to
stay the course and remain steadfast
in our fight.”
PAULE T.
PACHTER,
A.C.S.W.,
L.M.S.W.
Long Island Cares,
Inc., The Harry
Chapin Food Bank
Paule T. Pachter, A.C.S.W.,
L.M.S.W. is chief executive officer of
Long Island Cares, Inc., The Harry
Chapin Food Bank in Hauppauge.
Founded by the late singer, Grammy
Award winning songwriter, and social
activist Harry Chapin, Long Island
Cares brings together all available re-
sources for the benefit of the hungry
and food insecure on Long Island, and
provides to the best of their ability for
the humanitarian needs of our commu-
nity. The organization is dedicated to
promoting the food welfare of Long Is-
land, to raise the nutritional standards
of its communities, to bring into closer
relation the resources and food needs of
the community, and to encourage food
self-reliance for all Long Islanders.
As part of his vision, Pachter has
redefined the role of a food bank to
offer more direct services bringing
Long Island Cares in closer contact
with people in need, expanding mobile
operations and building a network of
community resources to increase dis-
tribution and capacity, which resulted
in the organization receiving Feeding
America’s prestigious Hunger’s Hope
Award in 2011.
Last year, Long Island Cares in-
troduced Who Needs Pants Day, now
known as Casual for the Cause!,
Pachter said.
“It’s the biggest casual Friday on
Long Island and it was a huge suc-
cess and lots of fun,” he said. “This
year, it was held on Friday, June 10
and over 35 offices all across Long Is-
land rocked their casual attire to help
Long Island Cares feed our hungry.
It raised over $15,000, which provid-
ed 17,700 meals. We look forward to
more companies getting involved in
next year.”
Pachter is a graduate of the Adel-
phi University School of Social Work
45 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
and has held several positions within
Long Island’s human services commu-
nity including deputy commissioner
of the Nassau County Department of
Mental Health, Mental Retardation
and Developmental Disabilities. He is
credited with influencing the passage
of New York State’s social work parity
legislation, and in 1985, Pachter was
selected Nassau County Social Work-
er of the Year by the NASW Nassau
Division in recognition of his work in
the areas of social work and political
action, and for his contributions to the
fields of mental health.
Pachter is a member of the board of
directors of the Long Island Associa-
tion; he is also a 2006 recipient of the
New York State Liberty Medal, the
state’s highest honor for his work in
the relief efforts associated with Hur-
ricane Katrina. Pachter also received
the Town of Hempstead’s Make a Dif-
ference Medal, in 2012, for his work
in responding to Superstorm Sandy.
Long Island Cares, Inc., The Harry
Chapin Food Bank is Long Island’s
first food bank founded by the late
singer, songwriter and social activist,
Harry Chapin. After Harry’s death in
1981 it was and is continued today by
his wife and partner, Sandy Chapin; a
dedicated board of directors; and tal-
ented staff working out of a 35,000—
sq.-ft. facility in Hauppauge and three
storefront hunger assistance centers
in Freeport, Lindenhurst and Hun-
tington Station.
Long Island Cares is a member of
Feeding America and is the recog-
nized Regional Food Bank by the NYS
Department of Health, Division of Nu-
trition Hunger Prevention and Nu-
trition Assistance Program (HPNAP)
and The Emergency Food Assistance
Program of the USDA. (TEFAP). In
2016, Long Island Cares was awarded
Charity Navigator’s highest 4-Star
rating for the 7th consecutive year.
STANFORT
J. PERRY
AHRC Nassau
Stanfort J. Perry is executive di-
rector of AHRC Nassau in Brookville,
which is committed to person-cen-
tered planning in its approach to pro-
viding supports and services to people
with intellectual and developmental
disabilities. Perry joined AHRC Nas-
sau as its associate executive director
in 2013, overseeing the management
of a full range of programs including
AHRC’s residential and day program,
employment services, family and com-
munity support services, COMPASS
and quality assurance. AHRC Nassau
is among the largest agencies in New
York State serving people with devel-
opmental disabilities.
In his new role as executive di-
rector of AHRC Nassau and its af-
filiate organizations, which include
Brookville Center for Children’s Ser-
vices and Citizens Options Unlimited,
Inc., Perry oversees operating budgets
of approximately $200 million and a
workforce of more than 3,100 profes-
sionals committed to enriching the
lives of 4,000 children and adults with
disabilities throughout Long Island.
The rapid growth in the number
of individuals living with intellectual
and developmental disabilities (IDD)
on Long Island, along with their in-
creased longevity, present challenges
to those concerned about health and
well-being of this specific population,
Perry said.
“AHRC and its partner organiza-
tions are developing effective and ef-
ficient health promotion and disease
prevention strategies to improve the
health and quality of life of people liv-
ing with IDD,” he said. “Since people
with intellectual and developmental
disabilities are living longer, the med-
ical and behavioral health community
must adapt health promotion inter-
ventions to people with cognitive and
physical limitations. Better ways to
engage the disability community and
those who support them in the design
of health promotion interventions will
yield better health outcomes for the
overall population.”
“Key areas to improve the health
of people with disabilities include
improved access to health care and
human services, increased use of data
for decision-making, strengthening
health and human services workforce
capacity and renewed efforts to in-
clude people with disabilities in public
health programs,” Perry explained.
“While challenges exist, due to gov-
ernment funding cutbacks, AHRC and
its partners, Advantage Care Health
Center, The Fay J. Lindner Center
for Autism and Partners Health Plan
(PHP) are committed to high quality
health promotion, behavioral health
services and disease prevention strat-
egies for youth, adults and older
adults with intellectual and develop-
mental disabilities.”
Prior to joining AHRC Nassau,
Perry spent 14 years as executive di-
rector of Arc of Onondaga County,
which serves more than 3,000 people
with developmental disabilities and
their families. Previously, he served
as executive director of Hopevale, Inc.,
an organization providing residential
treatment, family support, foster care,
education and clinical services to chil-
dren and families drawn from more
than 30 counties throughout New York
State. He also served seven years as a
member of the New York State Office
of Mental Retardation and Develop-
mental Disabilities Advisory Council.
Perry serves on the board of direc-
tors for the New York State Indus-
tries for the Disabled, Inc. (NYSID),
which is dedicated to providing on-
going employment opportunities for
people with developmental disabilities
throughout New York State.
THERESA A.
REGNANTE
United Way of
Long Island
Theresa A. Regnante is president
and chief executive officer of United
Way of Long Island where she has
been a catalyst for positive change
since 2009. She is leading the non-
profit organization, founded in 1964,
and supporting its 125 community
partners in the development of stra-
tegic initiatives that have measurable
and lasting impact.
Regnante is credited for imple-
menting significant organizational im-
provements in the areas of community
partnerships and financial competence
and assembling, retaining and engag-
ing high impact board members. She
works to maintain the delicate balance
of dedication to mission, the need for
bold entrepreneurial initiatives and
the application of sound business man-
agement needed to run a successful
nonprofit organization.
Regnante has helped United Way
of Long Island expand its traditional
fundraising activities by broadening
the base of support and introducing
the organization to previously un-
tapped markets. Her efforts have sta-
bilized the organization both adminis-
tratively and financially.
Under her stewardship, United
Way of Long Island has shifted the
focus of its mission to education, in-
come and health – the building blocks
for a good quality life. In 2010, United
Way of Long Island launched the LIVE
UNITED campaign to engage commu-
nities in a more inclusive strategic ef-
fort. LIVE UNITED is an invitation
to give, to advocate, to volunteer – an
opportunity for all people to think of
themselves as part of the solution.
United Way of Long Island is pre-
paring for its upcoming event/fund-
raiser LIVE UNITED Celebration
Luncheon on May 11 at the Crest
Hollow Country Club in Woodbury
from11:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m..
“This event advances the common
good across Long Island,” Regnante
said. “More than 800 people from all
sectors — business, labor, nonprofits,
the faith community, academia, elect-
ed officials, veterans, volunteers —
will join together to accomplish goals
that no one organization and no indi-
viduals can accomplish on their own.”
“We will be honoring John R .
Durso Local 338 RWDSU/UFCW & LI
Federation of Labor, as well as Macy’s
and the Island Outreach Foundation,”
she said. “The event will be hosted
by four-time Emmy Award-winning
American comedian Carol Leifer and
Paul Fleishman of Newsday.”
Funds raised from this event will
support United Way of Long Island’s
100+ community partners in Nassau
County and Suffolk County, Regnante
noted. “As part of United Way of Long
Island’s community impact strategy
these agencies connect families to
the building blocks of economic sta-

WHO’SWHO
in Not for Profits
bility: income, education and health.
Education is essential to getting and
keeping a job with a livable wage and
health benefits. An income adequate
to pay for today’s necessities and sav-
ing for the future provides families
with financial stability. Access to
quality health care keeps children on
track in school and adults productive
at work. In 2015, United Way of Long
Island’s network of care and 100+
community partners assisted 325,000
individuals, or approximately 1 per-
son out of 10 on Long Island.”
Regnante has earned many honors
and recognitions. Most recently, she
was named a 2016 Long Island Power
List Awardee. She also received the
2015 International Humanitarian
Award from Gift of Life, Inc.; and the
2013 The Long Island Press Commu-
nity Leadership Award. She is in-
volved in many organizations includ-
ing the Long Island Index Advisory
Committee; Adelphi University’s In-
stitute for Social Research & Commu-
nity Engagement; Hofstra Universi-
ty’s Master of Public Health Program
Advisory Committee; Advancement of
Commerce, Industry and Technology;
and LISTnet.
United Way of Long Island ad-
vances the common good, creating op-
portunities for a better life for all by
focusing on the three key building
blocks of education, financial stability
and health. The organization recruits
people and organizations that bring
the passion, expertise and resourc-
es needed to get things done. LIVE
UNITED® is a call to action for ev-
eryone to become part of the change.
United Way of Long Island is part of
a worldwide network spanning across
41 countries and territories, including
more than 1,200 local organizations in
the United States.
MICHAEL
SMITH
ACDS
Michael Smith is executive director
of ACDS, a not for profit organization
in Plainview dedicated to serving chil-
dren and adults with Down syndrome,
autism and other developmental dis-
abilities.
Smith entered the non-profit sector
25 years ago, first at the New York
Institute for the Blind, then at a series
of agencies in New York and Connecti-
cut. ACDS is the fourth agency Smith
has served as executive director, hav-
ing developed an expertise in turning
around financial troubled agencies, the
subject of his upcoming book.
He came to ACDS in 2004 and is
credited for tripling the size of the
organization, building its reputation,
and expanding the reach of program
offerings.
ACDS has been asked to replicate
its special education preschool in
Westchester County, Smith said.
“Our board of directors, dedicated
to our mission of reaching out to those
46 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
in need of our services, has for the first
time committed to expanding beyond
our Long Island borders,” Smith said.
“We have leased a school building on
the Scarsdale/Yonkers border and plan
to open with four classes during our
50th Anniversary year. The school will
ultimately house up to 150 students
drawn from Southern Westchester.”
Smith earned a bachelor’s degree
in English Literature from Tufts Uni-
versity; a master’s degree from Hofs-
tra University; and a master’s degree
from New York University where he
also pursued a doctorate in American
Studies. In 1995 and 2001, Smith at-
tended the program for Non-Profit
Management at Harvard’s Graduate
Business School.
He taught for five years at the prep
school and university levels, including
Hofstra University, before working in
New York City government where he
eventually moved to the Division of
Special Education at the NYC Board
of Education.
ACDS’s primary headquarters and
preschool is located in Plainview.
ACDS was founded in 1966 by a group
of parents on Long Island who were
seeking services for their young chil-
dren with Down syndrome. Since then
it has grown and evolved into a life-
time services agency that serves fam-
ilies of individuals with a wide range
of developmental disabilities, from
before birth until late adulthood. Its
programs are delivered in a variety
of settings, including its educational
center in Plainview, in the family’s
home, in community-based programs
and in our Individualized Residential
Alternative group homes (IRAs). The
organization currently has the capac-
ity to serve more than 1,000 people
annually across all its programs.
ACDS is a 501©(3) corporation that
relies primarily on government fund-
ing. However, it is dependent on private
support to fill the gap between public
funding and its operating budget.
ANTHONY
SPEELMAN
Leukemia &
Lymphoma Society
Leukemia & Lymphoma Society
President and Chief Executive Officer
Louis J. DeGennaro, Ph.D. is pleased
that one of the organization’s dedicat-
ed volunteers, Anthony (Tony) Speel-
man — who is secretary-treasurer
at The United Food and Commercial
Workers (UFCW) Local 1500 — is
chair of Leukemia & Lymphoma Soci-
ety’s (LLS) 2016 Light The Night Walk
taking place on Saturday, October 15
at Eisenhower Park in East Meadow.
Speelman is working closely with
LLS to secure a successful event for
the organization, which is dedicated
toward finding a cure for leukemia,
lymphoma, Hodgkin’s disease and my-
eloma. Speelman said he is honored
to serve as chair of the Leukemia &
Lymphoma Society’s 2016 Light The
Night Walk.
“Although UFWC has been a sup-
porter of LLS for more than 33 years,
the cause became even more meaning-
ful to us when we lost a dear friend
and former UFCW President, Frank
Meehan, to leukemia,” Speelman
said. “Light The Night is an evening
walk that commemorates and cele-
brates lives touched by cancer. More
than 5,000 participants will walk a 1
to 2-mile route at Eisenhower Park on
October 15 while carrying illuminated
lanterns. The walk features live music
and fireworks.”
“Light The Night Walk is a great
opportunity for Long Island business-
es, both big and small, to give back
to the community, gain exposure for
their business and while helping LLS
find cures, support patient services
and advocacy efforts,” Speelman ex-
plained. “I am also hosting a com-
plimentary breakfast on Wednesday,
May 18 at UFCW Local 1500, 425
Merrick Ave in Westbury, where I in-
vite business leaders to attend as it’s
a great way to learn more about LLS
and Light The Night Walk and how to
get involved.”
Speelman was elected secre-
tary-treasurer of UFCW Local 1500
in 2009. UFCW Local 15000 is among
the largest grocery retail unions in
New York with more than 20,000
members working in grocery stores,
pharmacies, and other industry jobs.
The union is committed to building a
powerful coalition of community mem-
bers and workers that fight for eco-
nomic, political, and social justice in
our workplaces and communities.
Since 1979, Speelman has served
in numerous roles at UFCW, most re-
cently as executive vice president. His
key accomplishments include increas-
ing the union’s political fundraising by
more than 30%, the establishment of
programs that lead to more than 80%
of members becoming active in the po-
litical process, for instance, contribut-
ing to the Active Ballot Club, getting
involved in voter registration, attend-
ing Lobby Day in Albany to let their
voices be heard to political representa-
tives, and led fundraising efforts that
resulted in 20% increases each year.
Speelman also serves on Local
1500’s executive board; is a trust-
ee of the union’s Pension & Welfare
Funds; and chairs community blood
drives. He is a member of North
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Shore LIJ Health System OEMLI’s
advisory board; Town of Babylon’s
labor advisory board; and is a mem-
ber of the NAACP.
The Leukemia & Lymphoma Soci-
ety’s Long Island location is based in
Islandia. LLS is a voluntary health
agency dedicated to blood cancer.
LLS’s mission is to cure leukemia,
lymphoma, Hodgkin’s disease and my-
eloma, and improve the quality of life
of patients and their families. LLS
funds lifesaving blood cancer research
around the world and provides free in-
formation and support services.
Founded in 1949 and headquar-
tered in White Plains, NY, LLS has
chapters throughout the United
States and Canada.
MICHAEL
STOLTZ,
LCSW
Association for
Mental Health and
Wellness
Association for Mental Health
and Wellness CEO Michael Stoltz,
LCSW has been leading the Ronkon-
koma-based agency since 1990 — first
as executive director of the predeces-
sor organization, Clubhouse of Suf-
folk, and then as CEO of Associa-
tion for Mental Health and Wellness
(MHAW) since 2014. MHAW provides
programs, services, and advocacy for
more than 3,000 people annually fac-
ing mental health challenges with an
enhanced focus on serving military
Veterans with PTSD and other bat-
tle-related brain injuries.
In collaboration with the Mental
Health Association of Nassau Coun-
ty, the Association for Mental Health
and Wellness coordinates dozens of
anti-stigma events and workshops
on Long Island that mark Nation-
al Mental Health Awareness Week,
which, this year is Sunday, October 2
through Saturday, October 8.
“With mental health reform occu-
pying a significant place in the na-
tional political dialogue about health
and wellness, it is more important
than ever that people understand
what mental health distress and dis-
libn.com

WHO’SWHO
in Not for Profits
abilities are – and aren’t – so we can
best advocate for access to the best
practices of contemporary mental
healthcare,” Stoltz said.
“Through a range of diverse activi-
ties hosted by organizations involved
in healthcare, the arts, veterans ser-
vices, literacy, addictions, and legal
services, among others, our goal for
Mental Health Awareness Week is
to promote a broader understanding
through activities and events that can
stimulate Island-wide community dia-
logues,” he said.
A complete Mental Health Aware-
ness Week calendar will be posted on
the Mental Health Awareness Week
website, he noted.
“We, again, extend an invitation
not only to those impacted by the
challenges of mental health distress,
trauma, and psychiatric disability,
but to all Long Islanders so people can
better access the services that they, or
a loved one, needs,” Stoltz said.
For more information about partic-
ipating in the Mental Health Aware-
ness Week – including sponsorship
opportunities, Stoltz encourages peo-
ple to call MHAW.
Recognized as a leader in the
field of mental health, Stoltz was re-
cently named to the board the Men-
tal Health Association of New York
State. He is past president of the New
York Association of Psychiatric Reha-
bilitation Services and was honored
with the 1998 Irvin Rutman Award
for Executive Director of the Year
from the Psychiatric Rehabilitation
Association.
He is a frequent keynote speaker
and panelist at mental health con-
47 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
ferences addressing topics such as
leadership, management, and system
transformation.
Stoltz is also a past chair of the
Health and Welfare Council of Long
Island, a member of Suffolk’s Wel-
fare to Work Commission, and a past
president of the Ronkonkoma Rotary,
where he has been an active 20-year
member and was recognized as a Paul
Harris Fellow.
Stoltz earned a master’s degree in
social work from Adelphi University,
where he has served as an adjunct
professor teaching social welfare pol-
icy and human service management.
He maintains a private practice along
with his wife, Robin, also a Social
Worker, in Smithtown.
The Association for Mental Health
and Wellness is the result of the 2014
merger of three organizations: Club-
house of Suffolk, Suffolk County Unit-
ed Veterans and the Mental Health
Association in Suffolk County, found-
ed in 1955.
MHAW programs help individuals
overcome the impact of mental health
illnesses, disabilities, and trauma to
achieve goals of education, employ-
ment, social connection, housing, com-
munity involvement, and overall well-
ness. The agency also provides com-
munity and professional education
for mental health providers through
ongoing workshops and seminars.
A range of peer-led support ser-
vices include the highly-successful Jo-
seph P. Dwyer Veterans Peer Support
Project. Through SCUV, the agency
offers a broad range of services deliv-
ered by trained veterans and family
members to assist with outreach, cri-
sis prevention and diversion, social
and employment supports, housing
and homeless assistance, and PTSD
peer support.
MHAW is committed to the core
practice values of empowerment,
hope, opportunity, and cultural com-
petence. The agency takes a “whole
person” perspective with an enriched
understanding of the social and eco-
nomic conditions that contribute to
physical and mental health and sub-
stance abuse.
DAWN
JESSICA
STRAIN
Long Island Elite
Dawn Jessica Strain is found-
er of the Long Island Elite (LIE), a
501(c)3 organization, established in
2002. This networking group connects
successful executives under the age
of 40 while demonstrating the value
and fulfillment of raising money for
Long Island’s charities. Strain served
as the organization’s president from
2002 through 2012 and continues to
be an active board member.
Strain’s passion for philanthropy
and community has helped raised
funds for many not for profit orga-
nizations across Long Island. She
recognizes that she could not accom-
plish any of this without the sup-
port and effort from the LIE team.
“In 2014, LIE embarked on a new
chapter of its legacy, changing the way
it supports and raises funds for Long
Island charities by choosing to partner
with one organization,” Strain said. “An
innovative idea of then co-presidents
Evan Bloom and Adam Zeitsiff.”
“The initiative was a great success
raising $45,000 for Big Brother Big
Sisters of Long Island, in 2014, and
$47,000 for The Safe Center LI, in
2015,” she said.
This year, LIE has selected New
Ground — an organization that assists
families and veterans in breaking the
cycle of homelessness, allowing them
to function independently for gener-
ations to come — as its LIE Charity
Partner of the Year, Strain said.
Strain is also president and founder
of DJS Events, a full service boutique
event planning and design firm where
she has created memorable affairs for
clientele in the corporate, non-profit
and social sectors. In May 2012, she
created the innovative “WoofWoofWed-
ding,” a fundraiser benefiting North
Shore Animal League and Waggy Tails
Rescue. This special event was fea-
tured on Fox 5’s “Good Day New York,”
TLC’s “Say Yes to The Dress,” as well
as The Wall Street Journal, Cranes
and other publications.
Long Island Elite’s mission is to
cultivate the development, growth
and leadership capabilities of young
business professionals across Long
Island. We are dedicated to raising
awareness and funds for local not-
for-profit organizations and other
agencies that make a difference in
our own backyard.
 48 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
WHO’s WHO
DOUGLAS
W. ATKINS
Forchelli, Curto,
Deegan, Schwartz,
Mineo & Terrana,
in Real Property, Certiorari Law
LLP
Firms and Health Care Law
Douglas W. Atkins is a partner at
Forchelli, Curto, Deegan, Schwartz,
Mineo & Terrana, LLP in Uniondale.
Attorneys keep abreast of the myriad of issues/ Atkins concentrates his practice in
topics within their practice areas to provide the areas of tax certiorari, real estate
and condemnation. He has extensive
their clients with the best possible advice. experience in property tax reduction
proceedings for all types of commer-
cial real estate throughout New York
In this Who’s Who in Real Property & Certiorari State. He has handled complex cases
for specialty properties such as golf
Law Firms and Health Care Law, some of courses, cellular towers, self-storage
Long Island’s leading attorneys from these facilities, nursing homes and condo-
minium communities.
practice groups highlight an issue/trend they Atkins also regularly advises prop-
erty owners and municipalities on
are currently focusing on to deliver the highest
level of counsel.
the negotiation and tax impact of In-
dustrial Development Agency PILOT
agreements.
Atkins keeps his eyes on “the blur-
ry line between realty value and busi-
ness value.”
“Property tax in New York state can
only be charged on real estate value,
yet some property types have difficult
INDEXINDEXINDEX separation from their realty and busi-
ness components,” he noted. “Exam-
ples of this include senior living facili-
ties, hotels and self-storage facilities.”
48 DOUGLAS W. ATKINS Forchelli, Curto, Deegan, Schwartz, Mineo & Terrana, LLP Prior to joining the firm, Atkins
held positions at the Suffolk Coun-
48 MARNA BERNSTEIN Cullen and Dykman LLP
ty District Attorney’s Office and the
49 EILEEN O’BOYLE BITETTO Certilman Balin Adler & Hyman, LLP Kings County Supreme Court.
Atkins is a graduate of Brooklyn
50 KEITH P. BROWN Harris Beach PLLC Law School and is admitted to the
bars of New York and Connecticut. He
50 DIANA CHOY-SHAN Genser Dubow Genser & Cona, LLP
is a member of the Nassau and Suf-
51 BRAD CRONIN Cronin & Cronin Law Firm folk County Bar Associations, where
he serves on the Tax Certiorari and
51 JUDITH A. EISEN Garfunkel Wild, P.C. Condemnation Law Committee for
51 RICHARD G. FROMEWICK Meyer, Suozzi, English & Klein, P.C. each. He is also an active member of
the Huntington Township Chamber of
52 BENJAMIN GEIZHALS Moritt Hock & Hamroff LLP Commerce.
Atkins is also a frequent lecturer
52 LAUREEN HARRIS Cronin, Cronin, Harris & O’Brien, P.C and writer on the topics of commer-
52 JENNIFER HOWER Herman Katz Cangemi & Clyne, LLP cial property tax and valuation. He
has been published in the New York
52 BERNIE KENNEDY Bond, Schoeneck & King Real Estate Journal, New York Law
Journal, Suffolk County Lawyer and
53 DAVID A. MANKO Rivkin Radler LLP
various other local publications.
53 MICHAEL MARTONE Koeppel Martone & Leistman, LLP The Huntington Township Cham-
ber of Commerce selected Atkins as
54 WILLETS S. MEYER Farrell Fritz, P. C. one of Long Island’s top 30 young pro-
54 KEVIN P. MULRY Farrell Fritz, P.C. fessionals in 2010. Since 2011, he has
been annually selected as a Rising
54 ERIC C. RUBENSTEIN Ruskin Moscou Faltischek P.C. Star by New York Super Lawyers. At-
kins has successfully completed both
55 MICHAEL SCHRODER Schroder & Strom, LLP commercial and residential real estate
55 GREG STOLLER Abrams, Fensterman, Fensterman, Eisman, Formato, appraisal courses through the Colum-
bia Society of Real Estate Appraisers.
Ferrara & Wolf, LLP Forchelli, Curto, Deegan, Schwartz,
Mineo & Terrana, LLP is among Long
56 DAVID N. VOZZA Kern Augustine Conroy & Schoppmann, P.C.
Island’s leading full-service law firms
56 STEPHEN B. WEISSMAN Rivkin Radler LLP representing clients in real estate,
land use and zoning, tax, trusts and
estates, tax certiorari, corporate and
commercial and litigation matters.
The firm has one of the fastest
growing tax certiorari departments
on Long Island as it maintains com-
puterized New York City, Nassau and
Suffolk County tax roll information
and records. This enables the firm to
quickly assess property tax issues and
promptly file claims for tax reductions
and refunds.
Formed in 1976, under the helm
of Managing Partner Jeffrey D.
Forchelli, the firm’s areas of expertise
have expanded to include banking,
bankruptcy, employment and labor,
municipal incentives/IDA, entertain-
ment, construction law and more.
Throughout the firm’s growth, one
thing has remained constant - its
focus on obtaining results for clients.
The firm employs more than 60 at-
torneys who handle complex matters
for a broad client base including na-
tional, regional and local businesses,
major real estate developers and or-
ganizations, banks, insurance com-
panies, municipalities, educational
institutions, contractors, architects/
engineers and individuals.
MARNA
BERNSTEIN
Cullen and Dykman
LLP
Marna Bernstein is a partner in
Cullen and Dykman LLP’s banking
department, representing banks and
other financial lending institutions on
commercial real estate finance trans-
actions. In her practice, Bernstein has
counseled clients in structuring, doc-
umenting and closing transactions se-
cured by multifamily apartment proj-
ects, commercial office buildings, ho-
tels, shopping centers and mixed-use
facilities, on constructions projects and
in bad-debt restructure and work-outs.
Bernstein is also managing partner
for the firm’s residential lending de-
partment. In addition to transactional
lending, she has experience represent-
ing owners in the acquisition, sale
and financing of real estate projects.
As a result of increases in banking
regulations and economic uncertain-
ty, Bernstein is seeing commercial
lenders exercise significant caution.
“Banking regulations have resulted in
our clients having to increase capital
reserves to cover potential increases
in borrower defaults,” she said. “Con-
cern about heavy handed banking
regulations and other uncertainties
about the economy have caused lend-
ers to tighten up their underwriting
requirements even as they continue
to put money on the street. We have
even seen some local institutional
lenders temporarily cease making
loans. Those who continue to lend are
doing so only to the strongest bor-
rowers who they believe will be able
to continue to meet debt service pay-
ments despite potential tenant vacan-
cies and possible reductions in rental
income. To hedge against such poten-
tial losses, we work with our clients to
structure transactions to incorporate
master lease components, springing
and burn-off guaranties, and escrow
holdbacks to address future vacan-
cies,” she explained.
There is still some reluctance by
lenders to make constructions loans,
 49 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM

WHO’SWHO
in Real Property, Certiorari Law Firms and Health Care Law
Bernstein said. “Although our clients tice in the area of Real Estate Tax dure is the creation of what is known to the Nassau County Department of
recognize a need for mixed-use, af- Certiorari law and Condemnation lit- as an equalization rate, which is Assessment web site, you would be
fordable and senior housing on Long igation. This concentration has, as merely a fraction representing the ac- led to believe that the actual equaliza-
Island, we still see some hesitation its focus, issues of real property val- tual percentage of full value assessed. tion rate was 1 percent, O’Boyle Bitet-
by lenders to commit to such projects uation; particularly the review of as- This use of an equalization rate to to said. “However, if you were to com-
without certainty that developers will sessed valuation–seeking opportuni- determine full value — as opposed to mence a negotiation on a commercial
be able to obtain the necessary ap- ties where taxes may be reduced. She a published assessed value at 100 per- assessment with the Nassau County
provals from the municipalities and also represents clients whose prop- cent of market value — creates terri- Assessment Review Commission, you
will be able to proceed with communi- erty has been acquired, or is about ble confusion for the taxpayers. Both would find that the equalization rate
ty support,” she stated. to be acquired, in Eminent Domain experienced and less sophisticated used for the 2017/2018 tax year would
“Lenders continue to be challenged proceedings–working to ensure that taxpayers are unaware of the values be .00685. To illustrate the point,
with commercial loans secured by these owners are adequately compen- found by the assessor and accordingly if your real estate had an assessed
projects that are underperforming due sated for their loss of property. must seek professional assistance in value of $10,000 and you looked on
to tenant vacancies and/or misman- O’Boyle Bitetto remains focused on order to determine if property is, in the Nassau County web site, you
agement either at loan maturity or many developing issues in her field, fact, over assessed.” would be led to believe that your full
upon default by Borrowers,” Bern- including fractional assessments. To make matters somewhat more value was $1,000,000.”
stein said. “As a result of such Bor- “I continue to be concerned by Nas- confusing, the Nassau County Depart- “In front of the Assessment Re-
rowers’ inabilities to refinance their sau County’s use of fractional assess- ment of Assessment and the Nassau view Commission, this same property
loans, we advise our clients in work ments in order to determine a full County Assessment Review Commis- would be discussed using an equal-
out solutions which best balance the market value for assessment purpos- sion use different equalization rates ization rate of .00685, which would
interests of Lenders and Borrowers, es,” she said. “In New York, property in order to determine full value based convert into a full market value of
neither of whom want to see their must be assessed at a uniform per- on assessed value for taxation purpos- $1,459,854,” she said. “The taxpay-
loans foreclosed.” centage of market value. The signifi- es, O’Boyle Bitetto noted. ers have a right to know and to un-
“This is a resilient industry that cance of this type of assessing proce- “For example, if you were to go on derstand the basis for their assessed
has faced similar issues in the past
and we believe that the industry will
continue to evolve to address such
issues in the future,” Bernstein noted.
Bernstein’s past experience includes
representing lenders on commercial
and residential foreclosures and the
sale of bank owned real estate.
Among her professional and com-
munity activities, she is on the board
of directors of the Real Estate Insti-
tute at Stony Brook University, Col-
lege of Business; a member of Mort-
gage Banker’s Association; a member
of the New York Bar Association, Real
Estate Law Section; and member of
Long Island Center for Business and
Professional Women.
Bernstein earned a juris doctor,
cum laude, from New York Law
School and a bachelor’s degree, cum
laude, from Northeastern University.
Cullen and Dykman LLP in Gar-
den City has been providing legal ser-
vices to individual and institutional
clients since 1850 and represents a
wide range of clients including banks
and other financial institutions, en-
ergy, telecommunications and water
companies; large and small business-
es, educational institutions; religious
organizations; insurance companies;
municipalities and not-for-profits, as
well as individuals. The firm’s prac-
tice areas include banking, ener-
gy and telecommunications, public
utility regulation, tax certiorari and
eminent domain, corporate and com-
mercial law, real estate, foreclosure,
bankruptcy, tort and commercial lit-
igation, labor and employment law,
municipal law, immigration law, and
trusts and estates.

EILEEN
O’BOYLE
BITETTO
Certilman Balin
Adler & Hyman,
LLP

Eileen O’Boyle Bitetto is a partner

at Certilman Balin Adler & Hyman,
LLP, a full service law firm with offic-
es in East Meadow and Hauppauge.
O’Boyle Bitetto concentrates her prac-

WHO’SWHO
in Real Property, Certiorari Law Firms and Health Care Law
value in order to be in a position
to make an educated decision as to
whether or not a real estate tax re-
view proceeding is justified. However,
it is important to note that for the
2018/2019 tax year, the Nassau Coun-
ty Department of Assessment has em-
barked on what they characterize as
a ‘review’ of all commercial assessed
values in the county. I believe this
would be a perfect time for the county
to correct their practice of fractional
assessing and instead, move to reas-
sess at full market value.”
O’Boyle Bitetto has volunteered as
a mentor with the Lawyers in Kids’
Education (LIKE) program, which
was created by the partners at Certil-
man Balin. As part of this team, she
uses “vocabulary enrichment games”
and offers a listening ear to help “at-
risk” elementary school students with
literacy and life.
O’Boyle Bitetto also serves on
the Board of Directors of AAA North-
east which is the regional affiliate of
AAA. It is a not-for-profit corporation
established 100 years ago to maintain
a club for auto users and owners, with
the primary purpose of advocating
law related to the use, rights, and
privileges of such owners/users.
O’Boyle Bitetto is active in Chris-
tian Help, Inc. a charity serving Ap-
palachian communities.
O’Boyle Bitetto is a member of
the Nassau County, New York State
and Nassau County Women’s Bar
Associations. She earned an under-
graduate degree in American Stud-
ies from St. John’s University and
a juris doctor from St. John’s Uni-
versity School of Law.
O’Boyle Bitetto has achieved the
highest professional rating by Martin-
dale Hubbell. She is admitted to the
New York State Bar.
Certilman Balin Adler & Hyman,
LLP is among Long Island’s largest
full-service law firm with offices in
Nassau and Suffolk Counties and
New Jersey. Its 14 practice areas in-
clude: real estate, real property tax
certiorari and condemnation, cooper-
ative and condominium, land use/en-
vironmental law, corporate/securities,
litigation, commercial lending, labor
relations/employment law, bankrupt-
cy and debtor/creditor rights, nonprof-
it law, tax exempt and religious or-
ganizations law, trusts and estates,
elder law, telecommunications law,
and criminal law.
KEITH P.
BROWN
Harris Beach PLLC
Keith P. Brown is a member of
Harris Beach PLLC’s Melville office.
Brown serves on the firm’s real estate
developers industry team, the finan-
cial institutions and capital markets
industry team and commercial real
estate practice group.
Brown has extensive experience in
the field of real estate law and concen-
50 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
trates on corporate representation in
a wide range of real estate matters,
from complex commercial disputes to
issues related to zoning and land use
regulations.
He counsels many corporations
on real estate development, liability
avoidance and litigation, as well as
compliance with federal and state en-
vironmental laws. He has represented
Fortune 500 companies, including na-
tional retailers, commercial develop-
ers, residential developers, national
petroleum distributors, national and
local community banks, gasoline sta-
tions retailers, automotive dealerships,
pharmacies and other local business-
es, as well as wireless companies and
tower developers throughout the New
York Metropolitan area, including all
townships and many villages through-
out Nassau and Suffolk Counties.
Brown is a founding partner of
Brown & Altman, LLP, which merged
into Harris Beach on January 1, 2016.
Brown previously practiced in the
litigation departments of several pres-
tigious Long Island-based law firms
and also served as an assistant attor-
ney general in the Litigation Bureau
of the New York State Attorney Gen-
eral’s Office.
Brown earned a juris doctor from
Touro College Jacob D. Fuchsberg
Law Center and a bachelor’s degree
from State University of New York
at Albany. He is admitted to practice
in New York state and Connecticut
and before the United States District
Court, Eastern District of New York
and Southern District of New York;
and the United States Court of Ap-
peals, Second Circuit.
Founded in 1856, Harris Beach is
among the country’s top law firms as
ranked by The National Law Jour-
nal. Harris Beach ranks among the
2016 BTI Brand Elite law firms based
on in-depth interviews conducted by
BTI, a leading legal industry consult-
ing group, of more than 600 corpo-
rate counsel at the world’s largest and
most influential companies.
Harris Beach and its subsidiaries
provide a full range of legal and pro-
fessional services for clients across
New York state, as well as nationally
and internationally. Clients include
Fortune 500 corporations, private-
ly-held companies, emerging busi-
nesses, public sector entities, not-for-
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profit organizations and individuals.
Principal industries Harris Beach
represents include education, energy,
financial, food and beverage, health
care, insurance, manufacturing, med-
ical and life sciences, real estate de-
velopers, and state and local govern-
ments and authorities.
The firm’s over 200 lawyers practice
among offices throughout New York
state in Albany, Buffalo, Ithaca, Mel-
ville, New York City, Rochester, Sara-
toga Springs, Syracuse, Uniondale and
White Plains, as well as in New Haven,
Connecticut and Newark, New Jersey.
DIANA
CHOY-SHAN
Genser Dubow
Genser & Cona, LLP
Diana Choy-Shan is a senior asso-
ciate attorney at Genser Dubow Gens-
er & Cona, LLP (GDGC) in Melville.
Part of the firm’s health care reim-
bursement and recovery team, Choy-
Shan concentrates her practice in gov-
ernment benefits eligibility, handling
complex Medicaid cases, fair hearings,
Article 78 proceedings, guardianships
and resolution of all issues related to
resident financial accounts and health
care facilities’ bottom line. Choy-Shan
handles complex matters affecting
health care facilities, as well as senior
citizens and those with disabilities.
Choy-Shan is recognized for her ad-
vocacy and creative lawyering skills.
She not only sets the standard in
Medicaid reimbursement on behalf of
health care facilities but also is also
responsible for numerous fair hear-
ing decisions, which have changed
the Medicaid and guardianship land-
scape, leading to increased reimburse-
ment rates for health care facilities. A
frequent author, Choy-Shan’s latest
article, “Debunking ‘Good Cause’ and
Successful Appeals of Medicaid Deni-
als for Failure to Provide Documen-
tation,” was recently published in the
Nassau Lawyer (September 2016).
“My position at the firm is to se-
cure payment sources for our health
care facility clients,” Choy-Shan said.
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“The majority of this work includes
applying for and appealing eligibili-
ty decisions for government benefits
for the residents of our clients’ health
care facilities,” she said. “The Medicaid
Program has undergone significant
changes with the state-wide transition
from the former construct of ‘Medicaid
Fee for Service’ benefits to Managed
Long Term Care. This change has in-
troduced an added layer of complexi-
ty; namely, the transition has forced
health insurance companies into the
complex world of institutional Medic-
aid benefits. These health insurance
companies, whose main objective and
experience existed solely within the
parameters of the provision of commu-
nity services, are now involved with
the administration and the processing
of institutional Medicaid benefits for
their enrolled members once they re-
quire skilled nursing care.”
“As legal representative for facili-
ties occupied by hundreds of residents
whose Medicaid benefits lie in the bal-
ance, this transition has presented sig-
nificant challenges,” Choy-Shan said.
“It has required me to focus on protect-
ing my clients, while communicating
effectively and efficiently with health
insurance companies who lack the
knowledge and experience with Med-
icaid’s strict deadlines and demanding
documentation production and to man-
age the relationships with the Medic-
aid eligibility workers with whom I’ve
worked over the past several years.”
Choy-Shan is a state certified
Guardian Ad Litem, court evaluator,
and counsel to guardians and inca-
pacitated persons and is accredited
by the Department of Veterans Af-
fairs for the preparation, presentation
and prosecution of claims for veter-
ans benefits. She is a member of the
Health Law Section of the New York
State Bar Association and the Nassau
County Bar Association.
Choy-Shan participates in GDGC’s
Senior Dreams Come True charitable
organization where she reviews and
grants wishes for low-income seniors.
She also assists veterans with their
applications for pension benefits on a
pro bono basis.
Choy-Shan earned a bachelor’s de-
gree from Drew University, where she
received the Drew Recognition Award
given to exceptional students. She
earned a juris doctor from New York
Law School.
Genser Dubow Genser & Cona,
LLP is recognized as a leading elder
law firm on Long Island. GDGC offers
expertise in health care facility reim-
bursement and recovery, elder law,
estate planning and litigation. Health
care facilities turn to GDGC for qual-
ity legal representation regarding
Medicaid and government benefits
eligibility, guardianship proceedings,
collections and litigation, and other
matters related to resident financial
accounts and the facility’s bottom line.
GDGC attorneys use innovative
strategies, creative techniques and
“old-fashioned hard work” to get the
best results in a cost-effective way. The
firm boasts an impressive success rate
helping health care facilities obtain
payment from Medicaid, insurance
carriers, residents or their representa-
tives. GDGC attorneys are experienced

WHO’SWHO
in Real Property, Certiorari Law Firms and Health Care Law
in every aspect of New York litiga-
tion in all court jurisdictions, including
Fair Hearings and Article 78 proceed-
ings in the Appellate Courts. The firm
secures Medicaid eligibility on behalf
of residents, recoups payment of pri-
vate pay balances or NAMI from resi-
dents or their representatives, negoti-
ates resolutions and, when necessary,
aggressively litigates cases.
GDGC was a finalist in the 2015
HIA Business Achievement Awards.
The firm provides creative advocacy
and cutting edge planning strategies
and has been featured in many publica-
tions including: The New York Times,
The Wall Street Journal, Newsday,
Investor’s News Daily, USA Today,
The Daily News, The New York Post,
Kiplinger’s, Reader’s Digest and many
others. GDGC attorneys have appeared
as guests on WNBC-TV, WABC-TV,
CNN, News 12, WLNY News 55 and
many radio stations including WOR,
WCBS AM, WBAB and WFAN. GDGC
is an affiliate member of Intercounty
Health Facilities Association.
BRAD
CRONIN
Cronin & Cronin
Law Firm
Brad Cronin is the founding part-
ner at Cronin & Cronin Law Firm in
Mineola. Cronin & Cronin Law Firm
practices exclusively in the area of tax
certiorari, protesting the real proper-
ty tax assessment and condemnation
for commercial properties throughout
New York State. Cronin focuses his
skills on representing property own-
ers in Nassau, Suffolk and Westches-
ter counties, as well as New York City
and upstate New York.
For more than 35 years, Cronin
has developed longstanding relation-
ships with a diverse client base in
order to assist property owners in
obtaining reductions for their real es-
tate taxes for their commercial prop-
erty. He has extensive experience
representing prominent developers,
national tenants, and many of the
largest properties in New York State.
In addition, he has earned the high-
est rating awarded by Martindale
Hubbell in both competency and eth-
ics in his field.
Cronin represents a cross section
of many of the largest developers,
property owners and national cor-
porations, REITs and retail chains,
successfully obtaining court ordered
tax relief for all types of commercial
property including race tracks, apart-
ment buildings, office complexes,
malls, shopping centers, golf courses
and marinas. Cronin has extensive
trial experience having successfully
litigated and resolved high profile
cases in counties throughout New
York State and established a number
of landmark decisions in the field.
“While our firm works diligently
to stay abreast of the latest court
decisions and legislation that affects
New York property tax cases, we also
51 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
attribute a great deal of our success
to having our finger on the pulse of
the real estate market,” Cronin said.
“There is a common misconception
among some of the municipalities
that all sectors of real estate are af-
fected equally. In reality, shopping
centers, apartment buildings, office
buildings, industrial building and
other property types are separate
and distinct markets. At varying
times, one sector may be a hot mar-
ket, while another has little or no
activity. Even within those sectors
there are stark differences in class A,
B or C properties in terms of rates of
returns required by investors, rental
rates, as well as vacancies and de-
mand for space.”
“In our negotiations to reduce the
property tax burden, it is critical to
not only know the market, but be
able to demonstrate to the taxing
authority the difference for specific
property types in the current market-
place,” Cronin explained. “There are
many sources for this information,
but the most valuable information
comes from working closely with our
client. This allows us to fully under-
stand the challenges of their specif-
ic property and represent them ef-
fectively while keeping in tune with
the market. This comprehensive ap-
proach requires time and organiza-
tion, but by being fully prepared we
are able to make a much more ef-
fective case with the municipalities
which results in larger tax refunds
and reduced tax bills for our clients.”
Cronin has been an invited speak-
er and participant on various panels
involving different subjects affecting
tax certiorari and valuation of prop-
erty such as condominiums, environ-
mental contamination, and reviewing
changes in the tax certiorari field. As
a member of the Nassau and Suffolk
Condemnation and Tax Certiorari
committees, he has worked to imple-
ment changes to facilitate the timely
resolution of commercial tax protests.
He has lectured and participated in
panels involving issues that pertain
to property taxes as well as been fea-
tured in numerous publications. He
is also featured quarterly in the New
York Real Estate Journal’s “Ask the
Expert” column regarding real prop-
erty issues.
Cronin has also contributed to the
real estate community by currently
serving on the board, and as past
co-president, of the Long Island Real
Estate Group. This organization has
supported various Long Island char-
ities, as well as real estate related
projects, educational real estate pro-
grams and networking events.
Cronin is also cofounder of the
North Shore University Hospital
Department of Medicine Leadership
Circle Committee and the Village of
Plandome Planning Board.
Cronin is a graduate of Le Moyne
College and earned a juris doctor
from Quinnipiac University School
of Law.
JUDITH A.
EISEN
Garfunkel Wild, P.C.
Judith A. Eisen is a partner/direc-
tor at Garfunkel Wild, P.C. in Great
Neck. As a member of the firm’s
Health Care Practice Group and Fi-
nance Group, she advises clients on
a variety of business, regulatory, and
transactional matters.
Joining the firm in 1988, Eisen’s
practice focuses on the representa-
tion of hospitals and other health care
providers including nursing homes,
home health agencies, durable medi-
cal equipment providers, pharmacies,
laboratories, and physicians with em-
phasis on regulatory, transactional,
compliance, general corporate, finance,
employment, disciplinary, patient care,
and other related matters. She also
represents other health care industry
related clients, including health care
lenders and vendors to the industry.
She has worked extensively on matters
relating to not-for-profit corporate gov-
ernance, as well as related issues for
social service agencies.
Eisen developed and implement-
ed a HIPAA Compliance Program for
health care providers, health plans
and clearinghouses.
Eisen’s insight into health care sys-
tem allows her to focus on the shifts
this industry is taking.
“The move in health care in New
York is toward integration, vertically
among various types of providers, and
horizontally among providers of the
same type,” Eisen said. “We are work-
ing on the development of systems
that include academic medical centers,
community hospitals, long term care
providers, home and community based
providers, and licensed professionals.”
“Among other things, we are in-
volved in the formation of mega phy-
sician practices and independent
practice associations made up of like
types of providers,” Eisen said. An-
other major trend is the move from a
higher level of care to a lower level of
care, she noted. “We are involved in
reconfiguring facilities to reduce the
provision of services on an inpatient
basis and to move to the provision of
services on an ambulatory or outpa-
tient basis,” Eisen explained. “Finan-
cial incentives are being realigned to
encourage a higher quality of care
at a lower cost to patients and third
party reimbursement sources. Provid-
ers are being compensated based upon
meeting certain criteria and not just
on the volume of services provided. As
such, we find ourselves on the cutting
edge of developing products between
providers and payors that are value
based, rather than volume driven.”
“All of this activity is made more
challenging by the continual political
maneuvering and changing political
landscape in health care, which is reg-
ulated on federal, state and local lev-
els,” Eisen said.
Eisen’s past experience reflects a
varied knowledge of the health care
industry. Prior to becoming an at-
torney, Eisen worked as a registered
nurse in pediatrics and neonatal in-
tensive care, nursing education, nurs-
ing administration and risk man-
agement. Immediately following law
school, she practiced in corporate law,
with a focus on corporate finance.
Eisen has been an adjunct profes-
sor of health law at Hofstra Universi-
ty Law School and frequently writes
and lectures on regulatory issues.
Founded in 1980, Garfunkel Wild,
P.C. (GW) maintains one of the most
active health care practices in the
Northeast, while also providing ser-
vices to many non-health-related cli-
ents. Always at the forefront of feder-
al and state developments, GW meets
a full range of needs including stra-
tegic planning, complex transactions,
exempt and taxable financing, white
collar defense, litigation, fraud and
abuse, estate planning, elder law, tax
issues, real estate, licensing, capital
formation, EPA/environmental issues,
health information technology, pri-
vacy & security and bankruptcy. GW
maintains offices in Great Neck, NY;
Hackensack, NJ; and Stamford, CT.
RICHARD G.
FROMEWICK
Meyer, Suozzi,
English & Klein,
P.C.
Richard G. Fromewick is the chair
of Meyer, Suozzi, English & Klein,
P.C.’s tax certiorari and condemnation
practice in Garden City, which centers
on providing a full range of real estate
tax assessment services. These include
representation with respect to all types
of commercial and residential proper-
ties in tax assessment reduction pro-
ceedings, projection of real estate taxes
in connection with the purchase, de-
velopment and improvement of prop-
erties, and advising with respect to tax
exemption matters.
Fromewick has successfully repre-
sented at trial numerous owners and
tenants in proceedings to reduce real
property taxes and regarding claims
against the State of New York and its
municipalities based on the taking of
land or other real property rights. He
has handled a substantial number of
tax certiorari cases involving large
commercial properties that have re-
mediation/pollution problems, which
have resulted in sizable refunds for
his clients. His expertise in the field
has resulted in precedent setting deci-
sions in his clients’ favor.
Fromewick is concerned about the
rising property taxes that “continue
to erode the bottom line of commercial
properties on Long Island.”
“To add insult to injury, Nassau
County is implementing the very
controversial Disputed Assessment
Fund (DAF),” he said. “Commercial
taxes are expected to substantial-
ly increase in order to create the
DAF. The portions of the real estate
tax paid into the DAF are to be used

WHO’SWHO
in Real Property, Certiorari Law Firms and Health Care Law
for real property tax refunds. This
is not taxation without representa-
tion – New York State and the Nas-
sau County Legislature approved
the program. This is a unique way
of passing the buck - requiring all
commercial property owners to fund
their own refunds. Property owners
have always paid higher taxes in
Nassau than in most communities
throughout New York State. There
is a virtual crazy quilt of taxing dis-
tricts: village, school, library, police,
sanitation, etc., etc., etc.”
“Now, commercial property owners
are likely to pay even higher taxes so
there will be monies for when the Nas-
sau County assessor over-assesses their
property,” he said. “The new tax will
be seen on the January 2017 general
tax bill, but how it will be charged has
still not been formulated. The bottom
line is that you must protest/grieve the
assessment in January or you will just
be stuck with the new taxes.”
Fromewick, who began with Meyer,
Suozzi as an associate in 1981 and be-
came a director in 1985, has also been
a member of the firm’s management
committee since 1991. Prior to joining
the firm, he was a deputy county at-
torney in the Land Division and Dep-
uty Bureau Chief in the Tax Certiorari
Bureau of the Nassau County Attor-
ney’s Office. Earlier in his career, he
was an assistant corporation counsel
in the New York City Law Department
Condemnation Division, where he also
served as assistant bureau chief and
trial supervisor.
Fromewick earned a juris doctor
from Brooklyn Law School and a
bachelor’s degree in economics from
Hunter College of the City Univer-
sity of New York. In addition to his
numerous law related memberships,
Fromewick is a former member of the
Garden City Chamber of Commerce
board of directors, a past master of
the Sunrise-Laurelton Masonic Lodge,
a member of the Spartan and Guiding
Light Masonic Lodges, a member of
the Long Island Scottish Rite, and a
member of the Kismet Shrine Temple.
Fromewick is an ambassador of the
Jewish Community Relations Council,
a former board member of the Jewish
National Fund of Long Island, and
a member of the UJA Joint Oceans-
ide Committee. He is corresponding
secretary on the executive board of
directors of the Barry and Florence
Friedberg Jewish Community Center
(JCC), as well as a founding member
of the Sunrise Day Camp for Kids
with Cancer.
Founded in 1960, Meyer, Suozzi,
English & Klein, P.C. provides legal
services with a reputation for integri-
ty, insight and excellent client service.
Its attorneys are recognized for their
committed to clients, community, pub-
lic affairs and diversity. With offices
in Albany, Garden City, Manhattan
and Washington, D.C., the firm pro-
vides legal advice in 18 practice areas.
52 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
BENJAMIN
GEIZHALS
Moritt Hock &
Hamroff LLP
As counsel to Moritt Hock & Ham-
roff LLP in Garden City, Benjamin
Geizhals concentrates his practice in
the counseling and representation of
health care providers in transactional
and regulatory matters.
Geizhals’ clients include health care
companies, doctors, dentists, other
health care practitioners, nursing
homes, medical billing and practice
management companies. In addition
to negotiation and documentation of
mergers and acquisitions of practices,
and corporate, partnership and em-
ployment relationship issues, Geizhals
provides guidance on corporate and
regulatory compliance and represents
providers in Medicare and Medicaid
insurance audits and fraud investi-
gations, disputes with managed care
companies, and disciplinary, licensing
and credentialing matters.
Geizhals also represents a number
of companies in various other indus-
tries in general corporate and busi-
ness related matters including not-
for-profits.
He is a member of the American
Health Lawyers Association, the
Health Law Section of the Ameri-
can Bar Association, the Health Law
Section of the New York Bar Asso-
ciation and the Nassau County Bar
Association.
Geizhals earned a juris doctor from
New York University School of Law
and a bachelor’s degree at Brandeis
University. He is admitted to practice
in New York and New Jersey.
Moritt Hock & Hamroff LLP, es-
tablished in 1980, is a full-service,
AV-rated commercial law practice
with offices on Long Island and Man-
hattan. The firm’s practice areas in-
clude: alternative dispute resolution,
commercial foreclosure, commercial
lending & finance, construction &
surety, copyrights, trademarks & li-
censing, corporate & securities, credi-
tors’ rights & bankruptcy, cybersecu-
rity, employment, equipment & trans-
portation leasing and finance, health
care, landlord & tenant, litigation,
marketing, advertising & promotions,
not-for-profit, patents, real estate,
tax, and trusts & estates.
LAUREEN
HARRIS
Cronin, Cronin,
Harris & O’Brien,
P.C
Laureen Harris is a partner Cro-
nin, Cronin, Harris & O’Brien, P.C
in Uniondale. Harris has been rec-
ognized as a premier authority on
tax certiorari proceedings within the
state of New York. With more than 30
years of experience specializing in tax
certiorari and condemnation, Harris
has gained extensive trial and appel-
late experience, while creating legal
precedent in both in terms of valua-
tion and legal principles.
She is the past chair and vice chair
of the Nassau County Tax Certiorari
& Condemnation Committee (1988 –
1992, 2010 – 2012) and continues to be
an active participant in the committee.
In 2010, Harris was appointed to the
Assessment Reform Team, an exclu-
sive committee of experts in the field
selected to review option for tax reform
in the area of real property taxes.
Harris is president of the Associa-
tion for a Better Long Island (ABLI)
and has been a board member since
1996. She is also a founding member
and current president of the Institute
of Real Estate at Hofstra University,
an educational forum for the Long Is-
land real estate community. She also
served as the downstate chairman in
tax certiorari and condemnation for
the New York State Bar Association.
Harris has also been recognized as
a champion for commercial proper-
ty owners. She has also successfully
challenged legislation that has been
labeled “disadvantageous” to the busi-
ness community.
Cronin, Cronin, Harris & O’Brien,
P.C. (CCH&O) practices exclusively
in the area of property valuation and
real estate taxation. The firm has suc-
cessfully reduced the assessment, as
well as the real estate taxes, of thou-
sands of properties throughout the
state of New York.
CCH&O has represented and ob-
tained reductions for all types of com-
mercial properties including office
buildings, industrial buildings, shop-
ping centers and retail locations, ho-
tels/motels and restaurants. Their cli-
entele includes other property types as
well, such as: apartment buildings and
condominium/cooperative complexes,
nursing homes and assisted living fa-
cilities, car washes and auto dealer-
ships, marinas and resorts, oil termi-
nals, amusement parks, catering halls,
country clubs, golf courses and gyms.
JENNIFER
HOWER
Herman Katz
Cangemi & Clyne,
LLP
Jennifer Hower is a senior asso-
ciate at Herman Katz Cangemi &
Clyne, LLP in Melville. Hower joined
the firm in 2013 and concentrates her
practice in the area of tax certiorari
and condemnation. She has a diverse
background and 10 years of experi-
ence in the prosecution of real estate
tax appeals.
Hower has participated in valu-
ation trials of both commercial and
residential properties, as well as con-
demnation proceedings against New
York State.
Among the many issues Hower
is focusing her attention on include
the Disputed Assessment Fund
(DAF) law.
“For many years, Nassau County
has borrowed money to pay refunds
owed to taxpayers who successfully
challenge their tax assessments,” she
said. “The county’s need to borrow
funds is exacerbated by the ‘County
Guarantee,’ which requires them to
pay the tax refunds for all taxing ju-
risdictions, including the portion at-
tributable to the school district.”
“In an effort to eliminate the need
to borrow, the state passed a Disput-
ed Assessment Fund law in 2014,”
Hower said. “The law applies to all
Nassau County Class 4 (commercial)
taxpayers who timely file an RPTL
Article 7 petition seeking an assess-
ment reduction, and is effective as of
the 2016/17 tax roll. These taxpayers
will see an additional DAF line item
on their 2017 County tax bill.”
The DAF law requires that a cer-
tain percentage of a Class 4 taxpay-
er’s payment be held in a separate ac-
count, pending the resolution of their
tax appeal, Hower explained.
“If the appeal is successful, the re-
sulting refund will be made from the
separate DAF account,” she said. “It
is important to note that the DAF
is not an additional charge to those
taxpayers who challenge their assess-
ment. The DAF line item represents a
portion of the taxes that the taxpayer
was already obligated to pay.”
“Because a portion of commercial
tax payments made will now be sent
to the DAF, instead of the school dis-
tricts, towns, etc., we anticipate a
significant increase in the property
tax rates,” Hower said. “These rate
increases will apply to Class 4 tax-
payers across the board, whether they
appealed their assessment or not. The
law has questionable legal validity
and we are beginning to see the effect
of its implementation with the issu-
ance of the 2016/17 School tax bills.
Some properties are seeking increases
of 10 to 12 percent in their school tax
rates from last year.”
“Litigation on the constitutionality
and application of this law appears
to be inevitable, and we are studying
our options, on behalf of our clients,”
Hower noted.
Prior to concentrating in tax cer-
tiorari, Hower served as an assistant
staff Judge advocate with the Unit-
ed States Air Force both on active
duty and as a reserve officer. There
she prosecuted criminal matters on
behalf of the United States, and han-
dled military justice and environ-
mental issues.
Hower earned a juris doctor from
Franklin Pierce Law Center, where
she wrote for the Annual Survey of
New Hampshire Law; and a bache-
lor ’s degree in political science from
the State University of New York at
Buffalo.
She is a member of the Nassau
County Bar Association; the Suffolk
County Bar Association; the New
York State Bar Association; the New
Hampshire Bar Association; and the
Long Island Builders Institute. Hower
also serves as the adjutant of the
American Legion Robert H. Spittel
Post 1285, Bayville NY.

WHO’SWHO
in Real Property, Certiorari Law Firms and Health Care Law
The partners of Herman Katz
Cangemi & Clyne, LLP (HKCC)
have more than 115 years of prop-
erty tax experience. HKCC’s in-
dustry-wide reputation for integri-
ty provides the firm’s clients with
the confidence that they will receive
skilled and trusted counsel through
the multi-faceted and highly complex
property tax valuation process.
The firm represents clients at
both the administrative and judicial
levels throughout the tri-state area
as well as across the nation. HKCC
combines its trial and transactional
expertise in both real estate tax and
eminent domain proceedings with a
pragmatic and flexible approach to
meet and exceed its clients’ needs
and expectations.
BERNIE
KENNEDY
Bond, Schoeneck &
King
Bernie Kennedy is co-managing
member of Bond, Schoeneck & King’s
Garden City office. Kennedy advises
clients on various matters including
business transactions, contracts, real
estate and litigation.
For the last 20 years, Kennedy
has provided general counsel services
to King Kullen Grocery Co., Inc., its
two subsidiaries, 45 retail locations
and over 4,000 employees. As King
Kullen’s outside general counsel,
Kennedy handles corporate transac-
tions, real estate, leasing and litiga-
tion, and coordinates legal services in
areas including ERISA, intellectual
property, risk management and em-
ployment. He has also represented
such clients as Hofstra University,
Kimco Realty, Westbury Realty Ven-
tures and Bogopa, Inc.
In 2014, Kennedy merged his bou-
tique business law and litigation firm
with Bond. He is experienced in com-
mercial leasing, particularly shopping
center leasing, and represents land-
lords and tenants in leasing trans-
actions throughout the metropolitan
area, as well as independent super-
market operators throughout New
York City.
The firm is currently monitoring
whether or not the 421-a tax exemp-
tion program will be revived in the
New York State Legislature and, if so,
in what form, Kennedy said.
“Pursuant to 421-a, much of the
residential development in New York
City was entitled to 10 to 15 year ex-
emptions from property taxes until
the statute expired in January 2016,”
he said. “Before 421-a was set to ex-
pire, the debate seemed to focus on
whether to continue the program in
its current form, allow the legislation
to lapse in its entirety or amend the
program to increase the number of
affordable units required.”
“But thanks to the New York State
Legislature and Governor Cuomo, the
future of the 421-a will turn on the
resolution of one issue – whether the
53 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
Building and Trades Council and the Reform Incentive Program (DSRIP)
Real Estate Board of New York can and clinically integrated networks en-
agree on prevailing, i.e. union, wages gaged in payment and delivery sys-
on projects receiving 421-a subsidies,”
Kennedy said. “The governor and
DAVID A. tem reform activities. In addition, he
represents private equity firms and
mayor are at odds. The mayor’s office
has spoken out against the prevailing
MANKO strategic investors across the country.
Manko and his team are keeping
Rivkin Radler LLP
wage, arguing that insisting on its in- focused on issues surrounding the Af-
clusion could cost the city thousands fordable Care Act, as well as merger
of affordable units. The governor sides activity and compliance issues.
with the unions.” “We continue to focus on delivery
David A. Manko is a partner in system and payment reform matters
Kennedy noted that suggested com-
Rivkin Radler’s Health Services Prac- arising under the Affordable Care
promises include, “Developers agree
tice Group in Uniondale. Manko has Act,” he said. “We have seen a sig-
to forego an abatement during con-
more than two decades of practical nificant increase in private equity
struction in lieu of paying the prevail-
ing wage, and the creation of exclu- legal and business experience repre- and strategic transactions and a lot
senting various stakeholders engaged of mergers and acquisitions. We have
sion zones requiring developers to pay
in the health care industry. He regu- also been focused on health care com-
prevailing wages on projects located
larly represents clients in connection pliance enforcement issues as regula-
in high rent areas only.”
with buy-side and sell-side mergers tors have stepped-up their efforts.”
“Developers and the unions alike
and acquisitions, joint ventures, di- Manko is also a member of Rivkin
understand the importance of con-
vestitures, governance matters, gen- Radler’s Executive Committee. He is
tinuing 421-a, even if it requires each
eral business transactions and health admitted to practice in New York and
of them to compromise, so the odds California and before California Su-
would seem to favor a revival of 421-a
care regulatory matters including is-
sues relating to the corporate practice preme Court and the United States
before the end of the current legisla-
tive session,” Kennedy said.
of medicine, the Stark Law and the
AntiKickback Statute.
District Court, Ninth Circuit
New York State Appellate Di-
As acting labor counsel and union Manko also represents providers in vision, First Judicial Dept. Manko
negotiator for the Village of Willis- negotiating managed care contracts earned a juris doctor from California
ton Park, Kennedy has held various containing value based, pay-for-per- Western School of Law and a bache-
roles in civic and pro bono matters, formance, quality, and utilization lor’s degree, magna cum laude, from
including: trustee, Village of Williston components. Purdue University.
Park; Family and Children’s Associa- Manko represents physician He is a member of the New York
tion (former board chair) and current groups, health systems, Federally State Value Based Payment Work-
board member, Executive Committee Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs), group, which provides guidance and
and Governance Committee; chair, Accountable Care Organizations feedback to New York State as it im-
NYSBA Committee on Volunteer (ACOs), Performing Provider Systems plements comprehensive payment and
Lawyers (pro bono services to resi- (PPSs) under the Delivery System delivery system reform under DSRIP
dents of drug and alcohol rehabilita-
tion facilities), New York State Trial
Lawyers Advocacy Committee (pro
bono services to 9-11 victims).
With 270 lawyers and 11 offices,
Bond, Schoeneck & King (Bond) is a
full-service law firm counseling in-
dividuals, companies, not-for-profits
and public sector entities in a wide
spectrum of practice areas. The Gar-
den City office is one of nine in New
York State.
Bond’s Garden City Office opened,
in 2004, with a contingent of well-re-
spected labor and employment attor-
neys primarily representing public
sector clients. Today, the office has
grown to represent professionals,
small and large businesses, banking
and finance, real estate and construc-
tion, health care, higher education,
high-tech, hospitality, manufacturing,
municipalities, retail and transpor-
tation, as well as numerous school
districts and special districts in labor
matters.
Its attorneys represent long term
care providers in contract, commercial
matters, employment law, and guard-
ianships. Its attorneys help clients
address general business and trans-
actional issues, education and health
care law, labor and employment, em-
ployee benefits, OSHA and immigra-
tion, intellectual property, regulatory
compliance, along with estate plan-
ning and probate proceedings.
Bond’s attorneys appear in state
and federal courts and before admin-
istrative agencies on a wide range of
commercial issues, personal injury de-
fense litigation, including Labor Law
240 construction cases and numerous
land use matters.

WHO’SWHO
in Real Property, Certiorari Law Firms and Health Care Law
as set forth in the Medicaid 1115
Waiver. Manko is also a member of
the board of directors of Primary Care
Development Corporation, a nonprofit
Community Development Financial
Institution (CDFI) dedicated to ex-
panding and improving primary care
in underserved communities.
A frequent lecturer and author on
health law topics, including the new
delivery models arising from payment
reform and the implications of these
delivery models for hospital-physician
relationships.
Through three offices and 160 law-
yers, Rivkin Radler LLP delivers fo-
cused and effective legal services. The
firm is committed to best practices
and provides strong representation.
Rivkin Radler builds strong client re-
lationships. Clients have been placing
their trust in the firm for more than
25 years. Rivkin Radler’s unwavering
commitment to total client satisfaction
is the driving force behind the firm. Its
clients include individuals, middle-mar-
ket companies, and large corporations.
MICHAEL
MARTONE
Koeppel Martone &
Leistman, LLP
Michael Martone is managing part-
ner at Koeppel Martone & Leistman,
LLP in Mineola. Admitted to the Bar
of the State of New York in 1959,
Martone focuses his practice on tax
assessment review and condemnation.
“The impetus for any client seek-
ing my firm’s counsel is a concern that
their real property is not being assessed
fairly,” Martone said. “Therefore, our
first step is to determine what unique
characteristics and challenges their
property possesses and/or presents. We
look at the physical characteristics of
the property, its location, actual and
potential vacancy and occupancy issues,
environmental contamination, etc. We
carefully explore and ask questions that
may ultimately set up an argument for
over assessment that, at first glance,
may not appear obvious.”
The bare bones of the firm’s busi-
ness remains basically the same in its
more than 50-year existence – focus-
ing on the valuation of real estate for
purposes of taxation, Martone noted.
“ Almost every year, however, the
assessing jurisdictions attempt to pass
laws or change regulations that make
it harder for us to file for our clients
and defend their cases,” he said. “This
year, the State of New York passed a
law which is codified in the Nassau
County Administrative Code in Section
6-41-0 and is known as the Disputed
Assessment Fund or DAF.”
“At this point, the law is very new
and untested,” Martone said. “How-
ever, what is certain is that it will
have significant impact to our client’s
bottom line vis-á-vis increased tax
rates and resulting taxes. The law has
many parts to it, but basically sets
up an escrow account funded by the
owners of certain commercial property
54 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
to fund the refunds for that class of
property without necessitating bor-
rowing by the municipality. Again, we
are not certain at this point of all the
nuances of this new legislation, but
we are monitoring its progress.”
Martone is admitted to the U.S.
District Court, Eastern, and Southern
Districts of New York, as well as the
U.S. Tax Court. He has been AV rated
by Lexis Nexis-Martindale-Hubbell
for over 30 consecutive years. AV rat-
ing is the highest possible peer rating
in legal ability and ethical standards.
Martone is a member of the Nas-
sau County, Suffolk County, New
York State, Florida State, District of
Columbia, and American Bar Associa-
tions. Throughout his career, Martone
has shared his expertise by serving in
various capacities. Early in his career,
he served as senior deputy Nassau
County attorney in charge of condem-
nation and tax certiorari and real es-
tate; commissioner of Public Safety of
the City of Glen Cove; deputy Nassau
County attorney; and special attorney
for the Office of Urban Renewal for
the City of Glen Cove.
Martone has been on the Nassau
County Bar Association’s Committee
on Condemnation and Tax Certiorari
since 1964. He is also a member of
the International Council of Shopping
Centers; the International Associa-
tion of Assessing Officers; Columbia
Society of Real Estate Appraisers; In-
stitute of Property Taxation; National
Association of Review Appraisers and
Mortgage Underwriters; and Institute
of Revenue Rating and Valuation.
Martone is also a member of the
board of directors of the American
Property Tax Counsel, a network
of accomplished attorneys through
the United States who carry on pro-
fessional education programs for its
members and others.
Martone earned a bachelor’s degree
from Lehigh University, a bachelor’s
degree from New York Law School,
and a juris doctor from New York Law
School. He has authored and partici-
pated in many articles in his field as
well as lectured on eminent domain
and real property tax matters to bar
associations, appraisal societies and
civic groups.
Koeppel Martone & Leistman, LLP
among the largest New York State
law firms devoted exclusively to the
field of real property valuation review
and condemnation. The firm consists
of nine attorneys and a large staff
of paralegals with extensive experi-
ence in tax certiorari and condemna-
tion law. Its attorneys are admitted
to practice law in New York, New Jer-
sey, Connecticut, District of Colum-
bia, Florida and Georgia.
WILLETS S.
MEYER
Farrell Fritz, P. C.
Willets S. Meyer is a partner in the
tax certiorari practice group at Farrell
Fritz, P.C. in Uniondale. Meyer con-
centrates his practice in all aspects
of real property taxation reduction/
abatement on behalf of developers,
owners and tenants of commercial
and residential properties throughout
New York State. He is a well-known
speaker in Long Island real estate cir-
cles, delivering numerous seminars on
property tax reduction strategies.
Meyer is focused on several current
and upcoming issues in the region.
“In New York City the big news is
the expiration of the 421-a exemption,
which rewarded developers with tax
benefits for keeping a certain number
of units as affordable housing in new
apartment buildings,” Meyer said.
“Without these incentives, many ex-
perts predict far fewer multi-family
building starts by developers who will
see greater profits in other types of
projects. Some experts even predict a
long-term effect on the New York City
affordable rental market unless the
incentives are renewed.”
“In Nassau County, all the talk is
about the new Disputed Assessment
Fund (DAF) being implemented for
the 2016/17 tax year,” he said. “Under
this plan, commercial properties chal-
lenging their assessments would have
10 percent or more of their actual
taxes escrowed into a special fund in
case their challenge ultimately suc-
ceeds and the county is forced to re-
fund tax overpayments. The DAF is
intended to finance the current sys-
tem that leaves Nassau County hold-
ing the bag for all tax refunds — in-
cluding the portions already spent
by local school districts — under the
so-called ‘County guarantee’ of its as-
sessment roll to other municipal en-
tities that rely on its accuracy. The
only thing that we know at this point
is that the DAF will raise tax rates
for all commercial property owners in
Nassau County, whether they chal-
lenge their assessments or not.”
Meyer has been a member of the
board of directors of The WaterFront
Center, a not-for-profit organization
promoting marine education, conser-
vation and recreation for Long Island
residents, since 2011. He also serves
as a director and/or officer of several
private organizations, as a director
of the Oyster Bay Sailing Founda-
tion, and coaches youth basketball
for the Police Athletic League. For six
years, he was a member of the board
of directors for the Queens Botanical
Garden. From 2005-2007, Meyer was
a member of the Village of Oyster Bay
Cove’s Planning Board.
He is a graduate of Connecticut Col-
lege and Tulane University Law School.
With more than 90 attorneys, Far-
rell Fritz is recognized for providing
high quality legal services, practical
advice and responsiveness. The firm
is also known for its deep commitment
to the local community. Farrell Fritz
handles legal matters in the areas of
bankruptcy and restructuring; busi-
ness divorce; commercial litigation;
construction; corporate and finance;
distressed assets; eDiscovery; emerg-
ing companies and venture capital;
eminent domain; environmental law;
estate litigation; health law; labor and
employment; land use, municipal and
zoning; not-for-profits; real estate; tax
planning and controversy; tax certiora-
ri, and trusts and estates for a variety
of corporations, not-for-profit organiza-
tions and individuals.
KEVIN P.
MULRY
Farrell Fritz, P. C.
Kevin P. Mulry, a partner at Far-
rell Fritz, P.C., is a commercial litiga-
tor with a focus on health care. Mulry
counsels clients and litigates in cases
involving health law, commercial law,
and government investigations in fed-
eral and state courts. He is experi-
enced in compliance and has repre-
sented clients before the Centers for
Medicare and Medicaid Services and
the Office of the Medicaid Inspector
General. He is a frequent contributor
to Farrell Fritz’s New York Health
Law blog.
For 15 years prior to joining Far-
rell Fritz, Mulry served as an Assis-
tant United States Attorney in the
Civil Division of the U.S. Attorney’s
Office for the Eastern District of New
York. From 2005 through 2010, he
was Principal Deputy Chief of the
Civil Division, with supervisory re-
sponsibility for the office’s affirma-
tive civil litigation, including health
care fraud and the False Claims Act.
During that time, he coordinated the
national investigation of pharmaceuti-
cal health care fraud cases under the
False Claims Act. These cases includ-
ed allegations of off-label marketing,
kickbacks and improper billing. He
was previously chief of the Long Island
Civil Division, supervising the govern-
ment’s affirmative and defensive cases
in the Federal Court in Central Islip.
Mulry and his team are closely fol-
lowing a fraud question presented be-
fore the Supreme Court: What is the
standard for bringing a fraud case
under the False Claims Act?
“The Court will decide whether
False Claims Act liability attaches
when a medical provider bills the gov-
ernment for goods or services know-
ing (but failing to disclose) that the
goods or services fail to comply with
a material statutory, regulatory or
contractual requirement, or whether
the requirement has to expressly be
stated as a condition of payment by
the government,” Mulry said. “The
Supreme Court held a spirited argu-
ment in April in Universal Health
Services v. United States ex rel. Es-
cobar. Some of the Justices seemed to
accept a more expansive definition of
fraud under the False Claims Act.”
“The current Second Circuit stan-
dard, which covers New York, has
been more restrictive, but a broad
definition of False Claims Act fraud
in the Universal Health Services case
could lead to significantly broader
opportunities for the government to
argue fraud against medical provid-
ers,” he said. “In recent years, Fed-
eral and State investigators have
increasingly expanded their investi-

WHO’SWHO
in Real Property, Certiorari Law Firms and Health Care Law
gation of medical providers for poten-
tial health care fraud. Although the
Supreme Court’s decision may deter-
mine whether the government’s road
will be made easier or more difficult,
the aggressive scrutiny of health care
providers is sure to continue.”
Mulry is a graduate of St. John’s
University and St. John’s University
School of Law. A recognized expert
in his field, he received the Henry L.
Stimson Medal from the Association
of the Bar of the City of New York.
With more than 85 attorneys, the
law firm of Farrell Fritz in Union-
dale is recognized for providing high
quality legal services, practical advice
and responsiveness. The firm is also
known for its deep commitment to the
local community. Farrell Fritz han-
dles legal matters in the areas of ar-
bitration and mediation; bankruptcy
and restructuring; business divorce;
commercial litigation; construction;
corporate and finance; eDiscovery;
emerging companies and venture cap-
ital; eminent domain; environmen-
tal law; estate litigation; health law;
labor and employment; land use, mu-
nicipal and zoning; not-for-profit law;
real estate; tax planning and contro-
versy; tax certiorari, and trusts and
estates for corporations, not-for-profit
organizations and individuals.
ERIC C.
RUBENSTEIN
Ruskin Moscou
Faltischek P.C.
Eric C. Rubenstein is a partner
at Ruskin Moscou Faltischek P.C. in
Uniondale where he is co-chair of the
firm’s real estate department.
Rubenstein manages a diverse real
estate transactional practice with spe-
cific emphasis on sophisticated mort-
gage financing, commercial leasing,
acquisitions and sales. Rubenstein
personally closed the $210,000,000+
sale of Jericho Plaza, one of the larg-
est one-site real estate transactions
in Long Island history, as well as the
$190,000,000+ sale of EAB (now RXR)
Plaza, and a $140,000,000 securitized
leasehold mortgage with Lehman
Brothers. For many years, Rubenstein
handled all of the financing and leas-
ing at Jericho Plaza and RXR Plaza,
comprised of more than 1,800,000
square feet in the aggregate.
Rubenstein’s clients are major
lenders and real estate developers,
owners and operators in financing
and sales transactions in New York
City and the metropolitan area, as
well as other areas throughout the
United States.
In his representation of lenders,
Rubenstein — who is also a member
of the firm’s environmental practice
group — has handled a wide range
of work-out transactions, including
joint ventures with developers for the
completion of residential projects with
hundreds of units. His work on be-
half of lenders and property owners
include management and brokerage
55 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
contracts, construction and architects
agreements, title and zoning issues,
as well as environmental matters.
Currently, Ruskin Moscou Fal-
tischek is especially busy in the re-
tail, medical and multi-family sectors,
Rubenstein said.
“Our shopping center owner cli-
ents are signing leases with urgent
care operators and other non-tradi-
tional users,” he said. “The closure
of stores by major retailers filing for
bankruptcy creates opportunities for
our retail tenant clients to take over
favorable leases or renegotiate terms
with landlords. Our medical prac-
tice group clients are increasingly
making deals with hospitals that are
expanding or entering into the Long
Island market.”
“Long Island municipalities are
finally being receptive to approving
market rate rentals, particularly in
transit-oriented hubs and village
downtown areas, which has been a
boon to our national residential de-
veloper clients, as well as local play-
ers,” Rubenstein said. “Our clients
are also very active in the 1031 tax
free exchanges, which is expected to
continue and keep the transactional
practice busy, even with the specter of
increased interest rates in 2016.
“Additionally, our Environmental,
Land Use and Zoning Group regularly
obtains approvals to develop or con-
vert properties to uses that have the
least available product in the market
at present — namely multi-family and
industrial.”
Rubenstein was elected secretary
of the Long Island Real Estate Group
in 2008 and continues to serve on that
capacity and as board member. He
has been active in numerous non-prof-
it organizations, serving on the Town
of North Hempstead Business and
Tourism Development Corporation
and its Waterfront Advisory Commis-
sion, and committees for the Commu-
nity Development Corporation and
Friends of the Arts, among others.
Rubenstein is also an appoint-
ed adjunct professor of NYU at the
Schack Institute of the NYU School of
Professional Studies.
Repeatedly named a NY Super
Lawyer, Rubenstein earned a juris
doctor from New York Law School and
a bachelor’s degree in economics from
University of Rochester.
For more than 48 years, Ruskin
Moscou Faltischek P.C. has built
a reputation as one of the region’s
leading providers of innovative legal
services. Its attorneys are practical,
experienced advocates who measure
their success by their clients’ success.
Cornerstone groups in all major prac-
tice areas of the law are represented
at the firm, including corporate & se-
curities, financial services, commer-
cial litigation, intellectual property,
health care, real estate, employment,
cybersecurity and data privacy, en-
ergy, and trusts & estates. Clients
include large and mid-sized corpora-
tions, privately held businesses, insti-
tutions and individuals.
MICHAEL
SCHRODER
Schroder & Strom,
LLP
Michael Schroder is a founding
partner of Schroder & Strom, LLP, a
law firm in Mineola that concentrates
in tax assessment appeals and relat-
ed issues. A licensed attorney for 36
years, Schroder has spent his entire
professional career in the area of real
estate taxes. He has helped establish
statewide and local tax appeal pro-
grams for national retailers, manufac-
turing and transportation companies,
funeral homes, financial institutions,
and residential developers, with a
strong emphasis on condominiums
and cooperatives.
Among the most important issues
coming up, this year, in the field of
municipal taxation is the Nassau
County legislation that allows the
county to withhold 10 percent of an-
nual taxes collected in a special fund
for commercial owners who file a tax
appeal, Schroder said.
“The fund will be used to pay a
portion of the tax refunds due after
appeals are resolved,” he said. “The
amount of refund due not covered by
the fund will be made up by the coun-
ty. The county has been saddled with
the obligation to indemnify tax refunds
for school districts and towns since the
1940s, when refunds were nominal in
number and amount. The county’s fi-
nancial woes can be squarely blamed
on this tax indemnification. The coun-
ty has been forced to cut programs,
lay-off employees, and shoulder the
burden of interest on bond issues re-
quired to pay refunds. School districts
and towns have circled the wagons and
refuse to participate in the refund pro-
cess, alleging the same fiscal impact
that the county suffers from.”
Details of the new program are very
technical, Schroder said, noting that it
includes an increase in commercial tax
rates by as much as 10%; a decrease in
property values; will financially stress
small businesses; and will leave ten-
ants the choice of paying rent or taxes.
“Owners who are not presently chal-
lenging their assessments should file
an appeal with a tax certiorari attor-
ney in the coming year, as a reduction
in assessment is the only way to con-
tain increases in taxes,” Schroder said.
Schroder has been a member of the
Garden City Board of Zoning Appeals
and has been active in village issues
for 25 years, most recently having
been appointed to serve on the May-
or’s Committee on Zoning Changes.
Schroder & Strom, LLP concen-
trates in real estate tax litigation,
providing property tax advice, coun-
sel, assessment review, and litiga-
tion strategy to owners, tenants, and
developers of commercial property
throughout New York State, including
Nassau and Suffolk counties on Long
Island, the five boroughs, Westchester
and upstate. The firm also concen-
trates in residential tax litigation rep-
resenting the owners of single family
homes, condominiums, cooperatives
and homeowners associations. The
firm currently has 10 attorneys and a
support staff of 18 employees.
GREG
STOLLER
Abrams,
Fensterman,
Fensterman,
Eisman, Formato,
Ferrara & Wolf, LLP
Greg Stoller is a partner in the cor-
porate and health care departments
of Abrams, Fensterman, Fensterman,
Eisman, Formato, Ferrara & Wolf,
LLP in Lake Success.
Stoller represents public and pri-
vate companies, including not-for-
profit organizations, in mergers,
acquisitions, and other strategic
transactions, as well as with respect
to their daily corporate governance
matters. Stoller also represents issu-
ers and investors in their securities,
financing and other legal matters. His
clients range from early stage growth
companies to mature public and pri-
vate companies across a wide range
of industries, including software, fan-
tasy and on-line gaming, fitness and
exercise, and culinary arts, as well
as a variety of health care providers,
including skilled nursing facilities,
hospitals, diagnostic and treatment
centers, home health care agencies,
and adult homes.
In anticipation of the emerging
growth of the medical and recreation-
al cannabis industry in the State of
New York, Stoller has also focused
his practiced on matters concerning
regulated substance compliance and
associated legal matters affecting the
state’s marijuana marketplace.
Expenses related to operating a
business is a concern for many within
this industry, Stoller said.
“As a result of increased operat-
ing costs, due in part to cumbersome
governmental regulations, and de-
creases in Medicare and commercial
reimbursement rates, many solo prac-
titioners or small group practices are
seeking alternative business options,
most notably, merging into hospital
systems or forming ‘mega-groups,’”
Stoller said. “The primary impetus for
a physician’s or a practice’s decision is
security vs. autonomy.”
“Physicians who merge or sell
their practices to a hospital, and sub-
sequently become employees of that
hospital, are relieved of the responsi-
bilities of day-to-day management of
a practice and are the beneficiaries
of security and predictable compen-
sation provided by an employment
agreement,” Stoller said.
“However, physicians who desire
not to become beholden to a hospital
system should consider joining a phy-
sician-owned mega-group,” he noted.
“The primary benefits of a mega-group
are financial independence, autono-
my, and increased negotiating leverage
with insurance providers and vendors.
Additionally, a mega-group structure
allows for potential continued revenue

WHO’SWHO
in Real Property, Certiorari Law Firms and Health Care Law
growth through the expansion of ser-
vices to be provided by a practice and
legally compliant revenue sharing, as
well as private equity opportunities.”
“Physicians who wish to continue
their practice independent of a hos-
pital, but are concerned about their
ability to do so, have a viable and
often more beneficial alternative in a
mega-group structure,” Stoller said.
Stoller has been recognized as one
of the top up-and-coming lawyers,
including being named as a “Rising
Star” by Super Lawyers since 2014
and being featured in the 2015 Top
Legal Eagles issue of Long Island
Pulse magazine.
Stoller earned a juris doctor from
Georgetown University Law Center
and his bachelor’s degree in politi-
cal science from Brown University.
Stoller is licensed to practice law in
New York.
Abrams, Fensterman, Fensterman,
Eisman, Formato, Ferrara & Wolf,
LLP is one of the largest full service
law firms on Long Island. The firm
solves its client’s problem by providing
each client with sound counsel, innova-
tive solutions and personalized service.
The firm serves clients throughout the
New York metropolitan area from of-
fices in Long Island, New York City,
Brooklyn, and serves upstate New
York from its Rochester office.
Abrams Fensterman is a leader in
representing health care providers in
all aspects of health care law, includ-
ing hospitals, nursing homes, physi-
cians, medical societies, dentists, podi-
atrists and chiropractors. The firm also
has practices that are widely recog-
nized as leaders in their fields in areas
such as corporate and securities, merg-
ers and acquisitions, matrimonial and
family law, and mental health law.
The firm also has active practice
areas in commercial litigation, estate
planning and administration, guard-
ianships, employment law, real estate,
elder law, personal injury litigation,
and white-collar criminal defense.
DAVID N.
VOZZA
Kern Augustine
Conroy &
Schoppmann, P.C.
David N. Vozza is a partner at
Kern Augustine Conroy & Schop-
pmann, P.C., a boutique health care
law firm with locations in New York
and New Jersey and is aligned with
56 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
the law firm of Meltzer Lippe.
Vozza has more than 10 years of
experience focusing on defending
health care providers in connection
with disciplinary and regulatory ac-
tions before various federal and state
agencies, private and government
payor audits, fraud investigations
(both civil and criminal), hospital staff
and privileges disputes and gener-
al health care litigation in both the
Federal and State courts. Vozza reg-
ularly defends health care providers
before the Office of Professional Medi-
cal Conduct and Office of Professional
Discipline. He also frequently lectures
at hospitals throughout New York
State regarding medical fraud, regu-
latory agencies, professional licensure
and medical documentation.
Vozza remains focused on evolving
health care issues, including reim-
bursement matters.
“Enacted in 2015, the Medicare Ac-
cess and CHIP Reauthorization Act
(MACRA) intends to, amongst other
things, resolve the oft-maligned meth-
odology historically utilized in reim-
bursing physicians who treat Medi-
care patients,” Vozza said. “Specifical-
ly, MACRA repeals the Sustainable
Growth Rate (SGR), which is Medi-
care’s flawed reimbursement model
for paying physicians that was creat-
ed to reduce Medicare spending under
the Balanced Budget Act of 1997,
model in determining fee schedule
reimbursement; establishes the Mer-
it-based Incentive Payment Systems
(MIPS) model, which reimburses phy-
sicians based on quality of care, uti-
lization of coordinated resources and
utilization of certified technology to
create and maintain medical records;
and establishes a mechanism for phy-
sicians to participate in Alternative
Payment Models (APMs) such as Ac-
countable Care Organizations.”
“While most physicians welcome
the repeal of the Sustainable Growth
Rate methodology, the proposed tran-
sition towards utilization of MIPS and
APMs are not without trepidation,”
Vozza noted. “Physicians must first
choose which model best fits their
respective practice. Given MACRA’s
complexity, it will likely take several
years before specific rules and design
mechanisms are implemented. During
this time, physicians may find them-
selves being forced to take a ‘learn-as-
you-go’ approach in determining what
model best serves them.”
“Moreover, physicians must be
aware that their reimbursement will
become largely dependent on their
comparative performance,” he said.
“With an emphasis on so-called ‘col-
laborative medicine,’ it is the smaller
practices which will suffer most.”
Vozza also defends clients in con-
nection with general civil and corpo-
rate litigation matters as well as han-
dles various real estate and business
transactions.
Prior to joining the firm, Vozza
was in private practice. Among his
awards/recognitions include New
York Super Lawyers electing Vozza
for inclusion in the 2014 edition of
Rising Stars - New York Metro List.
He earned a juris doctor from Hof-
stra University School of Law and
a bachelor’s degree from State Uni-
versity of New York, Stony Brook.
Vozza is admitted to practice in the
sate of New York and before the Unit-
ed States District Courts, Southern
and Eastern Districts.
Kern Augustine Conroy & Schop-
pmann, P.C., a boutique health care
law firm with locations in New Jer-
sey and New York, is now aligned
with Meltzer Lippe. Kern Augustine
has been representing physicians and
other health care professionals for
over 25 years in OPMC/SBME/OPD
investigations, Medicare fraud, fraud
and abuse, hospital privileges, RAC
audits, Medicare audits, OIG fraud,
medical audits, and billing audits.
Kern Augustine provides the Physi-
cian Advocacy Program® to thousands
of participating New Jersey physicians
and members of the Medical Society
of the State of New York, giving these
physicians expert legal assistance, at
no additional cost, in the event of in-
vestigation by the State Board of Medi-
cal Examiners, OPMC, Medicare, Med-
icaid, the Department of Insurance
and other regulatory agencies.
Kern Augustine acts as General
Counsel to medical societies throughout
New York and New Jersey and rep-
resents many hospital medical staffs.
It represents physicians before State
and Federal regulatory agencies and in
hospital privileges disputes, and offers
health care law services including rep-
resentation of providers in commercial,
contractual and transactional matters,
regulatory compliance, employer-em-
ployee relationships, tax and pension
issues, asset protection, disputes with
managed care companies, and criminal
and general litigation.
Kern Augustine also provides
comprehensive services to meet OIG
Small Physicians Practice Compliance
Guidance and HIPAA regulations.
In matters of business and group for-
mation, Kern Augustine, works closely
with providers and the financial com-
munity to create provider-owned and
controlled practice entities capable of
assuring independence and financial
well-being for the long term.
STEPHEN B.
WEISSMAN
Rivkin Radler LLP
A partner in Rivkin Radler’s
real estate, zoning & land use prac-
tice group in Uniondale, Stephen B.
Weissman has represented clients
in the acquisition, sale, leasing, and
management of real estate; the devel-
opment, construction, and renovation
of apartment and office complexes,
manufacturing facilities, shopping
centers, and hotels; real estate financ-
ing for institutional lenders, owners,
and developers; and real estate work-
outs and bankruptcy proceedings.
Weissman’s experience includes all
forms of general corporate represen-
tation on behalf of publicly held and
private corporations, partnerships,
and other entities, with emphasis on
asset and stock acquisitions, mergers,
leveraged buyouts, corporate finance,
restructurings, and bankruptcy reor-
ganizations.
One issue everyone should take
note of is the Affirmatively Further-
ing Fair Housing Regulation, Weiss-
man said.
“The degree to which the Affirma-
tively Furthering Fair Housing Regu-
lation issued by the Obama Adminis-
tration in July 2015 will impact local
zoning laws around the United States
and cause suburbs and rural areas to
become more representative of ethnic
diversity,” Weissman noted.
Weissman also prepares share-
holder, partnership, and joint venture
agreements, employment agreements,
manufacturing and distribution agree-
ments, and licensing agreements.
Weissman is admitted to practice
in the state of New York. He earned a
juris doctor from Columbia University
School of Law and a bachelor’s degree
from
Northwestern University.
Through three offices and 160 law-
yers, Rivkin Radler LLP delivers fo-
cused and effective legal services. The
firm is committed to best practices
and provides strong representation.
Rivkin Radler builds strong client re-
lationships. Clients have been placing
their trust in the firm for more than
25 years. Rivkin Radler’s unwavering
commitment to total client satisfac-
tion is the driving force behind the
firm. Its clients include individuals,
middle-market companies, and large
corporations.
 57 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
WHO’s WHO
MAUREEN
GAFFNEY,
MHS,
RPAC, RN
in Health Care
Winthrop-
University
Hospital
Healthcare Finance News cited 32 percent of
consumers had at least one health app, medical or Maureen Gaffney, MHS, RPAC,
RN is senior vice president of clinical
fitness app on their mobile device in 2015 — and operations and chief medical informa-
they expect this percentage to grow this year. tion officer at Winthrop-University
Hospital in Mineola where she has
facilitated numerous hospital-wide
quality and patient safety initiatives
In this Who’s Who in Health Care section, through the use and implementation
some industry leaders discuss how technology of health information technology.
Winthrop is a national leader in
is incorporated into their facilities as more and health information technology, due
more patients turn to their devices for health care to Gaffney’s keen foresight and lead-
ership in the progressive adoption of
connections. health information technology at the
hospital. As a result, Winthrop right-
fully earned its place among the elite
10 percent of organizations in the na-
tion to achieve Stage 2 Meaningful
Use in 2014; received the distinction
of Health Information Management
and Systems Society (HIMSS) Elec-
INDEXINDEXINDEX tronic Medical Record Adoption Model
(EMRAM) Level 6; and was named
a “Most Wired” Hospital for the past
four consecutive years.
57 MAUREEN GAFFNEY, MHS, RPAC, RN Winthrop-University Hospital
Most recently, in an effort to con-
58 RONALD J. GULOTTA, M.D., FACC St. Francis Hospital tinue Winthrop’s pursuit of excel-
lence, Gaffney spearheaded a major
58 AMY E. LOEB, EDD, MBA, RNBC, NE-BC Peconic Bay Medical Center technological milestone in Winthrop’s
history as the organization moved its
58 ANNE MARIE MONTIJO Association for Mental Health and Wellness
financial and clinical technology plat-
59 RACHEL E. SCHNABL, LMSW Brookhaven Memorial Hospital Medical Center forms to Cerner Soarian®. This new
platform, which went live on August
1, has enhanced integration of infor-
mation and is providing Winthrop’s
end users with advanced functionality
and improved access to information.
From complex phases of building,
testing, and soon, the training of sev-
eral thousand employees, Gaffney’s
vision and guidance throughout the
entire course of this multi-year project
has produced an electronic tool with
the highest degrees of usability and
reliability. The use of technology in
health care is evolving, Gaffney noted.
“Though health care has been slow
to the gate in embracing the use of
technology for data collection, data
analysis, clinical decision support and
communication, there has been great
progress with adoption and growing
acceptance of the dependence on tech-
nology in the health care work en-
vironment,” she said. “The potential
for better outcomes and the ability to
manage populations will be enhanced
with the use of this technology to pro-
mote wellness and compliance adher-
ence. The acceptance of technology
as a social norm is now pushing our
patients’ expectations of us – their
health care providers – to provide
them with access to information and
ease of communication using mobile
technology.”
“At Winthrop-University Hospi-
tal, we have implemented our patient
portal as a platform for this growing
demand,” Gaffney said. “We have cre-
ated an enterprise-wide portal where
patients can access their person-
al health information, communicate
with their providers and upload infor-
mation they obtained through other
devices/apps, such as heart rate, blood
pressure, weight and blood glucose re-
sults. This information can be trans-
mitted to their health care provider.
Importantly, it promotes self-moni-
toring and accountability to an agreed
upon treatment plan. We are looking
forward to expanding this function to
include the ability to download wear-
able device data.”
“Technology is ubiquitous in and
out of the health care environment,
and we continually look at strategies
to leverage the technology available
to improve our patients’ experience
and optimize their health and well-
ness, while preserving the protection
of their personal health information,”
Gaffney explained.
In addition to being named one of
the Top 25 Clinical Informaticists of
2010 by Modern Healthcare maga-
zine, Gaffney serves as a member of
the editorial advisory board for CMIO
magazine.
Gaffney, who began her career at
Winthrop in 1992, is a Registered
Nurse and a Physician Assistant. In
addition, she is a fellow of the Amer-
ican Academy of Physician Assistants
and is certified by the National Com-
mission on Certification of Physician
Assistants. She has served as chair of

WHO’SWHO
in Heatlh Care
the eHealth Network of Long Island
Regional Health Information Organi-
zation, now known as NY Care Infor-
mation Gateway, where she currently
is chairman of the board of directors.
Founded in 1896 by a group of local
physicians and concerned citizens,
Winthrop-University Hospital is a
major regional health care resource
with a deep commitment to patient
care, medical education and research.
Winthrop-University Hospital —
Long Island’s first voluntary hospi-
tal — is a 591-bed university-affili-
ated medical center and New York
State-designated Regional Trauma
Center, which offers sophisticated di-
agnostic and therapeutic care in vir-
tually every specialty and subspecial-
ty of medicine and surgery.
Winthrop offers a full complement
of inpatient and outpatient programs
and services for the newborn through
the elderly, primarily from Nassau,
Suffolk and Queens Counties on Long
Island, in a dynamic, progressive en-
vironment.
Ever changing and growing with
the diverse community it serves, Win-
throp-University Hospital is, in many
ways, a unique institution, simulta-
neously large and small, regional as
well as local. It successfully blends
the progressive philosophy, sophisti-
cation and advances of a teaching and
research institution with a very per-
sonal approach to patient care – an
approach that has become the corner-
stone of its organization.
RONALD J.
GULOTTA,
M.D., FACC
St. Francis
Hospital
Ronald J. Gulotta, M.D., FACC is
chief medical officer at St. Francis
Hospital, The Heart Center® in Ros-
lyn. A highly respected intervention-
al cardiologist, Dr. Gulotta has been
an attending physician at St. Fran-
cis since 1992 and was previously di-
rector of the Cardiac Catheterization
Laboratory at Brookhaven Memorial
Medical Center.
His reputation and integrity re-
flects the culture of St. Francis and
the hospital’s ongoing commitment to
providing excellence in patient care.
“It is an exciting time in medicine,”
Dr. Gulotta said. “Technology is trans-
forming cardiovascular care, whether
it is imaging that helps doctors see
blockages inside the coronary arter-
ies within microns, pacemakers with-
out leads that connect with doctors
via the internet, implantable devices
that transmit vital health data to keep
heart failure patients out of the hospi-
tal, or TAVR procedures that replace
damaged heart valves without open
heart surgery. Because St. Francis has
the largest cardiac caseload on Long
Island, we are often the first to be able
to bring these innovations to our pa-
58 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
tients. We are now working hard to
bring this same high level of care to
cancer and orthopedic patients.”
“Although we take great pride in our
technological achievements, in health
care the personal touch is paramount,
so our goal is also to put our ‘heart’ into
all our patient care,” he said.
Dr. Gulotta earned a medical de-
gree from Albany Medical College.
He completed his Residency in inter-
nal medicine at Long Island Jewish
Medical Center in New Hyde Park.
He then completed a Fellowship in
cardiovascular disease in the Depart-
ment of Cardiology at the Cleveland
Clinic Foundation in Ohio. More re-
cently, he earned his M.B.A., with
honors, from Adelphi University.
St. Francis Hospital, The Heart
Center® is New York State’s only spe-
cialty designated cardiac center and a
nationally recognized leader in the di-
agnosis, treatment, and prevention of
cardiac disease. St. Francis is ranked
one of the best hospitals in America
by U.S. News & World Report and
has earned the prestigious Magnet
designation for nursing excellence. A
leader in cardiovascular care for more
than 50 years, St. Francis Hospital
also offers an outstanding program
in vascular, prostate, ear-nose-throat,
abdominal, oncologic, gastrointesti-
nal, and orthopedic surgery. St. Fran-
cis is a member of Catholic Health
Services of Long Island.
AMY E.
LOEB, EDD,
MBA, RN-
BC, NE-BC
Peconic Bay
Medical Center
Amy E. Loeb, EdD, MBA, RN-BC,
NE-BC is vice president and chief
nursing officer at Peconic Bay Med-
ical Center in Riverhead. Loeb is re-
sponsible for all aspects of nursing,
pharmacy and respiratory care. She
is part of a team that is designing
a new critical care tower, inclusive
of a cardiac catheterization lab, a
state-of-the-art intensive care unit,
and a trauma center.
Loeb previously served as vice
president for Allied Health at Hun-
tington Hospital where she oversaw
the patient experience, quality of
care, caregiver engagement, opera-
tional and financial performance of
the radiology, laboratory, pharmacy,
physical therapy, respiratory ther-
apy and case management depart-
ments.
Since becoming a registered nurse
in 2003, Loeb has been a transfor-
mational leader in the North Shore/
LIJ Health System — now known as
Northwell Health. She has been men-
tored by some of the finest nursing
and hospital leaders in New York and
her experience in a Magnet designat-
ed organization has given her a solid
understanding of how to lead a nurs-
ing organization to excellence.
Technology is a strategic health
care tool at Peconic Bay Medical
Center, Loeb said.
“We leverage technology for pa-
tient safety,” Loeb noted. “We have
computers at every bedside, allow-
ing for medication administration
using bar-code technology, which
dramatically reduces the risk of
medication errors. Telemedicine is
a technology that we are implement-
ing thanks to our relationship with
Northwell Health. With telemedi-
cine, in addition to our local experts,
we have access to a robust network
of expert providers and nurses via
computer devices.”
“This summer, we will be launch-
ing ‘tele-psychiatry,’ which will
allow us to provide evaluation of pa-
tients with acute psychiatric symp-
toms much faster,” Loeb said. “Upon
completion of the new critical care
tower we will be connected to an
‘eICU’ staffed with intensive care
physicians and nurses, which will
provide an added layer of safety for
our patients.
Peconic Bay Medical Center also
has new “smart” beds that are pro-
grammed to let health care provid-
ers know if a patient is in an un-
safe situation, which also prevents
falls. “These beds tie into our new
call bell system, which produces re-
ports about our timely response to
call bells,” Loeb said. “Advancing
technology is a strategic imperative
at PBMC and with it we will con-
tinue to improve patient safety and
outcomes.”
Loeb earned a bachelor’s degree
in nursing and a master’s degree
from St. Joseph’s College. In 2016,
she graduated from Columbia Uni-
versity’s Teachers College with
a Doctor of Education. She has a
Certification as a Nurse Executive
and Gerontology Nurse. Loeb has
received numerous awards for schol-
arship and leadership and is a fre-
quent lecturer.  
Peconic Bay Medical Center, a
member of Northwell Health, for-
merly North Shore-LIJ, is a 182 bed
medical center that offers a wide
range of health care services from
advanced surgical care and compre-
hensive inpatient medical care to a
Skilled Nursing and Rehabilitation
Center. Peconic Bay Medical Cen-
ter also offers an extensive range
of outpatient services that includes
Peconic Bay Physical Therapy & Re-
habilitation Center and Peconic Bay
Home Health Services, a certified
home health agency, the Cancer Ser-
vices Program of Suffolk County,
and the Gertrude & Louis Feil Cam-
pus for Ambulatory Care. Additional
services include Pegasus House Pal-
liative Care, eight offsite physician
offices specializing in family, inter-
nal and pulmonary medicine, and
surgical specialties, including the
Krauss Musculoskeletal Institute.
Northwell Health, with 21 hospitals
and nearly 450 outpatient practic-
es, serves 8 million people in the
metro New York area and beyond.
ANNE
MARIE
MONTIJO
Association for
Mental Health and
Wellness
Anne Marie Montijo is deputy di-
rector for strategic initiatives at the
Association for Mental Health and
Wellness (MHAW) in Ronkonkoma.
Montijo has more than 25 years of
experience in social work and has ex-
tensive experience in child and ado-
lescent mental health as both a prac-
titioner and administrator.
Joining MHAW in 2015, Montijo
provides executive leadership in man-
aging the organization’s community
outreach and education department;
Incident Review Committee; staff de-
velopment and training; organization-
al diversity and cultural competency
initiatives; student Internship pro-
grams; and children’s services.
A 1992 graduate of Stony Brook
School of Social Welfare, Montijo
went on to lead North Suffolk Mental
Health Center’s adolescent boys com-
munity residence. She then joined
South Oaks Hospital as director of
child and adolescent community ser-
vices. There she led an extensive out-
reach effort working with children’s
mental health agencies across Long
Island and the five boroughs. Offer-
ing numerous educational workshops
to schools, advocacy organizations,
hospitals, higher education, and other
venues, Montijo established a repu-
tation as a tireless advocate for chil-
dren’s mental health with a strong
focus on reducing the stigma of men-
tal illness.
More than two-thirds of the United
State’s population owns a smartphone
and are connected socially to friends,
family, and colleagues, Montijo said.
“The mental health community
sees this mobile technology as a pow-
erful tool that can give providers the
ability to engage patients outside of
their regular in-person sessions, with
the potential to improve compliance
behaviorally and with medication
management,” she said.
“In recent years, many patients
and providers have been able to com-
municate directly and effectively via
secure email and patient portals,”
Montijo noted. “Utilizing this same
technology on mobile devices allows
mental health providers to reach peo-
ple who are either physically isolated
because of geography, or emotionally
isolated because of the state of their
mental health.”
The Association for Mental Health
and Wellness is partnering with Peer
Support Solutions to provide real-time
interactions with trained peer spe-
cialists via smartphones, tablets, and
other mobile devices, she explained.
“It’s expanding the boundaries of
when and where people can access
urgent emotional help, as well as
routine text reminders regarding ap-

WHO’SWHO
in Heatlh Care
pointments, medication scheduling,
and follow-up tests, she said.
“As a founding member of the Long
Island Health Collaborative, MHAW
plays a prominent role in promoting
the Population Health Improvement
Program by encouraging physical ac-
tivity as an important pathway to re-
covery,” Montijo stated. “A ‘walking
portal’ enables people to track and
monitor their progress from any mo-
bile device or a desktop computer.”
“These new ‘connections’ can as-
sist with fostering a trusting rela-
tionship between provider and pa-
tient, which in turn has the potential
to greatly improve health outcomes,”
Montijo said.
Montijo has presented both national-
ly and internationally on topics such as
culture and self-harm, and resiliency.
She has extensive volunteer experi-
ence in cancer services having worked
with The Eye Cancer Foundation in
New York City for 10 years leading
patient support services and orga-
nizing patient and family luncheons
on Long Island and New York City.
Since 2011, she has also volunteered
for the Melanoma Research Foun-
dation’s CURE Ocular Melanoma
(CURE OM) initiative. As a Steer-
ing Committee member for CURE
OM, she has helped to spearhead five
patient and caregiver symposiums
across the country and often leads
groups at these events for newly di-
agnosed patients including workshop
59 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
on resiliency. Montijo is also part of
the Host Committee for the Wings
of Hope Gala in New York City, a
fundraising event for the Melanoma
Research Foundation.
The Association for Mental Health
and Wellness is the result of the 2014
merger of three organizations: Club-
house of Suffolk, Suffolk County Unit-
ed Veterans and the Mental Health
Association in Suffolk County, found-
ed in 1955.
MHAW programs help individuals
overcome the impact of mental health
illnesses, disabilities, and trauma to
achieve goals of education, employ-
ment, social connection, housing, com-
munity involvement, and overall well-
ness. The agency also provides com-
munity and professional education
for mental health providers through
ongoing workshops and seminars.
A range of peer-led support ser-
vices includes the highly-success-
ful Joseph P. Dwyer Veterans Peer
Support Project. Through SCUV, the
agency offers a broad range of ser-
vices delivered by trained veterans
and family members to assist with
outreach, crisis prevention and diver-
sion, social and employment supports,
housing and homeless assistance, and
PTSD peer support.
MHAW is committed to the core
practice values of empowerment,
hope, opportunity, and cultural com-
petence. The agency takes a “whole
person” perspective with an enriched
understanding of the social and eco-
nomic conditions that contribute to
physical and mental health and sub-
stance abuse.
RACHEL E.
SCHNABL,
LMSW
Brookhaven
Memorial Hospital
Medical Center
Rachel E. Schnabl, LMSW is vice
president, chief development officer at
Brookhaven Memorial Hospital Medi-
cal Center in Patchogue.
Schnabl has years of experience
in the health care field. Prior to join-
ing Brookhaven Memorial Hospital
Medical Center she was director of
advancement and external affairs at
Stony Brook University’s Stony Brook
Medicine - School of Dental Medicine.
During her tenure, she coordinated all
aspects of the School of Dental Medi-
cine’s fundraising programs, alumni
relations initiatives and external af-
fairs and was part of the SBU Med-
icine/Health Sciences Center devel-
opment team that increased annual
revenue from $8 million to $18 million
between FY11-FY14.
She was also director of develop-
ment at Stony Brook University’s
Stony Brook Medicine & Health Sci-
ences and Regional Coordinator at
Muscular Dystrophy Association.
Schnabl earned a master’s degree
in social work from SUNY Stony
Brook and a bachelor’s degree from
Marist College.
Schnabl is a member of the Asso-
ciation of Healthcare Philanthropy
and the Association of Fundraising
Professionals. She has published a
research paper entitled, “Teaching
Macro Research to BSW Students: An
Exploratory Study of Welfare Reform”
and presented this paper at the New
York State Social Work Education As-
sociation (NYSSWEA) conference in
November 2000. Schnabl has earned
many awards and honors including
the 1996 United States Congressional
Medal of Merit and an Award for Ex-
cellence in Social Work in 2000.
Brookhaven Memorial Hospi-
tal Medical Center (BMHMC) is a
full-service, 306-bed, acute care, vol-
untary, not-for-profit community
hospital located in Patchogue, New
York. BMHMC delivers accessible,
high-quality health services in a fo-
cused caring and teaching environ-
ment while providing health advocacy
for the community and people served.
 60 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM

WHO’s WHO
in Women in Professional Services

This Who’s Who in Women in Professional

Services section highlights some of Long
Island’s key businesswomen who undertake
fundamental roles within their companies.
Inside this section, these distinguished
professionals from various industries share an
issue or trend they are focusing on within their
area of business/practice to assure continued
advancement for their companies, clients and 70 MARA N. HARVEY Lamb & Barnosky, LLP

the Long Island region. 70 MARY HAUPTMAN Hauptman Realty Corp.

70 RUTH HENNESSEY Catholic Health Services of

Long Island/St. Francis Hospital

70 DR. VERONICA HENRY Farmingdale State College

71 MARY C. HODGE Cerebral Palsy Association of Nassau County, Inc.

INDEXINDEXINDEX 71 LYNN JOHNSON Stony Brook University

72 LAURIE B. KAZENOFF Moritt Hock & Hamroff LLP

61 KRISTINA ALBARELLA Marcum LLP 72 ELEANOR KEEGAN, RN Huntington Hospital

61 LORRAINE AYCOCK Bank of America 72 ELLEN KESSLER Ruskin Moscou Faltischek, P.C.

61 NICOLE BARTHELEMY Berdon LLP 73 PATRICIA KIELAWA Wells Fargo Bank, N.A.

61 KATHLEEN BENNETT Pronto of Long Island/Family of FREE Network 74 SYLVIA KNUTSON-BARR Flushing Bank

62 ANN BRANCHINI, PHD RN Molloy College 74 DONNA-MARIE KORTH Certilman Balin Adler & Hyman, LLP

62 ANNE BRIGIS YMCA of Long Island 74 MARIE A. LANDSMAN Rivkin Radler LLP

62 JACQUELINE BROWN Suffolk County National Bank 75 JIL MAZER-MARINO Meyer, Suozzi, English & Klein, P.C.

63 SANDRA BUSELL Davidoff Hutcher & Citron LLP 75 CAROL A. MELNICK Jaspan Schlesinger LLP

64 CAROLYN CACCESE Salenger, Sack, Kimmel & Bavaro LLP 75 LINA M. OBEID Stony Brook University School of Medicine

64 KELLY CANAVAN Campolo, Middleton & McCormick, LLP 76 EILEEN O’BRIEN Bridgehampton National Bank

64 DAWN CATAPANO, CPA Israeloff, Trattner & Co., CPAs, P.C. 76 LINDA M. OLIVA Peglis & Erickson, LLC

65 KATHRYN C. COLE Farrell Fritz, P.C. 76 MICHELLE PAPAJOHN St. Joseph’s College

65 KATIE CONNERS, AIF®, CFP® AVZ Wealth Management 77 KAYLIN PETERSON Jefferson’s Ferry Foundation

65 CARA CRONIN Cronin & Cronin Law Firm, PLLC 77 NIKKI S. REISS, CPA Sanders Thaler Viola & Katz, LLP

66 JUDI ABBOTT CURRY Harris Beach PLLC 77 LISA M. RICCIARDI, CPA, CCA Castellano, Korenberg, & Company

66 CYNTHIA DaCRUZ New York Community Bank/Roslyn Savings Bank 78 ELIZABETH COLLARD RICHTER Collard & Roe, P.C.

66 PATRICIA A. DARCY Southampton Hospital 78 RISË E. ROSEN Koeppel Martone & Leistman, LLP

67 JOANNE DEFINO KPMG PLLC 78 MARCY SAFYER Adelphi University

67 SANDRINA DEVLOPULOS Gettry Marcus CPA, P.C. 79 NOELENE SHERIDAN, CPA, MST Friedman LLP

67 ELIZABETH DiGANGI Suffolk Federal 79 SUSAN A. SIPOS Hoffmann & Baron LLP

67 KRISTIE M. FONTANA Jackson Lewis, P.C. 79 MARGUERITE SMITH Empire National Bank

68 ANA GETIASHVILI Meltzer Lippe Goldstein & Breitstone, LLP 80 KAREN TENENBAUM LL.M., CPA Tenenbaum Law, P.C.

68 MEGAN GILLEN Bond, Schoeneck & King 80 DEBORA THIVIERGE, BCABA, CBAA The ELIJA School and Foundation

69 JILL GOFFER Abrams, Fensterman, Fensterman, Eisman, Formato, 80 ELLEN TOBIN Westerman Ball Ederer Miller Zucker & Sharfstein, LLP

Ferrara & Wolf, LLP 81 ANDREA TSOUKALAS Forchelli, Curto, Deegan, Schwartz,

69 MEILISSA GOTTLIEB, CPA EisnerAmper LLP Mineo & Terrana, LLP

69 STACEY L. GULICK Garfunkel Wild, P.C. 81 MIRIAM E. VILLANI Sahn Ward Coschignano, PLLC

WHO’SWHO
in Women in Professional Services
KRISTINA
ALBARELLA,
CPA, MST
Marcum LLP
Kristina Albarella, CPA, MST is a
senior tax manager at Marcum LLP
in Melville.
Albarella oversees and trains staff
responsible for serving large multi-
state companies, as well as close-
ly-held entities, on matters involving
SEC disclosures, corporate taxation
and compliance issues. Working close-
ly with clients, Albarella helps meet
timely tax compliance requirements
and filings for potential tax savings.
Albarella has extensive experience
effectively representing clients with
federal and state audits. In addition,
she advises companies with corporate
restructurings, acquisitions and
liquidations.
Albarella, who also serves as chair
of the firm’s marketing committee
for Melville management, shares her
expertise internally as a trainer for
management, staff and new hires.
She teaches CPE courses on corporate
tax topics including ASC 740 and tax
transaction costs.
Albarella has more than 20 years of
public and private accounting experi-
ence. Prior to joining Marcum LLP in
2008, she was principal tax advisor for
an international public company. Ear-
lier in her career, Albarella spent 11
years with a Big Four accounting firm
where she was a senior tax manager.
Within the international tax arena,
there is a myriad of issues to keep an
eye on, Albarella said.
“Transparency in international tax-
ation include foreign bank account
disclosures by foreign multi-national
banks, and the most recent Panama
Papers,” she said. “This will keep cli-
ents up at night and will draw out
more non-compliant taxpayers than
ever before. It is easier to help people
when they come forward voluntarily
rather than when they are caught and
face potential serious consequences.”
“In terms of corporate taxation, tax
minimization planning is most chal-
lenging lately with the BEPS (Base
Erosion and Profit Shifting) initiative,
as well as recently-issued regulations
on country-by-country reporting re-
quirements for U.S. multinational en-
terprises,” Albarella said. “We constant-
ly need to assess our clients’ risk profile
and ensure compliance with these new
requirements designed to avoid shifting
of profits to low-tax countries.”
Albarella is involved in her commu-
nity’s ministries and earned a mas-
ter’s degree in taxation from Hofstra
University.
She is a member of the American
Institute of Certified Public Accoun-
tants; New York State Society of Cer-
tified Public Accountants (NYSSCPA),
board director; Attorneys and Accoun-
tants Joint Committee, chairperson,
NYSSCPA Nassau Chapter; Accoun-
tants & Attorney Networking Group;
Christ the King of Commack, lector,
61 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
welcoming ambassador and wedding
rehearsal host; and Catholic Daugh-
ters of America, Commack Court, fi-
nancial secretary.
Marcum LLP is one of the largest
independent public accounting and
advisory services firms in the United
States. Headquartered in New York
City, Marcum LLP offers the resources
of 1,500 professionals, including more
than 200 partners, in offices in major
business markets throughout the U.S.,
Grand Cayman and China. Marcum
is a member of the Marcum Group,
an organization providing a compre-
hensive range of professional services
spanning accounting and advisory,
technology solutions, wealth manage-
ment, and executive and professional
recruiting. The Marcum Group com-
panies include Marcum LLP, Marcum
Technology LLC, Marcum Search LLC,
Marcum Staffing LLC, Marcum Finan-
cial Services LLC, and Marcum Bern-
stein & Pinchuk LLP.
LORRAINE
AYCOCK
Bank of America
Lorraine Aycock is senior vice pres-
ident and enterprise business & com-
munity engagement market manag-
er for Bank of America. In her role,
Aycock’s responsibilities enable her
to support the bank’s efforts to align
and deliver marketing and charita-
ble resources to meet constituent and
community needs across Long Island.
While working closely with the bank’s
Long Island president, she leads the
planning and execution of sponsorship,
philanthropic, community and busi-
ness development initiatives locally.
Formerly a senior credit products
underwriter in the healthcare and
institutions group within Bank of
America’s Global Commercial Bank,
Aycock was responsible for underwrit-
ing; structuring and documenting cli-
ent transactions for institutions with
revenues totaling up to $2 billion spe-
cialized in healthcare, education and
non-profit industries.
Prior to joining the Bank of
America in 2000, Aycock worked in
the School of Education at Hofstra
University where she supported the
school’s efforts to achieve national
and state accreditations; provided cer-
tification recommendations for edu-
cational personnel in New York City,
New York State and nationally; de-
veloped and presented informational
seminars; and co-authored an advise-
ment manual, which received national
award recognition.
In addition to supporting volun-
teer efforts of various organizations,
Aycock helps promote financial litera-
cy education to K-12 students in local
school districts by leveraging Bank of
America’s programs and partnerships
including Better Money Habits, Your
Financial Future and Ultimate Money
Skills. She is a trustee of Briarcliffe
College and serves on the boards
of Family Service League and the
Farmingdale College Foundation and
is a member of the 2012 Class of the
Energeia Partnership Aycock earned
a bachelor’s degree in mathematics
and a master’s degree in banking and
finance from Hofstra University.
Bank of America is one of the
world’s largest financial institutions,
with approximately 4,800 branches
nationwide, including 73 banking cen-
ters on Long Island. Bank of America
serves individual consumers, small-
and middle-market businesses and
large corporations with a full range
of banking, investing, asset manage-
ment and other financial and risk
management products and services.
One of the largest employers on
Long Island, Bank of America and its
predecessor banks began serving the
region more than 125 years ago, and
remains committed to strengthening
local communities.
NICOLE
BARTHELEMY
Berdon LLP
Nicole Barthelemy is a manager in
Berdon LLP’s audit department with
nearly 10 years of professional expe-
rience in public accounting. Barthele-
my provides an array of accounting,
auditing and tax services for clients
throughout the real estate and hospi-
tality industries.
She works closely with real estate
owners, managers, developers, and in-
vestors as well as REITs, that are in-
volved in a broad spectrum of proper-
ties — among them residential, com-
mercial, retail, and shopping malls as
well as properties under development.
In the hospitality arena, she has a
particular specialty in guiding clients
in the food and beverage sector.
Barthelemy’s areas of expertise in-
clude preparing and reviewing GAAP,
income tax basis and special purpose
financial statements, as well as per-
forming certiorari filings and operating
expense escalation audits, and review-
ing partnership and corporate tax re-
turns. She also works closely with cli-
ents to develop tax projections, includ-
ing determining the tax implications
of various types of debt restructuring
and like-kind exchanges, as well as
potential sales and purchases of real
estate. She also assists in analyzing
new construction developments. She
has experience working with startups
and growing businesses on their tax
planning and guides them in setting
up and maintaining records.
Keeping new talent in the region
remains a priority for many of Long
Island’s businesses, Barthelemy said.
“A paramount concern of the Long
Island business community is the on-
going development of transit-orient-
ed residential areas (transit-oriented
districts or TODs) to attract and keep
Long Island’s younger generation,” she
said, adding that this must be com-
bined with Employment-oriented De-
velopments (EODs), which go beyond
just transit in order to foster a vibrant
urban experience for employees and
employers.
“Young people are an essential re-
source for employers who will fade
from the Long Island community
if they continue to see the younger
generation move away to towns like
Hoboken, which offer a well-rounded
live, work, play community,” Barthe-
lemy noted. “The younger generation
is looking for places to live that offer
them great experiences, easier com-
muting, and places to go for them-
selves and their eventual offspring.
Long Island is on the right path to
becoming a desirable destination for
both businesses and their employees;
however, ongoing governmental ini-
tiatives will be essential in order for
Long Island to keep pace with other
attractive communities in the area.”
The growth of service-based busi-
nesses, such as spas, restaurants, and
gyms, are indicators that the Island is
attracting more young people and they
are choosing to stay, she explained.
Barthelemy earned a bachelor’s de-
gree in accounting from Baruch Col-
lege. She was licensed as a certified
public accountant in New York State
in 2010.
She is a member of the Long Island
Real Estate Group. She is a member
of the American Institute of Certified
Public Accountants and the New York
State Society of Certified Public Ac-
countants.
Berdon LLP is consistently ranked
among the nation’s top CPA and ad-
visory firms. With nearly 400 profes-
sionals and staff — at offices in Jeri-
cho and New York City — clients can
access a comprehensive array of ac-
counting, tax, financial, and manage-
ment advisory services. Berdon advises
on almost every aspect of a business
at any stage of development — from
startup through growth, diversifica-
tion, and succession. Berdon is a recog-
nized leader in advising the real estate
industry and works with numerous
businesses in the manufacturing and
distribution sector as well as high net
worth individuals. If needs cross inter-
national borders, Berdon service ex-
tends worldwide through membership
in TIAG, a global alliance of more than
115 independent accounting firms in
over 65 countries.
KATHLEEN
BENNETT
Pronto of Long
Island/Family of
FREE Network
Kathleen Bennett is president of
Pronto of Long Island, a 501(c)(3) not
for profit community outreach center
in Bay Shore that serves the most
vulnerable children and families liv-
ing in Brentwood, Bay Shore, Central
Islip and neighboring communities.
Pronto is a member of the Family of
FREE Network, which collaborates
with a variety of diverse 501(c)(3)
nonprofit partners.

WHO’SWHO
in Women in Professional Services
Bennett was named president of
the organization in 2016 and joined
Pronto with more than 20 years of
business management experience.
She was a manager and team lead-
er for Newsday in Melville. Prior to
being named president of Pronto of
Long Island, Bennett had served on
its board of directors as secretary and
then vice president.
“People come to Pronto everyday
with tragic stories and we change
their lives,” Bennett said.
“It never ceases to amaze me how
people are hungry right here on Long
Island in this day and age,” she said.
“Their stories vary greatly but they
have one thing in common — they all
need assistance and can’t afford food.
Sometimes people come from other
countries and don’t have any win-
ter clothes; they come with just the
things they could carry. They have no
beds for their children and they need
to get them immunizations before
they can get them into school.”
Pronto guides those in many ways,
she said.
“We may have taught them English
so that they could get a job and now
they’re in a better place and they want
to give back,” Bennett explained. “We
listen, offer assistance, refer them to
places they can get more help, and give
them hope for a better future. That’s
why, after 47 years of helping people,
they are generous with their time and
come back and volunteer. We may
have helped them or their family and
they want to say, ‘thank you.’”
Pronto of Long Island, Inc., a 501(c)
(3) not for profit, is an outreach center
whose mission is to feed the hungry,
clothe the needy, welcome the strang-
er, and provide healing and hope to
everyone who walks through its doors.
Pronto opened in 1969 from the vision
of a group of committed lay people
and clergy at St. Anne’s Roman Cath-
olic Church.
Pronto has been able to flourish
based on contributions of clothing, fur-
niture, household items and monetary
donations. Many services are offered
at Pronto, including ESL classes, De-
partment of Health children’s immu-
nizations, immigration referral and
health insurance benefit counseling.
Pronto operates a thrift center and
food pantry providing commodities to
neighborhood individuals, families and
seniors in need. This vision is fueled by
“prayer and the hard work” of commit-
ted volunteers.
ANN
BRANCHINI,
PH.D., R.N.
Molloy College
Ann Branchini, Ph.D., R.N., is vice
president for academic affairs and
dean of faculty at Molloy College in
Rockville Centre. Dr. Branchini re-
cently joined Molloy College, after 13
years as academic dean and chief aca-
demic officer at Three Rivers Commu-
nity College in Norwich, Connecticut.
62 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
Keeping focused on the shifting
needs of Millennials is important,
noted Dr. Branchini.
“The Millennial generation — which
includes today’s college students — rep-
resents one-third of the current United
State’s population,” she said. “They are
at the beginning of their careers and
so will be an important engine of the
economy in the decades to come. Our
students will likely move through jobs
more frequently, and may have up to
three or four different careers in their
lifetime. The environment of the 21st
Century is one of continuous change,
instantaneous news, and evolution of
knowledge, and demands skill in nav-
igating in that evolving environment
to be able to think critically, make in-
formed decisions and act with moral
and ethical awareness in increasingly
complex systems.”
“Educators are challenged in this
environment to view knowledge as
dynamic and less static, to model ed-
ucation as a life-long process of inter-
acting with the 21st Century world,”
Dr. Branchini said. “We must impart
knowledge and skills that will enable
them to be nimble thinkers who are
able to adapt to changes we have not
yet imagined.”
“Lastly, we must educate our stu-
dents to be competent members of
a civil society, with all the skills,
knowledge and abilities necessary to
be contributing members of our com-
munities, both local and global,” Dr.
Branchini said.
Dr. Branchini earned a bachelor’s
degree in nursing from the University
of Wisconsin-Milwaukee; a master’s
degree in nursing from Marquette
University; and a Ph.D. in nursing
from the University of Connecticut.
Molloy College, an independent
Catholic college based in Rockville
Centre, was founded in 1955 by the
Sisters of Saint Dominic in Amityville,
NY. The college serves a student pop-
ulation of about 4,600 undergraduate
and graduate students. Molloy stu-
dents can earn degrees in a variety of
outstanding academic programs, in-
cluding nursing, business, education,
social work, music therapy and more.
ANNE N.
BRIGIS
YMCA of
Long Island
Anne N. Brigis is president and
chief executive officer at YMCA of
Long Island. Brigis has been part of
the YMCA family since she was a teen-
ager volunteering at her local branch.
As an adult, after a successful career
on Madison Avenue, she found her
way back to her hometown YMCA in
Flushing, Queens where she served
as associate executive director. Seven
years later, in 1992, Brigis went on to
accept a position as associate executive
director of the newly-built Great South
Bay YMCA in Bay Shore, Long Island.
Among her many accomplishments
at the Great South Bay YMCA was
the opening of the YMCA Boulton
Center for the Performing Arts and
the Entenmann Pavilion dedicated to
child care programs. Shortly thereaf-
ter, Brigis was promoted to vice presi-
dent of South Shore operations, where
her responsibilities grew to include
the management of the Brookhaven
Roe and East Hampton branches. In
2003, she was named to the post of
senior vice president of branch opera-
tions. In 2010, Brigis served as the or-
ganization’s executive vice president
and chief operating officer. Under her
leadership, she worked closely with
benefactors, senior staff and volun-
teers, to open the Patchogue Family
YMCA, Martone Children’s Center
at the YMCA at Glen Cove and the
Sammis Childcare Center at the Hun-
tington YMCA. In 2012, Brigis was
named the first female president and
chief executive officer of the YMCA of
Long Island.
The YMCA is a leading non-profit
organization with a mission focused
on youth development, healthy living
and social responsibility, Brigis said.
“I believe this mantra has forged
not just the way the Y views the world
population’s needs, but a revolution in
the direction of our society,” she said.
“Having started my career at the Y
as a volunteer when I was a teenager,
I’ve always recognized that transfor-
mative period shaping the woman I
am today, both personally and profes-
sionally,” she noted. “Entering a lead-
ership position more than two decades
ago at the Y of Greater New York, I
recognized a gap on Long Island in
a childcare movement – a movement
that allowed parents to work to sup-
port their families and feel confident
that their children were well cared
for, learning, growing and thriving to
achieve their greatest potential.”
“As the need for childcare on Long
Island grew, so did my motivation to
ignite a holistic approach at the YMCA
of Long Island,” Brigis said. “Child-
care is no longer a luxury, it’s a grow-
ing necessity for our youngest curious
minds, busy families, and a safe haven
to express individuality. Caring for all
children as if they are my own is my
lifelong passion. Together as a Y, we’ve
worked tirelessly to meet the needs of
our community with the quality and
care we’ve offered for generations.”
“Today, the YMCA of Long Island
serves thousands of children each
year offering preschool, universal pre-
k, before and after school care during
the school year, as well as summer
day camp for children of all ages and
interests,” she explained.
“With the future of our children
being so bright, I know my journey
won’t end here,” Brigis said.
The YMCA is a leader in providing
programs that strengthen the mind,
body and spirit connection. Long Is-
landers of all ages and fitness levels
learn to live their healthiest lives in-
side the YMCA’s state-of-the-art fa-
cilities in East Hampton, Glen Cove,
Great South Bay, Huntington and Pa-
tchogue/Holtsville. The YMCA of Long
Island is a cause-driven nonprofit or-
ganization that works to strengthen
communities through programs that
focus on youth development, healthy
living and social responsibility.
JACQUELINE
BROWN
Suffolk County
National Bank
Jacqueline “Jackie” Brown is senior
vice president and director, cash man-
agement and deposit services at Suf-
folk County National Bank (SCNB) in
Riverhead.
Under her leadership, Brown and
her team work closely with the SCNB’s
commercial lending and branch man-
agement teams to build new client re-
lationships and expand existing rela-
tionships across the bank’s entire mar-
ket area, which includes Long Island
and the boroughs of New York City.
In addition, Brown plays an inte-
gral role in enhancing the bank’s suite
of deposit and cash management ser-
vices in order to better meet the ev-
er-changing needs of businesses.
With more than 20 years in the
banking field, including key positions
with Bank of New York and Astoria
Federal Saving Bank, Brown has a
keen understanding of the financial
needs of businesses and their expec-
tations when it comes to their bank-
ing. She recognizes that to best serve
her customers, she needs an integral
knowledge of their business and an
appreciation of how each of her clients
must deal with the daily challenges
that can disrupt their firm’s growth
and affect their financial success.
Brown also understands how tech-
nology has changed the way clients
interface with their financial institu-
tions. “Traditional banking has given
way to more and more digital options
which not only give clients immedi-
ate access to account information,
but also provides them with the abil-
ity to conduct transactions without
ever stepping outside their place of
business,” said Brown. “No longer do
business clients need to come into the
bank to make deposits – this can be
done right on their office computer
with a desktop scanner. Finding out
if a check has been paid, paying bills
or making a transfer between their
accounts is as simple as a few clicks
on their computer – as is doing pay-
roll or accepting payments via ACH
(Automated Clearing House). In re-
cent years, the growth towards mobile
banking has been tremendous and is,
by far, the fastest growing platform
for banking transactions.”
While changing technology brings
many opportunities for the banking in-
dustry, Brown understands that it also
creates new challenges for her clients
who must be diligent in keeping their
information safe. Part of any conversa-
tion with her customers includes ser-
vices that have been developed to detect
and prevent fraudulent transactions.
“Even with all the changes in tech-
nology, it may come as a surprise to
some that one-on-one, person-to-per-
son banking is not going away,” she
noted. “Talking with our clients, meet-
ing with them at their place of busi-
ness or ours, and having that in-per-

WHO’SWHO
in Women in Professional Services
son delivery will always be an import-
ant part of the banking relationship.”
Founded in 1890, Suffolk County
National Bank is one of the largest
community banks headquartered on
Long Island with 26 branch locations
in Nassau and Suffolk and an addi-
tional branch and regional commer-
cial lending office in Long Island City.
SCNB offers a full range of products
and services including deposit ac-
counts, commercial and consumer
lending, residential mortgages, cash
management, mobile banking and
more. The bank’s market niche in-
cludes small and middle market busi-
nesses as well as retail clients ancil-
lary to these commercial relationships.
Recognized for its long history of com-
mitment to businesses and consumers
— and its financial support and ser-
vices to local municipalities and not-
for-profits — the bank is also known,
along with its employees, for its cul-
ture of active community involvement.
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63 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
SANDRA N.
BUSELL
Davidoff Hutcher
& Citron LLP
Sandra N. Busell is a partner at Da-
vidoff Hutcher & Citron LLP in Garden
City. Busell concentrates her practice
on trusts & estates and elder care law.
Her focus in the areas of trusts includes
supplemental needs trusts, estates (in-
cluding contested estates), Medicaid
planning, elder care, real estate, and
guardianships — both contested and
not. Busell is also a certified public ac-
countant, bringing unique tax knowl-
edge to all her planning work.
Busell represents clients in a variety
of matters including elder law, Med-
icaid, real estate law, corporate law,
wills, probate, business law, tax law,
and contractual transactions. She is
often appointed by the Supreme Courts
in Nassau, Suffolk and Queens coun-
ties as a guardian, supplemental needs
trustee, as well as a court evaluator
for persons alleged to be in need of a
guardian. She represents clients in all
guardianship legal matters dealing
with elderly and special needs children.
Busell also advises on contested es-
tates between siblings, including rep-
resenting the non-executor beneficia-
ries to ensure timely administration
and distribution of the estate. Busell
advises clients in estate planning
work focusing on business succession
issues, where her experience as a cer-
tified public accountant adds to her
understanding. Her experience also
includes counseling clients on various
real estate issues that arise relating
to elders buying, selling, and trans-
ferring of property, including helping
families obtain reverse mortgages by
using irrevocable trusts which allows
the elderly family member to stay in
their home and still protect the re-
maining equity for themselves and
their children. An integral part of her
work is the protection of Medicaid
benefits for special needs children and
adults and their families. This is often
done through the creation of supple-
mental needs trusts.
Asked what she is currently fo-
cusing on, Busell said: Families who
are in turmoil. “We are meeting
with an increasing number of fami-
lies who have not addressed possible
long-term health issues and there-
fore face spending their savings to
finance their care,” she noted. “This
often equates to implementation of a
Medicaid plan after the individual has
suffered a medical event, which great-
ly compromises the practitioner’s abil-
ity to preserve assets. In most cases,
a large portion of resources can be
preserved with appropriate Medicaid
planning. The key to Medicaid plan-
ning is preventative planning. Due
to the five-year look back period in
existence for all ‘chronic care’ or nurs-
ing home Medicaid applications, it is
imperative to implement a plan while
the individual is in good health.”
Most individuals can qualify for
“community” Medicaid utilizing a
combination of asset transfers, trusts,
and/or gifts, as there is no look back
period, Busell said. “Eligibility would
occur the month following the asset
transfers,” she explained. “Even where
income is in excess of Medicaid lim-
itations, utilization of pooled income
trusts can cover this problem. Of
course, family dynamics always play
a role. When children do not get along
or trust each other, or when there are
physical or emotional issues within
the family, such facts must be taken
into consideration when devising a
plan. The primary objective is always
the safe care of the parents. In plans
where the care is paid for by the client,
it is important to advise them which
assets should be used. Using pension
plans, retirement accounts and other
qualified assets may be detrimental to
preserving the assets and ultimately
achieving Medicaid eligibility.”
Busell is a frequent lecturer on es-
tates, trusts and elder care law issues.
She is a graduate of Baruch College
of CUNY with a BBA degree, with
a major in accounting. She earned a

WHO’SWHO
in Women in Professional Services
juris doctor from St. John’s University.
Founded in 1975, Davidoff Hutcher
& Citron LLP (DHC) has become one
of New York’s most respected mid-size
commercial law, estates, trusts, elder
law and government relations firms.
DHC combines a multi-discipline law
practice with a distinguished gov-
ernment relations practice, handling
legal and lobbying matters from the
routine to the complex, planning for
estates trusts, supplemental needs
trusts and Medicaid. DHC has offices
located in New York City, Albany,
Washington, D.C., and on Long Is-
land. The firm practices law in a syn-
ergistic manner. Each of its practice
groups is chaired by a highly distin-
guished lawyer in the field, working
together with lawyers from different
departments to achieve its clients’
objectives. The firm is known as ag-
gressive and results-oriented legal ex-
perts, both in the boardroom and the
courtroom.
CAROLYN
CACCESE
Salenger, Sack,
Kimmel & Bavaro
LLP
Carolyn Caccese is a partner at the
law firm of Salenger, Sack, Kimmel
& Bavaro LLP, with offices in Wood-
bury, New York City and Brooklyn.
Caccese practices personal injury
law representing plaintiffs, with a
particular focus on medical malprac-
tice and nursing home litigation. Not
yet 40 years of age, Caccese has been
selected among the top 5 percent of
attorneys younger than 40 in the New
York metro region by Super Lawyers.
Among many issues Caccese re-
mains focused on includes the New
York State Medical Indemnity Fund.
“The New York State Medical In-
demnity Fund, which is a mandato-
ry program for all children who are
deemed by the courts to have a birth
related neurological impairment, pro-
vides health care coverage for these
children,” she said. “The fund is a
relatively new program in New York
State, and is intended to pay all med-
ical expenses for these devastatingly
injured children.”
“Through practical experience and
the experience of our clients, admin-
istrative issues have arisen,” Caccese
noted. “The Senate and Assembly
recently passed a bill that increases
the rate of reimbursement to medical
care providers treating these children.
Previously, the fund often paid only
Medicaid rates, and therefore was not
accepted by many medical providers,
leaving families with limited treat-
ment options. Families would often be
forced to pay themselves for the nec-
essary care for these children, even
though they were required to partici-
pate in this fund that limited compen-
sation for catastrophic injuries.”
“Families and children in the fund
deserve to have health care choices
and receive high quality care through
the fund,” Caccese said. “It is an
64 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
important piece of legislation to be
signed into law to protect the victims
of malpractice and their families.”
Caccese serves on the medical mal-
practice committee of the New York
City Bar and is chair of its subcom-
mittee on outreach. She is a member
of and director of the 1st Judicial Dis-
trict for the NYS Academy of Trial
lawyers and has served on its judi-
cial screening committee for judicial
candidates for the NY State Court of
Appeals. Her writings have been pub-
lished in the New York Law Journal.
She is a Dean’s list graduate of St.
John’s Law School, where she served
as the Executive Notes and Com-
ments Editor of the St. John’s Journal
of Legal Commentary.
For more than 30 years and over
the course of hundreds of successful
personal injury cases, Salenger, Sack,
Kimmel & Bavaro LLP has helped
people achieve justice and rebuild
their lives after tragedy with signifi-
cant personal injury awards. The firm
has secured more than $300 million in
awards and settlements for its clients
and is rated in the Top Tier of New
York City and New York Metropolitan
personal injury firms by Best Law
Firms (U.S. News and World Report).
Its attorneys have a keen understand-
ing of the issues and are regularly
named for recognition among Best
Lawyers, Super Lawyers and Martin-
dale-Hubbell.
KELLY
CANAVAN
Campolo, Middleton
& McCormick, LLP
Counsel at Campolo, Middleton &
McCormick, LLP (CMM), Kelly Ca-
navan dedicates her practice to real
estate, with a focus on both residen-
tial and commercial transactions and
leases, primarily on Long Island’s
East End. As chair of the firm’s real
estate practice, Canavan represents
buyers and sellers, landlords and ten-
ants, brokers and developers, archi-
tects, contractors, and business own-
ers. She has experience in handling
both forward and reverse 1031 ex-
changes, as well as in preparing all
types of agreements and contracts re-
lating to real estate transactions such
as prenuptial agreements, co-habi-
tation agreements, and joint venture
agreements. Her real estate matters
vary in size from smaller matters to
transactions worth tens of millions of
dollars. In recent years, her transac-
tions have totaled well over a hundred
million dollars per year.
Canavan is focused on develop-
ments of a pilot program launched by
the U.S. Treasury Department.
“I am interested to see where the
U.S. Treasury Department lands on
their pilot program requiring title in-
surance companies to discover and
disclose the identities of cash buyers
who buy property through limited li-
ability corporations and shell com-
panies on properties of more than $3
million in both Manhattan and Mi-
ami-Dade County,” she said. “If the
initiative is expanded, it would apply
to a great many transactions on the
East End of Long Island.”
Canavan began her legal career
practicing commercial and insur-
ance defense litigation in New York
City and Nassau County. In 1996,
she opened her own law firm in Sag
Harbor focusing on real estate and
litigation matters for her East End
clientele. After a decade, Canavan
merged her practice into a large Long
Island firm. She joined CMM with the
insight and experience to offer inno-
vative solutions to the complex issues
that often arise in property transac-
tions on the East End, and with the
success of having handled two of the
Top 10 Hamptons sales of 2013.
Canavan earned a bachelor’s de-
gree from Fordham University and
juris doctor from Hofstra Universi-
ty School of Law. She is admitted to
practice in New York and before the
United States District Court, Eastern
District of New York. Canavan is a
member of the Suffolk County Bar
Association.
Located in both the heart of Long
Island in Ronkonkoma and on the
East End in Bridgehampton, Campo-
lo, Middleton & McCormick, LLP is a
premier law firm in Suffolk County.
Over the past generation, CMM attor-
neys have played a central role in the
most critical legal issues and transac-
tions affecting Long Island. The firm
has earned the prestigious HIA-LI
Business Achievement Award, a spot
on the U.S. News & World Report list
of Best Law Firms, and the coveted
title of Best Law Firm on Long Island.
DAWN
CATAPANO,
CPA
Israeloff, Trattner &
Co., CPAs, P.C.
Dawn Catapano is a supervisor at
Israeloff, Trattner & Co., CPAs, P.C.
with offices in New York City and
Garden City. Catapano is responsible
for work on various field assignments
for audit, review and compilation en-
gagements, and provides services for
a number of clients on a regular basis.
Her client base includes professional
service firms, technology, manufac-
turing, governmental, not-for-profit,
service, wholesale and retail clients.
Catapano’s past and current client
responsibilities include supervisor re-
sponsible for the accounting and fi-
nancial reporting for a number of the
region’s leading law firms and other
professional service firms, as well as
multi-million dollar manufacturing cli-
ents, technology companies and other
closely-held businesses; supervisor in-
charge of the accounting and financial
reporting for a multi-million dollar re-
tail chain of piano wholesalers/retail-
ers; supervisor in-charge responsible
for planning, coordinating and super-
vision of the audits of a number of not-
for-profit organizations; and planning,
coordinating and supervision of audits
of a number of New York City Pro-
grams contracted with various agen-
cies, including preparation of reports
required in connection with Govern-
ment Audit Standards.
Today’s accountants are faced with
many challenges when meeting the
needs of their organization, as well as
their clients, Catapano said.
“The marketplace is evolving, yet
the one constant is the high ethi-
cal and professional standards that
CPAs must adhere to,” she said. “As
a self-regulated profession, we need
to ensure that we are working with
others who hold the same high level
of ethics and professionalism. Those
standards are key when a CPA gives
their stamp of approval.”
Small businesses are the heart of the
American economy, and as they strive
for success, their relationship with their
accountant can be integral to their fis-
cal health, Catapano explained.
“As a partner, the CPA can help
monitor the business’s needs in the
most effective and efficient way possi-
ble,” she said. “They provide valuable
tax, planning and financial advice
which enables the business to grow.
A CPA can help a business owner deal
with the issues confronting the indus-
try, the economy and its impact on the
business itself.”
“Fraud, unfortunately, is an ev-
er-present concern for small business-
es,” Catapano said. “While a CPA is
generally not looking for fraud in the
annual review, financial statement or
tax planning, the CPA can help devel-
op a strong system of internal controls
to minimize the risk,” she noted. “It’s
not reasonable to say whether a spe-
cific person or organization will be af-
fected, however, we can control our en-
vironment and maintain the high level
of ethics and professionalism associ-
ated with the CPA stamp of approval.
It adds some much needed comfort for
the business, the business owner, and
the CPA.”
Catapano earned a bachelor’s de-
gree in accounting from L.I. Universi-
ty, C.W. Post Campus. She is a mem-
ber of the New York State Society of
Certified Public Accountants (NYSSC-
PA); a member of the American Insti-
tute of Certified Public Accountants;
and a member of the NYSSCPA-Nas-
sau Chapter.
Among her community involve-
ment, Catapano is a member of the
board of directors of Shannon’s Fight,
Inc., a not for profit corporation, and
active fundraiser for various local
charities; and a member of the board
of directors of Pet Peeves.
For over 70 years, the professionals
at Israeloff, Trattner & Co., CPAs,
P.C. have been developing client rela-
tionships built on trust, expertise and
timely service. The firm offers a broad
range of traditional and non-tradi-
tional services including accounting
and auditing, forensic accounting, in-
come tax consultation and prepara-
tion, financial and management con-
sulting, business valuation, litigation
support services, law firm manage-
ment consulting, merger and acquisi-
tion consulting, technology, market-
ing and human resource consulting,
financial and estate planning. As a

WHO’SWHO
in Women in Professional Services
result of the professional commitment
and involvement of its officers and
staff, Israeloff, Trattner & Co. has
established itself as a leader in the
accounting field and developed a prac-
tice of the highest quality.
KATHRYN C.
COLE
Farrell Fritz, P.C.
Kathryn “Katy” C. Cole is coun-
sel in Farrell Fritz, P.C.’s commercial
litigation practice group and a found-
ing member of the firm’s eDiscovery
group. Cole’s experience with com-
mercial litigation cases – including
claims related to contracts, product li-
ability, torts, consumer and securities
class-actions – spans the federal and
state court systems, federal agencies,
regulatory bodies, and arbitration and
mediation forums.
In 2013, Cole was installed as the
first female president of the Feder-
al Bar Association’s Eastern District
of New York Chapter, in which she
remains active. She is a member of
The Cowen Group’s “Legal Innova-
tion 2020,” an invitation-only working
group focusing on independent studies
of significant developments influencing
the legal technology, eDiscovery, and
information governance industry.
Issues relating to eDiscovery have
been some of the largest, most expen-
sive challenges for litigants, Cole said.
“There are many trends that I have
my eye on for 2016, including the vary-
ing judicial interpretations of the pro-
portionality language of FRCP 26(b)
(1) and the expanding trend of tech-
nology-assisted review becoming more
a necessity than a choice, given ev-
er-increasing data volumes and data
review costs,” she said. “But the issue
that particularly piques my interest
is the benefits and pitfalls of ‘Bring
Your Own Device (BYOD) v. Company
Owned, Personally Enabled (COPE).’”
This issue affects every company
with employees who use mobile devic-
es for both personal and work purpos-
es, Cole noted. “While BYOD raises
security and manageability concerns
— including hackers, phishing scams,
lost devices, etc. — COPE may be fi-
nancially infeasible for many compa-
nies,” she explained. “Irrespective of
whether a company embraces BYOD
or COPE, there are critical issues
companies must consider including
who owns the device and who owns
the data (and what happens to the
data when the employee leaves the
company); what data can be stored
and shared on the device (does pure-
ly personal email have any business
being on COPE device?); and what is
the acceptable use of the mobile de-
vice and who can control it?”
“Today, as we are all on our mobile
devices, often handling professional
and personal matters, these issues
are likely to become increasingly rele-
vant for businesses,” Cole said.
Cole is vice president of St. John’s
65 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
University School of Law Alumni As-
sociation Board and a member of Col-
gate University’s President’s Club.
She has performed extensive pro bono
work, leading her to be named to The
Special Commission on the Future of
New York State Courts and The Fund
for Modern Courts’ Task Force on the
Family Courts.
Her judicial profiles, notes and
legal commentaries can be found in
The Federal Lawyer, The Nassau Law-
yer, in various law reviews and on the
firm’s All About eDiscovery law blog.
With 90 attorneys, the law firm
of Farrell Fritz is recognized for pro-
viding high quality, responsive ser-
vice, practical advice and for its deep
commitment to the local community.
Farrell Fritz handles legal matters in
the areas of bankruptcy and restruc-
turing; business divorce; commercial
litigation; construction; corporate and
finance; distressed assets; eDiscov-
ery; emerging companies and venture
capital; eminent domain; environmen-
tal law; estate litigation; health law;
labor and employment; land use, mu-
nicipal and zoning; real estate; tax
planning and controversy; tax cer-
tiorari, and trusts and estates for a
variety of corporations, not-for-profit
organizations and individuals.
The firm, with offices in Uniondale,
Hauppauge, New York City and Water
Mill, is recognized for providing high
quality legal services, practical advice
and responsiveness, as well as its deep
commitment to the local community.
KATIE
CONNORS
AIF ® , CFP ®
AVZ Wealth
Management
Katie Connors AIF ® , CFP ® is a
partner of AVZ Wealth Management,
LLC. Connors has more than 20 years
of experience in financial planning.
She began her financial planning
career with Legg Mason, Inc., a re-
gional brokerage firm in Baltimore,
Maryland. At Legg Mason, she helped
develop their financial planning and
asset allocation programs.
Prior to joining AVZ in 1999, Con-
nors was manager of financial plan-
ning for Chase Investment Services,
Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of JP
Morgan Chase.
Promoted to partner in 2008, Con-
nors’ expertise involves investment
planning and asset management. She
is responsible for managing client as-
sets, as well as providing other finan-
cial planning services such as retire-
ment and estate planning, employee
benefit plans, and risk management.
AVZ Wealth Management is al-
ways looking for ways to inform and
add value to its clients, Connors said.
“We have been very busy in the
area of qualified retirement plans,”
she noted. “With the increased re-
sponsibility and scrutiny related to
employer sponsored plans, we have
been working proactively to help de-
termine if our clients’ or prospective
clients’ company plans are working
at their greatest potential. We focus
on plan design and work with busi-
ness owners to help ensure that their
plans are in compliance, that they
have the best investment platform to
meet their needs and that employees
are receiving the right education.”
“For many people, their company
sponsored retirement plan will be
their greatest asset as they approach
retirement,” Connors explained. “We
want to make sure that our clients
are maximizing their contributions to
these plans and that their plans are
designed to offer the greatest benefits
for the owners and their employees.
With increased rules and regulations
facing plan fiduciaries, we help our
clients to stay compliant.”
“We also focus on employee educa-
tion, to make sure that employees are
taking the greatest advantage of the
plans they have and are doing every-
thing they can to save for their own
retirements,” Connors said.
Connors earned a bachelor’s degree in
business administration, with a concen-
tration in finance from Loyola College.
She is a member of the Financial
Planning Association. She has served
on the board of directors for Mercy
Haven, a nonprofit housing corpora-
tion for people with mental illnesses.
Currently, she serves on their advi-
sory board and is a member of Mercy
Haven’s finance committee.
Formed from Hauppauge-based
AVZ & Co., P.C. in 1999, AVZ Wealth
Management exists to provide wealth
management services to help friends
and family achieve financial peace
of mind. AVZ Wealth Management
provides the emotional and intellec-
tual support necessary to transform
complex choices into actionable finan-
cial solutions. The company under-
stands that life is filled with choices
and partners with its clients to make
decisions. Its team works together as
financial advisors and CPAs to design
tax-optimized, comprehensive solu-
tions that account for every detail of
its clients’ financial well-being.
CARA P.
CRONIN
Cronin & Cronin
Law Firm, PLLC
Cara P. Cronin is a partner at Cro-
nin & Cronin Law Firm, PLLC in
Mineola. Cronin has extensive experi-
ence representing commercial proper-
ty owners in tax certiorari matters in
Nassau County, Suffolk County, New
York City and upstate New York, in-
cluding Orange, Rockland, Dutchess,
Putnam and Westchester counties.
There are a number of changes oc-
curring in the real estate industry im-
pacting the field of tax certiorari that
warrant close monitoring, Cronin said.
“Trends in the market are critical
factors in tax certiorari negotiations,”
she said. “One important trend is
the significant shift in the retail real
estate market away from brick and
mortar establishments. A number of
our clients who own shopping centers
have reported difficulty filling spaces
due to vacancies, tenant downsizing,
and tenants requesting significant
rent reductions. With the increase of
shoppers buying on the internet, this
appears to be a trend that will contin-
ue, resulting in shopping center own-
ers courting the limited number of
service oriented tenants. It is essen-
tial that this change in the market is
demonstrated to obtain much needed
property tax relief.”
Another important change is in re-
gards to Class 4 commercial proper-
ty owners in Nassau County, Cronin
noted. “These owners are about to see
a change on their tax bill as a result
of the Nassau County Disputed As-
sessment Fund,” she said. “Nassau
County has instituted a new line item
labeled a ‘charge,’ which will be added
to the January town/county tax bill.
This change will result in significant
tax rate increases for all commercial
property owners. This is particularly
alarming since Nassau County com-
mercial property owners already pay
the highest real estate taxes in the
country. It is still too early to judge
the full impact of this change, but one
thing is clear, increasing the tax bur-
den to already overtaxed commercial
property owners is not helpful.”
Cronin is on the executive board
of the Long Island Real Estate Group
and is a co-chair of LIREG W. She is a
committee member for The Safe Cen-
ter Long Island Gala. Cronin is also
a member of the Long Island Associ-
ation Women’s Collaborative Rising
Professionals Group. She also acted
on the board of the Nassau County
Woman’s Bar Association and served
as the Nassau Chapter Delegate and
representative for the Domestic Vio-
lence Committee at WBASNY.
Cronin was recently honored by
the Nassau County Women’s Bar As-
sociation (NCWBA) with its Bessie
Ray Geffner, Esq. Memorial Award.
The NCWBA Bessie Ray Geffner, Esq.
Memorial Award is presented annu-
ally to an attorney who possesses a
demonstrated interest in improving
the justice system, the professional-
ism of the bar and serving the com-
munity at large.
Prior to joining Cronin & Cronin
in 2011, Cronin worked in Washing-
ton, D.C. at the National Republican
Congressional Committee. She contin-
ues to be involved in politics and has
acted as a consultant to several state
senate campaigns on Long Island.
Cronin is a member of the New
York State Bar Association, the New
York City Bar Association, the Nas-
sau County Bar Association and
the Suffolk County Bar Association.
She earned a bachelor’s degree from
Washington and Lee University and a
juris doctor from the Maurice A. Dean
School of Law at Hofstra University.
Cronin & Cronin Law Firm, PLLC
specializes in tax certiorari, protest-
ing the real property tax assessment
and condemnation for commercial
properties throughout New York
State. The attorneys of Cronin & Cro-
nin have extensive experience rep-
resenting prominent developers, na-
tional tenants and many of the largest

WHO’SWHO
in Women in Professional Services
properties in New York State and are
committed to obtaining positive re-
sults for each and every client.
JUDI
ABBOTT
CURRY
Harris Beach PLLC
Judi Abbott Curry is a member of
Harris Beach PLLC, which has offic-
es in New York City and Uniondale.
Curry is co-leader of the medical and
life sciences industry team and practic-
es in the mass torts and industry-wide
litigation, as well as the construction
and surety practice groups. She also
serves on the nanotechnology industry
team. Curry is also a member of the
firm’s e-discovery practice (e-info℠).
Recognized in New York Super Law-
yers in the category of class action/
mass torts, her practice concentrates
in areas of mass tort and complex
product liability litigation involving
pharmaceuticals, medical devices, im-
plants, compounded medicines, biolog-
ics, over-the-counter drugs, solvents
and other chemicals, mold, Legionella,
pesticides, cosmetics, food, commercial
and consumer household goods.
Curry represents manufacturers,
distributors, contract manufacturing
organizations, retailers, chemical and
raw ingredient suppliers and compa-
ny or independent sales representa-
tives in the life science industry.
She also represents hospitals, phy-
sicians, medical practices, nurses,
physical therapists, pharmacists and
other healthcare providers in claims
of negligence, medical malpractice,
hospital-based toxic exposures and
medical device malfunctions.
“As an attorney representing the
designers, manufacturers and distrib-
utors of FDA approved medical devic-
es, one issue that I am closely watch-
ing involves the growing concern of
cyber security, particularly medical
devices that use software and are con-
nected (often wirelessly) to hospital
systems or the Internet,” Harvey said.
“Medical device manufacturers
must continually address cybersecurity
risks to keep patients safe and deliver
optimum care,” she explained. “This
includes monitoring, identifying and
addressing cybersecurity vulnerabili-
ties in medical devices once they have
entered the market and at all stages in
the lifecycle of a device. Device manu-
facturers should incorporate controls in
the design of a product to help prevent
these risks of unauthorized use and
hacking, and add improvements during
maintenance of devices consistent with
the developing state-of-the-art, since
the evolving nature of cyber threats
means risks may arise throughout a
device’s entire lifecycle.”
Curry is a member of the Defense
Research Institute, the Claims and Lit-
igation Management Alliance and is an
officer and secretary of the New York
State Bar Association Food, Drug, and
Cosmetic Section. Curry is also certified
in Legal Project Management.
66 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
She frequently lectures, chairs
professional seminars and publishes
articles on topics including pre-liti-
gation risk assessment, federal pre-
emption of pharmaceutical labeling
claims, defense of 501(k) medical de-
vices, Daubert issues, strategy in doc-
ument-intensive mass tort litigation,
and other issues where law and sci-
ence intersect.
Curry has also authored and pub-
lished numerous articles, and has au-
thored or co-authored Harris Beach
Legal Alerts.
Founded in 1856, Harris Beach is
among the country’s top law firms as
ranked by The National Law Journal.
Harris Beach is among the 2016 BTI
Brand Elite law firms based on in-
depth interviews conducted by BTI,
a leading legal industry consulting
group, of more than 600 corporate
counsel at the world’s largest and
most influential companies.
Harris Beach and its subsidiaries
provide a full range of legal and pro-
fessional services for clients across
New York state, as well as nationally
and internationally. Clients include
Fortune 500 corporations, private-
ly-held companies, emerging busi-
nesses, public sector entities, not-for-
profit organizations and individuals.
Principal industries Harris Beach
represents include education, energy,
financial, food and beverage, health
care, insurance, manufacturing,
medical and life sciences, real estate
developers, and state and local gov-
ernments and authorities. The firm’s
over 200 lawyers practice in offices
throughout New York state in Albany,
Buffalo, Ithaca, Melville, New York
City, Rochester, Saratoga Springs,
Syracuse, Uniondale and White
Plains, as well as in New Haven, Con-
necticut and Newark, New Jersey.
CYNTHIA
DaCRUZ
New York
Community Bank/
Roslyn Savings
Bank
Cynthia DaCruz is a vice president
and branch manager of Roslyn Savings
Bank, a division of New York Com-
munity Bank (NYCB). DaCruz is re-
sponsible for leading a team of 16. She
employs team collaboration and focus-
es on team development. She works
closely with regional management to
help ensure adherence to the institu-
tion’s commitment to service and qual-
ity through a number of programs and
projects that range from operational
soundness to employee development.
DaCruz has more than 16 years of
experience in the banking industry.
She started working with New York
Community Bank when she joined the
Roslyn Savings Branch team in Ros-
lyn. During the nine years she spent
there, she received several promotions
to various management roles and in
2009 was promoted to branch manag-
er of the Mineola office.
In 2015, DaCruz was asked to ex-
pand her role and transferred to man-
age in both the East Meadow and Beth-
page offices. Most recently, she was pro-
moted to vice president in July 2016.
There has been a shift in what it
means to provide quality service, Da-
Cruz noted.
“It is no longer about pleasantries
and expedience,” she said. “Our cus-
tomers are looking for solutions to
problems both for their families and
their neighborhoods, they want to
know that we are invested in them
and the community we serve.”
“NYCB is a good corporate citizen
and neighbor and that means we listen
and do what we can,” Cruz said.  “We
offer financial products to serve their
needs and we offer our time and tal-
ent to make a difference. Whether it
is consulting with a customer in the
branch about their savings plans,
teaching financial literacy in schools,
discussing fraud awareness at a senior
center or fundraising for a local cause
– we are part of the local landscape
because we are both bankers and good
corporate citizens.”
“This year as co-chair of the Steps
for Humanity Walk, which takes
place in Eisenhower Park this Oc-
tober, I will work side-by-side with
co-workers, neighbors and customers
for the common good – and besides
it being a wonderful experience, it
builds relationships and makes a pos-
itive impact on our community,” Cruz
explained. “Our customers expect
more from us as a longstanding local
institution, and I think we have risen
to the challenge.”
DaCruz has facilitated the bank’s
participation and sponsorship of mul-
tiple community and charitable fund-
raising events, most notably with
Island Harvest. Currently, she is
co-chairman of the Habitat for Hu-
manity of Nassau County 2016 Steps
for Humanity Walk-A-Thon. She has
been recognized for her community
support including being named Busi-
ness Person of the Year in 2013 by the
Mineola Chamber of Commerce.
New York Community Bank was
established more than 150 years ago
to meet the financial needs of those
who lived and worked in New York
City’s Queens County. Since then,
NYCB has become part of the local
landscape — across Long Island and
in hundreds of communities through-
out the five surrounding states.
New York Community Bank’s Ro-
slyn Savings Bank Division has been
serving Long Island since 1875. As
part of the NYCB Family of Banks it
provides customers with “the best in
strength, stability and service.” As a
community bank committed to being a
good corporate neighbor, Roslyn Sav-
ings Bank focuses on sound and ethi-
cal business practices, as it gives back
in various ways to enhance the quali-
ty of life in the communities it serves. 
PATRICIA
A. DARCEY
Southampton
Hospital
Patricia A. Darcey is chief nursing
officer and vice president of patient
care services at Southampton Hospi-
tal in Southampton.
Darcey provides a scope of patient
services include nursing, nurse re-
cruitment, nursing quality/education;
pharmacy; infection prevention; em-
ployee health; respiratory; and pallia-
tive care. She has partnered with the
CEO to develop and nurture a rela-
tionship with patients and staff re-es-
tablishing the community’s trust in
the organization and has staffed key
positions, promoted teamwork among
directors, and created an environment
of information sharing with an em-
phasis on transparency and organiza-
tional goals.
Among the many patient-centric
services Darcey has initiated include
the Implementation of Plan of Care
rounding in the ICU, which is a mul-
tidisciplinary team (nursing, pharma-
cy, respiratory, infection control and
PCRN) focusing on the daily plan of
care; and the development of a fully
integrated approach to the prevention
of patient falls and harm from falls
resulting in a 32 percent reduction in
falls and an 83 percent reduction in
patient harm. This resulted with an
invitation by IHI to become a mentor
hospital in fall reduction strategies
for three years — and five years later
Southampton Hospital continues to
decrease patient falls.
“Each day, we strive to be true to
our patient-centric philosophy, always
evaluating ways in which to improve
the patient experience,” Darcey said.
“Several programs we initiated at
Southampton Hospital give me tre-
mendous satisfaction.”
“In our Palliative Care service, the
focus is to reduce the severity of dis-
ease symptoms in order to relieve suf-
fering and improve quality of life,” she
explained. “This program has earned
The Joint Commissions’ Gold Seal of
Approval twice for highest standards
set by our interdisciplinary team.”
“We introduced NODA, the con-
cept that no one dies alone, a program
comprised of community and hospital
employees who volunteer time to be
with a patient at end of life,” Darcey
said. “Our pet therapy program, Com-
passionate Canines/Fetch a Smile,
has grown to five handler/dog teams
that bring comfort and smiles to pa-
tients and their families.”
“Each of these programs is in place
to serve our patients, and we are
always attentive and open to ways
to improve the patient experience,”
Darcey noted.
Prior to joining Southampton Hospi-
tal in 2006, Darcey served many years
in various health care management
positions in other health care facilities.
She earned a master’s degree in
health services management from

WHO’SWHO
in Women in Professional Services
New School University; a bachelor’s
degree, cum laude, in nursing from
Stony Brook University; and an as-
sociate’s degree in nursing from
Queensborough Community College.
Darcey is the recipient of several
awards including the 2011 Top 10%
HANYS Pinnacle Award: An Orga-
nizational Approach to Patient Flow;
the 2010 Top 10% HANYS Pinnacle
Award: Nursing Strategic Plan Built
Upon a Foundation of Patient Safe-
ty; and a 2009 Patient Safety Award
Nassau/Suffolk Hospital Council (Fall
Prevention Program).
An affiliate of Stony Brook Med-
icine and accredited by the Joint
Commission, Southampton Hospital
offers a full range of inpatient and
outpatient services. Key hospital de-
partments include Jenny and John
Paulson Emergency, Ellen Herman-
son Breast Center, Center for Ad-
vanced Wound Healing, Ed & Phyllis
Davis Wellness Institute, Kathleen
D. Allen Maternity, ACR-accredited
Radiology Department, Tick-Borne
Disease Resource Center, and Labo-
ratory. Additionally, 26 off-site facil-
ities, including Meeting House Lane
Medical Practice offices, Regional
Dialysis Center, the Shinnecock In-
dian Health Clinic, Greenport Prena-
tal Center, and the David E. Rogers
MD Center for HIV/AIDS Care, serve
communities on both North and
South Forks of Long Island.
JOANNE
DEFINO
KPMG PLLC
Joanne Defino is an audit senior
manager in KPMG’s Metro New York
Long Island office in Melville. Defino
has more than 12 years of experience
providing financial statement audit
and audit of internal control services
to clients primarily in the industrial
markets industry.
Defino has years of experience lead-
ing and coordinating audit teams on
large audit engagements with respon-
sibility for planning, execution, and
delivery of high quality audits. She has
provided professional audit services to
large and mid-market multinational
companies in accordance with PCAOB
requirements and U.S. GAAP.
She is currently the lead senior
manager for a Fortune 500 world
leading manufacturer and market-
er of quality skincare, makeup, fra-
grance and hair care products. Defino
has extensive experience in serving
public companies subject to the ac-
counting and reporting rules and reg-
ulations of the SEC and PCAOB.
Defino is focused on helping her
audit clients with is the upcoming
new revenue standard regarding re-
porting and recognizing revenue from
customer contracts.
“The new standard, which applies
across industries, eliminates in-
dustry-specific revenue recognition
guidance under current GAAP and
67 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
replaces it with a single comprehen-
sive five-step principle based model
for determining revenue recognition,”
Defino said. “I work with clients to
provide technical accounting advice,
including industry specific guidance,
as they work through the complexities
of adopting this new standard.”
“Companies are currently prepar-
ing for this new standard by deter-
mining which goods and services they
offer represent distinct performance
obligations under this new revenue
standard, how revenue will be allocat-
ed to these performance obligations,
and the proper accounting methods
for related contract costs,” she said.
Defino serves as co-chair of the
KPMG Network of Women for the
Long Island office.
She also serves as the audit re-
source management manager for the
Long Island office’s audit practice;
serves as a performance manager to
KPMG audit staff in KPMG’s People
Management Leader program focus-
ing on personal mentoring, perfor-
mance management and career devel-
opment; a member of the KPMG Long
Island Athena Planning Committee;
and has served as an instructor for
several local office training programs
for interns and new senior associates.
She is also a member of the Long Is-
land United Way Fund Allocation
Committee; a member of AICPA; and
a member of NYSSCPA.
Defino earned a bachelor’s degree
in accounting and a master’s degree
in accounting from St. Johns Univer-
sity. She is a licensed CPA in New
York and Connecticut.
KPMG LLP is the U.S. member
firm of KPMG International Cooper-
ative (“KPMG International”). KPMG
International’s member firms have
174,000 professionals, including more
than 9,000 partners, in 155 countries.
SANDRINA
DEVLOPOULOS
Gettry Marcus CPA,
P.C.
Sandrina Devlopoulos is chief op-
erating officer at Gettry Marcus CPA,
P.C. As COO, Devlopoulos oversees all
day-to-day operational functions, as
well as working with various key mem-
bers of the firm on human resources
issues including staffing, scheduling
and training. Much of her time is spent
strategizing firm goals with Practice
Group leaders. Devlopoulos also super-
vises all IT and administrative staff,
and trains professional staff on compa-
ny policies and procedures.
Devlopoulos began her career at
Gettry Marcus as the firm’s first full-
time director of marketing and was pro-
moted, in 2006, to director of marketing
& operations. She was again promoted
to chief operating officer, in 2009.
“As chief operating officer of Gettry
Marcus, an area I focus on, daily, is
implementation,” Devlopoulos said.
“Our vision is to have a ‘Firm of the
Future, Today’ operating in an in-
teractive collaborative environment.
What may seem like a simple state-
ment, keeps me challenged to make
sure that we are always on the road to
accomplishing our strategic plans and
the programs we have in place.”
“Whether it is – working with our
CEO to seamlessly integrate a newly
merged firm; hiring a director of ca-
reer development and recruiting to
help with employee retention and
recruiting; hiring an IT director to
enhance our IT infrastructure and
find solutions for our firm that takes
full advantage of available technolo-
gy; working with the various service
and niche practice groups to complete
their strategic plans; communicating
and coordinating work flow between
our offices; planning for our NYC ex-
pansion – my eye has to be on accom-
plishing tasks within a short period of
time,” Devlopoulos said.
“We continually raise the bar for
our own success and I am able to suc-
ceed because of the strong operational
structure we have set up in the firm,”
she explained. “The cohesive group
that I work with has helped me meet
our firm goals and stay on course with
our strategic plan for the future.”
Devlopoulos earned a bachelor’s de-
gree in business administration from
Adelphi University.
She is a member of the Association
for Accounting Administration, the
Association for Accounting Marketing
and the Public Relations Professionals
of Long Island.
Gettry Marcus CPA, P.C., a Top
200 firm nationally with offices in
Woodbury, Long Island and New York
City, provides accounting, tax, and
consulting services to commercial
businesses, high net worth individ-
uals and various industries, which
include real estate and health care.
The firm is noted for being one of the
premier and most credentialed busi-
ness valuation and litigation groups
in the New York area. Serving diverse
industries, Gettry Marcus and its ex-
perienced, professional staff share
valuable insights into their clients’
businesses. The firm has a deep un-
derstanding of their clients’ goals and
problems and helps them attain the
vision they have for their company.
ELIZABETH
DiGANGI
Suffolk Federal
Elizabeth DiGangi is controller at
Suffolk Federal where she is respon-
sible for ensuring the credit union is
compliant in generally accepted ac-
counting principles and adherent to
governing rules and regulations.
DiGangi oversees the production of
financial reports delivered to Suffolk
Federal’s board of directors and reg-
ulatory reports. She prepares the an-
nual budget and strategic planning fi-
nancial forecasts in collaboration with
executive management. As controller,
DiGangi also represents the account-
ing department as the primary con-
tact for internal audits, external fi-
nancial audits and regulatory exams.
Information security continues to
be an important topic in the banking
sector, DiGangi said.
“As consumers change the way they
perform transactions due to advances
in technology, financial institutions
must adapt their security measures
to ensure their customers’ data is se-
cure,” she said. “Adding anti-skimming
devices on ATMs, and offering debit
and credit cards with added EMV chip
card technology, are just some of the
technological investments being imple-
mented to prevent fraud. Resources re-
quired to maintain and improve infor-
mation security, as well as risk man-
agement efforts are significant. Finan-
cial institutions are working to educate
consumers and are adding resources
to help them if they find themselves a
victim of fraud or identify theft.”
“At Suffolk Federal, protecting our
members from fraud is a top priority,”
DiGangi noted. “The credit union offers
both credit and debit cards for consum-
er and business members with EMV
chip card technology with enhanced
24/7 fraud monitoring, which makes
replicating or counterfeiting cards more
difficult than a magnetic strip alone.
The credit union additionally offers its
membership LifeLock® Identity Theft
Protection which helps to safeguard
personal information and notify mem-
bers if a potential threat is identified.”
DiGangi joined Suffolk Federal in
2009 as its assistant controller. Prior
to joining Suffolk Federal, she was
employed as senior accountant at
NEFCU in Westbury. She earned a
bachelor’s degree in business adminis-
tration from Towson University and a
master’s degree in accounting from St.
John’s University.
Suffolk Federal is a not-for-profit fi-
nancial cooperative chartered in 1967
by the National Credit Union Admin-
istration. It is member-owned and gov-
erned by a volunteer board of directors.
The credit union has assets in excess
of $1 billion, nine retail branches, and
over 55,000 members. Suffolk Federal
Credit Union is a full service financial
institution with low-cost products and
services, and a history of providing “bet-
ter banking” for Long Island. It is open
to anyone who lives, works or worships
in Suffolk County, NY.
KRISTIE M.
FONTANA
Jackson Lewis
Kristie M. Fontana is an associate
in the Melville office of Jackson Lewis
P.C. Fontana assists federal contrac-
tors in the preparation of affirmative
action plans and defends contractors
against allegations of discrimination
on the basis of race, color, religion,
sex, national origin, disability, and
veteran status in connection with au-
dits by the Office of Federal Contract
Compliance Programs (OFCCP) and

WHO’SWHO
in Women in Professional Services
in related litigation brought on OF-
CCP’s behalf by the Solicitor’s Office
at the U.S. Department of Labor. She
also advises clients on compliance
with various state and federal laws
affecting the workplace, including
Title VII, Family and Medical Leave
Act, Americans with Disabilities Act,
Age Discrimination in Employment
Act, Fair Labor Standards Act and
New York State and City laws.
The OFCCP — the Department of
Labor agency that is tasked with en-
forcing the affirmative action regula-
tions — has been particularly focused
recently on pay equity, Fontana said.
“In every compliance review, fed-
eral contractors now must submit de-
tailed, individualized compensation
data, including base salary, bonus,
commission, overtime, shift differen-
tial, incentives, stock awards, etc.”
she said. “In the vast majority of
these compliance reviews, we are see-
ing OFCCP take a deep dive into this
data. OFCCP’s in-house statisticians
analyze the data provided using var-
ious statistical methods to determine
whether there are any unexplained
disparities in compensation. The
agency often requests to interview
compensation managers to fully learn
about the company’s pay practices.”
“Following this trend, the Equal
Employment Opportunity Commis-
sion (EEOC) also recently proposed
revisions to the EEO-1 report that
employers are required to submit an-
nually,” Fontana noted. “The proposed
report requires employers to report
W-2 earnings and ‘hours worked’ for
its employees.”
“In response to the government and
media’s recent focus on pay equity,
many employers are engaging counsel
to conduct privileged pay equity analy-
ses before releasing any compensation
data to the government,” Fontana said.
Fontana earned a bachelor’s degree
from American University, and a juris
doctor., cum laude, from Hofstra Uni-
versity School of Law.
While attending law school, Ms. Fon-
tana was a member of the Advanced
Research Committee and an Associate
Editor of the Hofstra Law Review. She
was named to the Dean’s List for the
Fall 2011, Spring 2012, Fall 2012 and
Spring 2013 semesters, and was the re-
cipient of the Jonathan Falk Memorial
Scholarship in 2011 and 2012.
Founded in 1958, Jackson Lewis
is dedicated to representing manage-
ment exclusively in workplace law.
With 800 attorneys practicing in lo-
cations throughout the United States
and Puerto Rico, Jackson Lewis is in-
cluded in the AmLaw 100 and Global
100 rankings of law firms. The firm’s
range of practice areas provides the
resources to address every aspect of
the employer/employee relationship.
Jackson Lewis is a leader in edu-
cating employers about the laws of
equal opportunity and, as a firm, un-
derstands the importance of having
a workforce that reflects the various
communities it serves.
Jackson Lewis is a founding mem-
ber of L&E Global Employers’ Coun-
sel Worldwide, an alliance of premier
employment law firms in Europe,
North and South America and the
Asia Pacific Region.
68 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
ANA
GETIASHVILI
Meltzer Lippe
Goldstein &
Breitstone, LLP
Ana Getiashvili is an associate at
Meltzer Lippe Goldstein & Breitstone,
LLP in Mineola. Getiashvili joined the
firm’s litigation and labor & employ-
ment practice groups in 2014.
Getiashvili assists employers on
issues such as discrimination and sex-
ual harassment investigations, em-
ployee leave, worker classification
and compensation practices, Form I-9
compliance and background checks.
She drafts and prepares employment
contracts and employer policies and
handbooks. She also assists in com-
mercial litigation matters.
Getiashvili is closely monitoring
wage and hour trends and develop-
ments in the traditional labor law.
“In New York, minimum wage is
scheduled to increase to $15 per hour
statewide, which along with the New
York Paid Family Leave Law will sig-
nificantly affect many employers,” she
said. “The 2016-2017 New York State
budget includes a plan to implement
the minimum wage increase over a two
to five year period, based on employer
location and business size. Starting in
2018, New Yorkers will also be able to
take 12 weeks of paid family leave.”
The National Labor Relations
Board has recently sharply departed
from its previous adjudications and
has become increasingly protective
of employee rights, she noted. “For
example, the board’s decision in GVS
Properties LLC may have significant
repercussions for entities that pur-
chase certain properties in New York
City in terms of their obligation to
recognize and bargain with the union
representing the building service em-
ployees, Getiashvili explained. “The
board’s decision in Browning-Ferris
Industries also affects the businesses
that use, for example, contractors, in
that they now may be considered joint
employers responsible for the unlaw-
ful acts committed by the contractors
against their employees.”
“Employers need to closely monitor
wage and hour and labor law develop-
ments, and adapt their business prac-
tices and employee policies according-
ly, including revising their employee
handbooks,” Getiashvili said.
Prior to joining Meltzer Lippe, Ge-
tiashvili was a legal intern for the Hof-
stra University School of Law Political
Asylum Clinic and a teaching assistant.
Getiashvili founded the American
Academy in Tbilisi Summer School in
the Republic of Georgia by obtaining a
$64,000 grant from the United States
Agency for International Development
(USAID), recruited 102 underpriv-
ileged children from city orphanag-
es and Internally Displaced Person
camps and awarded them full educa-
tional scholarships.
Getiashvili earned a bachelor’s de-
gree, summa cum laude, from Simmons
College and a juris doctor, magna cum
laude, from Hofstra University. She is
admitted to the New York State Bar.
In law school, Getiashvili was se-
nior notes & comments editor of the
Hofstra Law Review, recipient of the
Gina Maria Escarce Memorial Award
and authored the article “Safe Local-
ities Through Cooperation: Why the
Secure Communities Program Vio-
lates the Constitution.”
Meltzer Lippe is one of the largest
law firms on Long Island. With offices
in Mineola and Manhattan, the firm’s
practice encompasses all aspects of cor-
porate and business law, tax law, em-
ployment and labor law, partnerships,
limited liability companies and joint
ventures, litigation, real estate, tax-ex-
empt organizations, wills & trusts, es-
tate planning & administration, bank-
ruptcy, construction law, employee
benefits and executive compensation
and government relations and regula-
tory affairs.
MEGAN
GILLEN
Bond, Schoeneck
& King
Megan Gillen is a member at the
Garden City law firm of Bond, Schoe-
neck & King. Gillen’s clients include
small independent grocery store own-
ers to a premier Long Island super-
market chain; residential cooperative
corporations ranging from 30 units to
over 200 units; an IT company that
provides state-of-the-art analytics and
security systems world-wide for large
retail chains; an international graphic
design firm, and numerous other com-
panies. She also represents individu-
als in many areas of the law including
estate planning, probate proceedings
and real estate.
In the residential cooperative arena,
she offers a wide range of services,
from resolving simple disputes be-
tween neighbors to preparing corpo-
rate documents such as by-laws, pro-
prietary lease amendments, sublease
agreements, alteration agreements
and default notices. She negotiates
contracts with managing agents and
service providers for small and large
scale projects. Gillen also handles all
aspects of co-op refinancing and acts
as transfer agent at individual unit
closings. She regularly advises clients
on changes in governmental require-
ments affecting boards such as notice
obligations when denying an applicant
admission or the legality of companion
dogs in No-Pet buildings. She also at-
tends annual shareholders meetings to
explain legal issues facing the coopera-
tive on behalf of the board.
For her corporate clients, Gillen
negotiates business contracts, employ-
ment agreements, and handles a va-
riety of business transactions includ-
ing acquisitions, sales and complex
financing arrangements. She advises
clients on labor and employment is-
sues and counsels her clients on risk
management matters and oversees all
personal injury defense litigation.
In light of the newly enacted De-
fend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA), many
business clients have asked for review
of their current, and not so current
employment agreements, consulting
agreements, confidentiality agree-
ments, non-competes and general con-
tracts, Gillen said.
“All employers would do well to do
the same, especially those in busi-
nesses most vulnerable to misappro-
priation of trade secrets and confiden-
tial information such as software de-
velopment, technology, sales, the food
and hospitality industry, and myriad
others,” she said.
“The DTSA protects business own-
ers of trade secrets ‘related to prod-
ucts or services used in interstate or
foreign commerce’ by allowing them
to bring a federal civil cause of ac-
tion against employees, consultants
and contractors who misappropriate
company trade secrets or any other
confidential information,” Gillen ex-
plained. “The law also protects em-
ployees under certain circumstances
who report suspected misappropri-
ation contained in a ‘whistleblow-
er’ provision. The DTSA provides
far reaching remedies to companies
whose trade secrets have been stolen
that go beyond ordinary damages by
allowing exemplary damages, attor-
neys’ fees and aggressive seizure abil-
ity. However, those enhanced reme-
dies are only available if an employee
or contractor has been given notice of
the ‘whistleblower immunity’ provi-
sions of the law. Without such notice,
a victim of trade secret theft will not
be able to recover the enhanced dam-
ages available under the DTSA.”
“Since the notice requirement only
applies to agreements entered into or
amended after the DTSA went into
effect (May 11, 2016), it is highly rec-
ommended that employers have their
standard business and employment
agreements updated to take full ad-
vantage of the available remedies pro-
vided by this law,” Gillen advised.
Gillen earned a juris doctor, cum
laude, from St. John’s University
School of Law and a B.F.A., magna cum
laude, from Texas Christian University.
She is a member of the American Bar
Association, New York State Bar Asso-
ciation, Nassau County Bar Association
and Suffolk County Bar Association.
With 270 lawyers and 11 offices,
Bond, Schoeneck & King (Bond) is a
full-service law firm counseling in-
dividuals, companies, not-for-profits
and public sector entities in a wide
spectrum of practice areas. The Gar-
den City office is one of nine in New
York State.
Bond’s Garden City Office opened,
in 2004, with a contingent of well-re-
spected labor and employment attor-
neys primarily representing public sec-
tor clients. Today, the office has grown
to represent professionals, small and
large businesses, banking and finance,
real estate and construction, health
care, higher education, high-tech, hos-
pitality, manufacturing, municipali-
ties, retail and transportation, as well
as numerous school districts and spe-
cial districts in labor matters.
Its attorneys represent long term
care providers in contract, commercial
matters, employment law, and guard-

WHO’SWHO
in Women in Professional Services
ianships. Its attorneys help clients
address general business and trans-
actional issues, education and health
care law, labor and employment, em-
ployee benefits, OSHA and immigra-
tion, intellectual property, regulatory
compliance, along with estate plan-
ning and probate proceedings.
JILL GOFFER
Abrams,
Fensterman,
Fensterman,
Eisman, Formato,
Ferrara & Wolf, LLP
Jill Goffer is an associate within
Abrams, Fensterman, Fensterman,
Eisman, Formato, Ferrara & Wolf,
LLP’s family law group in Lake
Success. She represents clients of
high net worth in complex matrimo-
nial matters.
A matrimonial law issue Goffer is
keeping her eye on is the potential im-
pact of a proposed bill in front of Con-
gress dealing with the division of mil-
itary pensions upon divorce. “Specifi-
cally, Congress is proposing a uniform
national procedure for dividing military
retirement pay upon the dissolution of
a marriage regardless of the jurisdic-
tion of the particular divorce,” she said.
“If passed, a federal law would now
dictate the manner in which an asset
is divided - an undertaking which has
always been the responsibility of state
courts and state statutes.”
“Additionally, the enactment of
such a law has the potential of af-
fecting the manner in which litigants
can freely enter into divorce settle-
ments because there is presently no
deviating or ‘opting out’ provision in
the proposed bill,” Goffer said. “This
would severely limit the rights of
parties who routinely agree to waive
their respective right to one asset in
exchange for another, or conversely,
provide a spouse with more than he or
she is entitled to out of a retirement
benefit to reduce other present finan-
cial obligations.”
Goffer earned a juris doctor from
Brooklyn Law School. While in law
school, she interned for the Honorable
William Rigler, Supreme Court Jus-
tice of Kings County where she earned
the Judge Barry Hurowitz Memorial
Award for outstanding performance
by a judicial intern in the Supreme
Courts of the State of New York.
Since graduating from law school,
Goffer has worked exclusively in the
areas of matrimonial and family law.
Prior to joining Abrams, Fenster-
man, Fensterman, Eisman, Forma-
to, Ferrara & Wolf, LLP, Goffer was
of counsel to a well-known Nassau
County law firm. Previously, she
headed the matrimonial department
at a mid-size Manhattan firm.
Goffer is admitted to practice in the
State of New York. She was appointed
to the executive matrimonial commit-
tee of the New York City Bar Associa-
tion and served on that committee for
three years. She currently sits on the
executive committee of the New York
State Bar Association, Family Law
69 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
section, and is a member of the Matri-
monial Law Committee of the Nassau
County Bar Association.
Abrams, Fensterman, Fensterman,
Eisman, Formato, Ferrara & Wolf,
LLP is one of the largest full service
law firms based on Long Island. With
a focus on innovative solutions and
personalized service, the firm serves
clients throughout the New York met-
ropolitan area from offices in Long
Island, New York City, Brooklyn; and
serves upstate New York from its
Rochester office.
The firm is a leader in represent-
ing health care providers in all as-
pects of health care law, including
hospitals, nursing homes, physicians,
medical societies, dentists, podiatrists
and chiropractors. It also has widely
recognized practices in the areas of
corporate and securities, mergers and
acquisitions, matrimonial and family
law, and mental health law.
The firm also has active practice
areas in commercial litigation, estate
planning and administration, guard-
ianships, employment law, real estate,
elder law, personal injury litigation,
and white-collar criminal defense.
MELISSA
GOTTLIEB,
CPA
EisnerAmper LLP
Melissa Gottlieb, CPA, is a senior
audit manager in the financial ser-
vices group at EisnerAmper LLP,
charged with helping to grow the
firm’s financial services practice on
Long Island. With over 10 years of ex-
perience, Gottlieb provides accounting
and auditing services to broker-deal-
ers, asset management companies,
private equity funds, hedge funds,
and funds of funds. She is responsible
for all phases of the audit function,
including planning, organization, su-
pervision, and review of the fieldwork.
Gottlieb is also a member of the
firm’s audit staff committee, facili-
tates training and mentoring of staff,
and is involved in the recruitment of
new employees.
Gottlieb works closely with clients
on various financial and regulatory
compliance matters.
“Broker-dealers and investment
advisors face new and evolving regu-
latory and cybersecurity concerns on a
daily basis,” Gottlieb said. “Obviously,
our world has changed. As such, there
are an increasing number of regulato-
ry bodies our clients are beholden to
including the PCAOB, as well as the
SEC and other bodies that have been
around for years. I help my clients
prepare for what can be very strident
third-party examinations, where pos-
sible negative findings could lead to
onerous penalties or even the shut-
down of the entity.”
“There are new reporting require-
ments that must be met, and the con-
tinually changing environment cre-
ates a series of steps our clients must
take to remain in business, Gottlieb
explained. “Some clients are moving
away from the broker-dealer business
due to these heightened reporting re-
quirements—we work with them and
give consulting advice to assist them,
whether it’s in hiring personnel to
meet the requirements of provide in-
sights about the differences and chang-
es in their reporting so they can more
easily adapt. It’s critical that, as finan-
cial professionals, we have the knowl-
edge to deliver the services they need.”
Like many industries, cybersecuri-
ty plays an increasing role in the best
practices of asset management and
capital markets entities, she noted.
“A lot of the regulatory compliance
work we help our clients prepare for
and perform is based on the threat of
a cybersecurity breach; for instance,
where fraudulent emails are received
by the client, seeking the transfer
of client funds,” Gottlieb said. “It’s
much more beneficial to be prepared
for such a breach than to have to deal
with one after it’s occurred. Whether
the answer lies in having layers of
customer verification, encryption of
files and data —or both — we help
our clients prepare so they’re able
to limit the potential for such an at-
tack and to minimize damage if one
does occur—both for their clients and
themselves.”
Gottlieb is on the board of The
Women’s Collaborative sponsored by
the Long Island Association: Rising
Professionals Affinity Group where
events are sponsored for motivating
the next generation of rising profes-
sionals. She spends time throughout
the year volunteering with Eisner-
Amper Cares, the firm’s community
volunteer organization, specifically at
Splashes of Hope, a non-profit organi-
zation based in Huntington.
Gottlieb earned a bachelor’s degree
in accounting from Syracuse Univer-
sity Whitman School of Management.
She is a member of the American In-
stitute of Certified Public Accounts, as
well as the New York State Society of
Certified Public Accountants, where
she services as a member of the Stock
Brokerage Committee.
EisnerAmper LLP is one of the
premier accounting, tax and advisory
firm in the U.S. and has had a signifi-
cant presence on Long Island for many
years, serving the firm’s clients through
all stages of their corporate lives, from
entrepreneurial operations to mature
enterprises. Our practice is based on
deploying the strengths of our 180 part-
ners and 1300 professionals across the
disciplines of audit, tax, and business
advisory services as well as advisory
services in corporate finance, regulato-
ry compliance, internal audit and risk
management, litigation consulting and
forensic accounting, royalty audit and
contract compliance, information tech-
nology, and other professional services.
EisnerAmper’s clients – from financial
services entities to leading organiza-
tions in technology, life sciences, health
care, manufacturing and distribution,
professional services, real estate, con-
struction, sports and entertainment
and more — gain from our commitment
to personalized service coupled with
deep industry expertise. We work with
enterprises as diverse as sophisticat-
ed financial institutions and start-ups,
global public corporations and mid-
dle-market companies, as well as high
net worth individuals and family of-
fices, not-for-profit organizations, and
entrepreneurial ventures.
STACEY
L. GULICK
Garfunkel Wild, P.C.
A partner at Garfunkel Wild, P.C.,
Stacey L. Gulick joined the firm in
2001 and is a member of its health
care, HIPAA, health care information
and technology, and compliance and
white collar crime defense practice
groups. Gulick is also co-chair of the
HIPAA compliance group.
She has extensive experience in
health care administration, having
worked as a medical staff coordinator,
risk manager and compliance officer
for several years prior to becoming an
attorney.
Gulick is heavily involved with
monitoring of the Office of Civil Rights
(OCR) HIPAA enforcement actions.
“Since the passage of the HITECH
Act and the associated regulations,
the OCR enforcement actions have
increased dramatically,” she said.
“Such enforcement actions provide
significant insight into how the OCR
interprets HIPAA and what issues the
OCR is choosing to emphasize. De-
spite certain guidance provided by the
OCR, there continues to be tremen-
dous ambiguity regarding many of the
HIPAA requirements, including risk
analyses, breach notification, mini-
mum necessary rules and oversight of
business associates.”
“The information gleaned from the
enforcement actions is very useful in
providing clients assistance with prior-
itizing implementation of their HIPAA
compliance programs,” Gulick noted.
Gulick earned a bachelor’s degree
and a master’s degree in business ad-
ministration and a master’s degree in
health administration from the Uni-
versity of Pittsburgh. She earned a
juris doctor from St. John’s University
School of Law. She has published pa-
pers in a number of professional trade
publications, including the Journal
of the American College of Radiology,
the New Jersey Law Journal, Cor-
porate Compliance Insights. She has
also made numerous presentations at
various conferences nationwide.
Founded in 1980, Garfunkel Wild,
P.C. (GW) maintains one of the most
active health care practices in the
Northeast, while also providing ser-
vices to many non-health-related cli-
ents. Always at the forefront of feder-
al and state developments, GW meets
a full range of needs including stra-
tegic planning, complex transactions,
exempt and taxable financing, white
collar defense, litigation, fraud and
abuse, estate planning, elder law, tax
issues, real estate, licensing, capital
formation, EPA/environmental is-
sues, health information technology,
privacy & security and bankruptcy.

WHO’SWHO
in Women in Professional Services
GW maintains offices in Albany, NY;
Great Neck, NY; Hackensack, NJ; and
Stamford, CT.
MARA N.
HARVEY
Lamb & Barnosky,
LLP
Mara N. Harvey is counsel at
Lamb & Barnosky, LLP in Melville.
Harvey works in the firm’s trusts
and estates, education, labor and
municipal departments. She joined
the firm as a summer associate in
2002.
In the area of education law, Har-
vey is concentrating on making sure
school districts are in compliance to
revisions in residency requirements.
“Over the past year or so there
has been an increase in the amount
of undocumented youths in school
districts in Long Island,” Harvey
said. “That has created issues in-
volving registration for some school
districts. The Commissioner’s reg-
ulations have been revised to try
to address some of the issues. The
Attorney General’s Office, as well
as New York State Education De-
partment, have been investigating
and requiring revisions to school dis-
trict’s residency paperwork.”
“I have been working with these
offices to ensure that our school dis-
tricts are in compliance with the law
involving residency,” Harvey said.
Harvey is co-chair of the Edu-
cation Law Committee of the Suf-
folk County Bar Association. She
has lectured on education law is-
sues at conferences sponsored by the
Nassau and Suffolk Academies of
Law, as well as the New York State
School Attorneys Association.
Harvey earned a bachelor’s de-
gree in accounting from Binghamton
University and a law juris doctor,
magna cum laude, from Syracuse
University College of Law where she
was Notes and Comments Editor of
the Law Review and a member of
Phi Alpha Delta and the Order of
the Coif. She is admitted to practice
in New York State.
Lamb & Barnosky is a full-service
law firm representing a wide vari-
ety of corporate, municipal and in-
dividual clients. Since the firm was
founded in 1981, the firm has an AV
rating from Martindale-Hubbell, the
nationally recognized legal directo-
ry, for the highest standard of legal
ability and professional standards of
conduct and ethics. It has also been
named to the National Register of
Preeminent Lawyers.
Its practice areas include bank-
ing; real estate; taxation; corporate
mergers and acquisitions; education;
labor and employment; municipal;
health care; intellectual property,
land use, planning, environmental
and zoning; and trusts and estates.
70 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
MARY
HAUPTMAN
Lamb & Barnosky,
LLP
Mary Hauptman is founder and
CEO of Hauptman Realty Corp., a
real estate organization headquar-
tered in Melville. For more than two
decades, Hauptman has specialized
in commercial property acquisition
and management. Her expertise and
broad experience includes oversee-
ing the daily operations of Hauptman
Realty, with holdings on Long Island
and in southwest Florida. The firm’s
properties include Harbourview Shop-
pes in Roslyn, 535 Broad Hollow Road
in Melville, and several condomini-
ums in Panama City Beach.
A respected member of the commer-
cial real estate community, Hauptman
has devoted her career to creating cen-
ters of excellence in multiple markets.
Prior to Hauptman’s purchase of Har-
bourview Shoppes, a luxury shopping
center in Roslyn’s historic district, the
property’s developers were in danger
of losing the center due to financial
stress. Convinced that the center —
which was almost completely vacant
— offered significant financial upside,
Hauptman acquired Harbourview
Shoppes, in1992, and attracted ten-
ants including renowned restaurants,
spas, and other upscale establishments
to the property. Today, Harbourview
Shoppes is among the most sought
after location in Roslyn’s historic dis-
trict. The center has returned to prof-
itability and enjoys public recognition
for its beautiful architecture and pres-
tigious setting.
In 1997, Hauptman acquired 535
Broad Hollow Road in Melville. She
undertook a series of remodeling proj-
ects that transformed the industrial
complex into a Class A office building.
Today, 535 Broad Hollow Road has a
well-deserved reputation for being a
“go-to“ professional office building for
starting or growing a business in the
highly-recognized Melville area. Rep-
resentative of the caliber of Haupt-
man’s distinguished clients are Stan-
dard and Poor’s and New York Rising.
Hauptman has recently expanded
her holdings to include several con-
dominiums at Aqua in Panama City
Beach, Florida. The newly-developed
tourist hotspot boasts a private beach
– known for its emerald green waters
– and many other luxurious amenities.
Aqua is located directly adjacent to
Pier Park, a new shopping and enter-
tainment destination developed and
owned by Simon Property Group, L.P.
Hauptman continues to distinguish
herself through innovative solutions
that not only respond to market de-
mands but anticipate change. She is
presently developing a strategy for
acquiring additional commercial space
and plans to pursue new opportuni-
ties in the future.
Hauptman keeps well-informed with
trends in the industry. “The declining
allocation in square feet per employee
is transforming the layout and overall
space requirements of the typical work-
place,” she said. “Traditionally, ten-
ants leased office space averaging 250
square feet per person when calculat-
ing their requirements. Over time, this
allocation has decreased significantly,
with the average allocation declining by
more than 100 square feet to an aver-
age 100 – 150 square feet per employee.
Open floor plans, hoteling and other
shared work space strategies are trends
contributing to the reduction in tenants’
space demands.”
“In the retail landscape, consumers
are gravitating towards ‘lifestyle cen-
ters’ or destination facilities that offer
more than just the traditional shop-
ping experience,” Hauptman noted.
“These centers usually feel like a ‘city
within a city’ offering patrons not
only upscale national-chain specialty
stores, but additional leisure ameni-
ties such as restaurants, entertain-
ment, and an upgraded architectural
ambiance including street furniture
conducive to casual browsing.”
Hauptman is president of the Long
Island Center for Business and Profes-
sional Women (LICBPW). The LICB-
PW is a nonprofit organization devoted
to advancing women’s equal partici-
pation, leadership and employment in
business, industry and the professions.
She is also one of 1,800 members of the
Women Presidents’ Organization, a
nonprofit membership organization for
women presidents of multimillion-dol-
lar companies.
Hauptman Realty Corporation,
is a commercial real estate manage-
ment and investment company with
holdings in New York and Southwest
Florida. The firm’s properties include
Harbourview Shoppes in Roslyn, 535
Broad Hollow Road in Melville, and
several condominiums in Panama City
Beach, Florida.
RUTH
HENNESSEY
Catholic Health
Services of Long
Island/St. Francis
Hospital
Ruth Hennessey is executive vice
president and chief administrative
officer for St. Francis Hospital, The
Heart Center ® in Roslyn. St. Fran-
cis Hospital is a member of Catholic
Health Services of Long Island and is
New York’s only specialty designated
cardiac center and a nationally rec-
ognized leader in the diagnosis, treat-
ment, and prevention of heart dis-
ease. The hospital also offers top-rat-
ed non-cardiac programs, including
oncology, orthopedics, and GI surgery.
Hennessey’s experience spans the
health care industry for more than
30 years. Prior to her position at St.
Francis, she was senior vice presi-
dent for administration at Beth Isra-
el Medical Center with operating re-
sponsibility at three locations, taking
on progressive levels of responsibility
during her tenure.
Her experience also includes 10
years at The Presbyterian Hospital, Co-
lumbia Presbyterian Medical Center as
a vice president, where she also benefit-
ed from consistent exposure to expand-
ed administrative responsibilities.
Hennessey is inspired by the new
and expanding services at St. Fran-
cis Hospital.
“In addition to the pioneering work
we are doing in our Heart Valve Cen-
ter, our cardiac catheterization lab,
and cardiac surgery, St. Francis Hos-
pital recently embarked on one of the
largest expansions in its history,” Hen-
nessey said. “We marked the open-
ing of a new Ambulatory Center that
houses our Cancer Institute at 2200
Northern Boulevard in East Hills. This
state-of-the-art facility offers top-notch
care in a one-stop destination, provid-
ing patients with the option of diagno-
sis and treatment under a single roof.
This expansion is in response to the
growing demand for our highly-rated
non-cardiac programs.”
“Cancer treatments and orthopedic
surgeries have grown exponentially
at St. Francis over the past few years,
thanks in part to patients who have
received high-quality cardiac care and
trust our reputation for offering the
most comprehensive, compassionate
treatment for complex conditions,”
she said. “We look forward to further
expanding our capabilities at our new
Ambulatory Center in the very near
future with the opening of St. Francis
Radiation Oncology. This will allow
patients undergoing radiation and
chemotherapy to receive both treat-
ments at a single location.”
“Plans are also under way for an
ambulatory surgery center, enabling
patients with certain procedures to
go home the very same day,” Hen-
nessey noted.
Hennessey is member of the Amer-
ican College of Healthcare Executives.
She earned an MBA with a special-
ty in management from Manhattan
College and an MPA with a focus in
health care from Pace University.
Catholic Health Services of Long
Island (CHS) is an integrated health
care delivery system with some of
the region’s finest health and human
services agencies. CHS includes six
hospitals, three skilled nursing facili-
ties, a regional home nursing service,
hospice and a multiservice, communi-
ty-based agency for persons with spe-
cial needs. Under the sponsorship of
the Diocese of Rockville Centre, CHS
serves hundreds of thousands of Long
Islanders each year, providing care
that extends from the beginning of life
to helping people live their final years
in comfort, grace and dignity.
DR.
VERONICA
HENRY
Farmingdale
State College
Dr. Veronica Henry is chief diversity
officer and executive assistant to the
president at Farmingdale State College.
Among Dr. Henry’s contributions to
higher education on Long Island, she

WHO’SWHO
in Women in Professional Services
is the creator, leader and facilitator of
the Farmingdale State College STEM
Diversity Roundtable Conversations
and Summit Program. The group was
formed to advance diversity in Science,
Technology, Engineering and Mathe-
matics (STEM) education through col-
laboration and community. She is a
life-long advocate of programs aimed
at supporting college-bound minori-
ty students. Recently, she secured a
grant from Verizon Foundation that
provided an afterschool coding pro-
gram for middle school students at
Wyandanch Public Schools.
Dr. Henry is working in collabora-
tion with a Farmingdale State College
student to form The Rise Program, a
think tank-type educational platform
where students will have an oppor-
tunity to engage in positive dialogue
around social issues and tension.
“The Rise Program will include a
network of campuses to host work-
shops, panel discussions, guest speak-
ers, and festivals (Rise Rallies) in
order to promote awareness of diver-
sity, social issues, and resources,” she
said. “This will educate community
members and empower everyone to
learn to become more tolerant of each
other’s differences.”
By incorporating local school dis-
tricts for day-time programming, and
adults for late-night discussions, The
Rise Program will help to make a
more pro-active community instead of
a re-active one, Dr. Henry noted.
“The Rise Program is a cam-
pus-wide program through the office
of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion,
which bridges the college/university
communities with the Long Island
and greater New York State commu-
nities,” she said.
Dr. Henry was director of Project
CARE, a program funded by a Dwight
D. Eisenhower grant, State Education
Department. The program provided af-
ter-school tutoring for students, as well
as a summer institute in mathematics,
science, college-survival skills, and tech-
nology at Farmingdale State College.
Before joining the faculty at
Farmingdale, Dr. Henry held various
positions, including clinical and ad-
ministrative coordinator of Antihyper-
tensive Research Studies; nurse edu-
cator at the Veterans’ Administration
Medical Center; and health education
consultant at Blue Cross/Blue Shield
of Greater New York. She served as
investigator for the National Faith-
Based and National Community
Cardiovascular Disease Prevention
Programs for High Risk Women, a
partnership between the University of
California, Davis and The Links, Inc.
Dr. Henry is a Farmingdale alum-
na, where she earned an associate de-
gree in applied science. She also holds a
bachelor’s degree in nursing and a mas-
ter’s degree from Stony Brook Univer-
sity; a master’s degree in nursing from
Adelphi University; and doctor of ed-
ucation degree from Teachers College,
Columbia University. She also earned
a Professional Certificate from Harvard
Graduate School of Education.
Farmingdale State College (FSC)
prepares students with the education,
skills, and critical thinking needed to
meet tomorrow’s challenges. As the
largest of SUNY’s colleges of technol-
71 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
ogy (with almost 8,700 students), FSC
equips students with the resources and
knowledge sought by today’s emerging
industries. Offering bachelor and as-
sociate degrees, FSC will soon offer its
first graduate program.
At FSC, students learn in small,
personalized classes and have abun-
dant opportunities for applied learn-
ing—internships, clinical training,
and guided research—that provide
practical instruction and personal
growth. Located an hour east of Man-
hattan, the campus offers residential
halls, a 380-acre campus undergoing
major renovation, and a highly suc-
cessful NCAA Division III athletics
program with modern facilities to
make FSC one of the fastest-growing
colleges in the region. In addition, in
2015, 2014 and 2013, FSC was listed
one of the best colleges in the North
and in 2013 FSC was the only SUNY
school (and the only LI school) listed
in the LEAST debt category in the
section titled Student Debt Load at
Graduation for regional colleges in
the north. In 2015, UniversityPrime-
Time.com again listed FSC the fifth
safest college in the nation.
MARY C.
HODGE
Cerebral Palsy
Association of
Nassau County, Inc.
Mary C. Hodge is a coordinator in
the Day Habilitation Program at the
Cerebral Palsy Association of Nassau
County, Inc. (CP Nassau) in Roosevelt,
which is a community outreach pro-
gram where trained and qualified indi-
viduals with developmental disabilities
provide local not-for-profit business-
es with community service. Hodge is
also head coach of the Nassau Thun-
derbolts Sports Team at CP Nassau.
She is also a member of the USA Boc-
cia subcommittee to the board of direc-
tors and high performance manger of
USA Para Powerlifting.
Head coach of the organization’s
highly regarded sports team, The
Nassau Thunderbolts, since 1992,
Hodge is responsible for scheduling,
implementing and evaluating practice
sessions for various sports for team of
15 athletes with disabilities; making
arrangements for all competitions in-
cluding housing, funding, scheduling
and registration; responsible for fund-
raising, maintaining budget, ordering
equipment, public relations, liaison
with agency management and gen-
eral business dealings of the team;
and initiating new ideas for the team
including development of team name,
logo, new funding options and addi-
tion of Boccia as a team sport.
A high performance manager
since 2003, Hodge is responsible for
scheduling and implementing train-
ing camps and competitions; recruit-
ing and training coaches in the IPC
rules; coordinating with US Paralym-
pic representative budget for Power-
lifting each year; and coordinating
with US Paralympic representative
all Powerlifting national tourna-
ments annually.
As the high performance manager
for USA Paralympic Powerlifting, one
of the issues Hodge has been focusing
on has been the recruitment of more
female coaches and athletes.
“Women only started competing
in this sport internationally in 1998,”
Hodge noted. “At that time there were
six female athletes and two female
coaches in the United States. In all this
time, that number has not grown as
powerlifting has predominantly been
viewed as a male dominated sport.”
“My goal has always been to be a
role model and show other women
that they can make a mark for them-
selves in this sport,” Hodge said. “I
travel the country running various
clinics/camps/tournaments and this
serves to educate both athletes and
coaches. As I have risen through the
ranks from coach to head coach to
high performance manager, I feel
even more obligated to ensure women
have a role in our sport.”
“I’m excited to see what the future
holds for the sport of powerlifting and
will continue to cultivate and train
athletes and coaches,” she said.
Hodge has years of experience
as a team leader and coach, includ-
ing assistant coach for the UPCN
Thunderbolts; assistant coach of
1998 World Powerlifting Champion-
ships in Dubai, Saudi Arabia; assis-
tant coach of 1999 Southern Cross
Multi-disability Championships in
Australia; assistant coach of 2000
U.S. Paralympic Team (Powerlifting)
- Sydney, Australia; and head coach
of 2001 - Powerlifting for CP-ISRA
Nottingham Games. She has also
been a team leader.
As a coordinator in the Day Habil-
itation Program, which is part of the
Adult Day Services program at CP
Nassau, Hodge serves as manager for
Program without Walls, where adults
with developmental disabilities do vol-
unteer work in the community. The
participants assist in nursing homes,
soup kitchens, Meals on Wheels, li-
braries, horticultural sites and ani-
mal shelters, as well as community
businesses as active members of their
neighborhoods. Through volunteerism
the “Day Habbers” work on skills and
appropriate behavior and are proud to
able to give back to society instead of
always having things done for them.
Hodge is a graduate of Molloy Col-
lege and earned a master’s degree
from Hofstra University. She is a
member of AAPTE — the personal
trainers association.
Cerebral Palsy Association of Nas-
sau County Inc. was established in
1948 as a small, outpatient health
clinic by parents who wanted a bet-
ter life for their children. Over six
decades later, CP Nassau has earned
distinction as one of the nation’s pre-
eminent non-profit healthcare agen-
cies. Over 300 adults are provided
various types of day programs de-
signed and tailored to their needs.
The school at CP Nassau, known
as the Children’s Learning Center,
provides special education for early
intervention, preschool and school-
age children. Medical services include
primary care and a host of specialties
that include dentistry, podiatry, cardi-
ology, psychiatry and psychiatry.
Residential settings are designed
to promote independence, individuali-
ty and choice. In the agency’s 48-per-
son ICF (intermediate care facility),
24-hour nursing ensures expert and
prompt response to residents. In
smaller homes, individuals establish
their own schedules and utilize com-
munity services, accordingly.
LYNN
JOHNSON
Stony Brook
University
Lynn Johnson is Vice President
for Human Resources for State and
Research Foundation employees
working on the Stony Brook Uni-
versity West Campus, in the Health
Sciences Center, at Stony Brook
Manhattan and Stony Brook South-
ampton and at the Research & De-
velopment Park. Johnson also has
oversight of the labor relations func-
tions for Research Foundation and
state employees in those same areas.
In this position, she is also payroll offi-
cer for the entire campus and oversees
payroll services for more than 14,000
employees at Stony Brook University.
She has a major role in the Operation-
al Excellence initiative of Project 50
Forward; is a member of the Steering
Committee for Equity, Inclusion and
Diversity; and participates in the cam-
pus Budget Working Group.
Johnson has been an integral mem-
ber of the Stony Brook University
community for more than 20 years,
serving in various management po-
sitions while participating in both
university and statewide committees
for the Research Foundation and
SUNY. In 2000, she became director
of human resource services at Stony
Brook, and in 2012 was named vice
president for human resource ser-
vices. During her tenure, she has been
responsible for directing the develop-
ment of online human resources and
payroll services, co-authored the Fac-
ulty & Staff Digest and opened a sat-
ellite human resource services office
on the Stony Brook Medicine campus.
The world of human resources is
one of change and opportunity, John-
son said.
“The fast pace of today’s rapidly
changing technology provides both
an opportunity and a challenge for
human resource professionals who
must remain tuned in to technolo-
gy trends and tools; be able to up-
grade systems to support and improve
workplace practices; analyze data to
meet workplace planning needs; and
explore different platforms for opti-
mal avenues of communication with
employees,” she said. “We are called
upon to be watchful and responsive
to the constantly evolving legal land-
scape — to be cognizant of the dic-
tates of the Affordable Care Act, to
guide employees and management
through the changes resulting from

WHO’SWHO
in Women in Professional Services
revisions to the Fair Labor Standards
Act, and to be compliant with ADA
and FMLA, to name but a few.”
“Employees are one of an orga-
nization’s largest investments, and
we must value and promote the rich-
ness of a diverse workplace,” Johnson
noted. “Appreciating a multigenera-
tional workforce, we must be avail-
able to answer questions from retiring
Baby Boomers while shepherding the
career development of our Gen X em-
ployees, and be responsive to Millen-
nials, who show us new perspectives
on careers and work-life balance.”
“Throughout, human resources re-
mains a resource for management,
serving as a strategic partner in many
key decisions, and is available to
employees seeking information on a
range of questions, from benefits and
wellness to career development and
workplace concerns,” Johnson said.
When Brookhaven Science Associ-
ates (BSA) was formed as a partner-
ship between Stony Brook University
and Battelle Memorial Institute to
manage Brookhaven National Labo-
ratory (BNL) on behalf of the Depart-
ment of Energy, Johnson was also an
important member of the team re-
sponsible for transitioning approxi-
mately 3,000 BNL employees to BSA.
Prior to joining Stony Brook, she
worked for three separate local edu-
cation authorities in England. She is
a graduate of Hull University in Hull,
England, with a Joint Honours degree
in English and Latin Literature.
Part of the State University of New
York system, Stony Brook University
encompasses 200 buildings on 1,450
acres. Since welcoming its first incom-
ing class in 1957, the university has
grown tremendously, now with more
than 25,000 students and 2,500 facul-
ty. Its membership in the prestigious
Association of American Universities
(AAU) places Stony Brook among the
top 62 research institutions in North
America. U.S. News & World Report
ranks Stony Brook among the top
100 universities in the nation and top
40 public universities, and Kiplinger
names it one of the 35 best values in
public colleges. One of four University
Center campuses in the SUNY system,
Stony Brook is on the management
team of Brookhaven National Labora-
tory, putting it in an elite group of uni-
versities that run federal research and
development laboratories. The Center
for World University Rankings places
Stony Brook in the top 1 percent of
institutions worldwide. It is one of only
10 universities nationwide recognized
by the National Science Foundation for
combining research with undergradu-
ate education.
As the largest single-site employ-
er on Long Island, Stony Brook is a
driving force of the regional econo-
my, with an annual economic impact
LIBN’S DAILY NEWS ALERT IS FREE.
libn.com
72 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
of $4.65 billion, generating nearly
60,000 jobs, and accounts for near-
ly 4 percent of all economic activity
in Nassau and Suffolk counties, and
roughly 7.5 percent of total jobs in
Suffolk County.
LAURIE B.
KAZENOFF
Moritt Hock &
Hamroff LLP
Laurie B. Kazenoff is a partner at
Moritt Hock & Hamroff LLP in Garden
City. Kazenoff has more than 30 years
of experience in tax controversy as a
senior attorney with IRS Chief Counsel
litigating before the U.S. Tax Court;
as an estate tax attorney with the IRS
Estate and Gift Tax Division; as a se-
nior manager in tax controversy for a
nationally ranked accounting firm; and
as an attorney in private practice.
The scope of her practice includes
tax controversies involving the Inter-
nal Revenue Service and New York
State Department of Taxation on
behalf of individuals, estates, part-
nerships, and corporations, including
representation of clients before the
Examination, Appeals, and Collec-
tion Divisions, litigation in United
States Tax Court, and Federal Court
of Claims. She handles all types of is-
sues including payroll tax and respon-
sible person assessments, employee/
independent contractor issues, New
York State residency, and sales & use
tax issues. Kazenoff also represents
clients before the IRS and NYS Col-
lection Divisions including collection
due process appeals and equivalency
hearings, addressing IRS notices of
lien, levies, New York State warrants,
New York State license suspensions
due to tax assessments, responsible
person and sales tax audits and as-
sessments, negotiation of settlements
including offers in compromise, in-
stallment agreements and penalty
abatements. Her subspecialties in-
clude estate and gift tax issues and
pension plan qualification issues.
Kazenoff’s clients include high pro-
file and high net worth individuals,
corporations, partnerships and other
entities in investment banking, law,
real estate, engineering, architecture,
medicine, entertainment, fashion,
media, construction, manufacturing,
sports and technology.
Her wealth of experience is a great
benefit to those who seek guidance.
“After practicing in my specialty
of tax controversy for over 30 years,
including close to 8 years with the
IRS, I can boil it down to this: I am a
calming and steady influence on my
clients,” Kazenoff said. “The IRS and
NYS taxing authorities are the best
collectors in the world. It is a complex
and intimidating process— and many
times scary — to someone who is un-
familiar with the inner workings of
these government agencies. Now with
budget cuts affecting IRS and NYS
staffing, it is harder than ever to navi-
gate the system.”
“Whether I am representing a CEO
of a major corporation, a mom & pop
small business, or an individual, I help
to ease their fears by explaining in
straightforward terms how the tax pro-
cess works, the various avenues and
strategies that will address their tax
case, their rights, their obligations, and
what to expect at every turn,” Kazenoff
noted. “They know I will be a strong
advocate for them. I communicate with
clients directly regularly to explain
every step, to consult with them, inform
them, and advise them. This helps not
only to resolve their past tax liabilities
but also helps to get them into current
and future compliance so that they can
rest easy going forward.”
Kazenoff is admitted to practice in
New York, New Jersey and Pennsyl-
vania. She is also admitted before the
United States Tax Court and the Fed-
eral Court of Claims.
She earned an LL.M (Taxation)
from Temple University, Beasley
School of Law; a juris doctor from
Temple University, Beasley School
of Law; and a bachelor’s degree from
University of Pennsylvania.
Kazenoff is a member of the tax-
ation committees of the New York
State, Nassau County and Suffolk
County Bar Associations. She is also a
member of the Association of Certified
Fraud Examiners.
Moritt Hock & Hamroff LLP, es-
tablished in 1980, is a full-service,
AV-rated commercial law practice
with offices on Long Island and Man-
hattan. The firm’s practice areas in-
clude: alternative dispute resolution,
commercial foreclosure, commercial
lending & finance, construction &
surety, copyrights, trademarks & li-
censing, corporate & securities, cred-
itors’ rights & bankruptcy, cyberse-
curity, employment, equipment &
transportation leasing and finance,
healthcare, landlord & tenant, litiga-
tion, marketing, advertising & pro-
motions, not-for-profit, patents, real
estate, tax, and trusts & estates.
ELEANOR
KEEGAN, RN
Huntington
Hospital
Eleanor Keegan, RN, is the nurse
manager of Huntington Hospital’s 5
South unit, a position she has held
since 2014. Keegan was previously
assistant nurse manager of the unit
starting in 2010.
Keegan has worked at Huntington
Hospital, which is a member of North-
well Health, for more than 20 years.
She is certified by the American Nurs-
es Credentialing Center in gerontology
and medical surgical nursing. Keegan
is part of the high potential program
that is sponsored by Northwell Health.
“In March 2015, Huntington Hos-
pital initiated a program in 5 South
where we have a hospitalist — a phy-
sician who cares for the patient during
their hospitalization — specifically
stationed on our unit,” she said. “In
addition to dedicated nurses, we are
fortunate to have a nurse practitioner,
a clinical pharmacist, a case manager
and a social worker on our team of
caring professionals. We make daily
rounds and include the patient in the
plan of care. Since we initiated this
program, we have seen an increase in
our patient satisfaction scores.”
“All the caregivers on 5 South, in-
cluding secretaries, housekeeping
staff and nursing assistants, are com-
mitted to providing quality patient
care every day,” Keegan explained. “I
value the contributions of each mem-
ber of our team and I am there to help
them provide the best possible care to
our patients.”
Keegan earned a bachelor’s degree
in nursing from Adelphi University
and is currently enrolled in an MS
nursing program through Walden
University.
She was nominated for the Hun-
tington Hospital Nurse of Excellence
award in 2016 and the 5 South team
was nominated for Northwell Health’s
President’s award for teamwork.
Established in 1916, Huntington
Hospital is a full-service, 408-bed,
nonprofit community hospital serving
Huntington Township and the sur-
rounding communities. Huntington
Hospital has been a member of North-
well Health since 1994, and shares
the system’s vision of being a preem-
inent healthcare delivery system in
the tradition of excellence and the
embodiment of community values and
human dignity.
ELLEN
KESSLER
Ruskin Moscou
Faltischek, P.C.
Ellen Kessler is a partner at Ruskin
Moscou Faltischek , P.C. in Uniondale,
where she is a member of the firm’s
health law department, bringing spe-
cial expertise as both an experienced
attorney and a registered nurse.
Kessler concentrates her practice
in the area of health law. She assists
clients in structuring business rela-
tionships and transactions to comply
with federal and state laws includ-
ing self-referral, anti-kickback and
professional misconduct statutes. She
regularly counsels health care clients
on mergers, acquisitions and estab-
lishment of professional practices,
employment and professional service
relationships, establishment of man-
agement service organizations and
their relationships with health care
providers, establishment and trans-
fers of Article 28 and Article 36 facil-
ities, HIPAA compliance, and regula-
tory and professional licensure issues
under state and federal law.
She also advises clients on employ-
ment agreements, shareholder and
partnership agreements, management
agreements, and professional service
agreements. Her health care clients
have included hospitals, long-term care
facilities, home health care agencies,

WHO’SWHO
in Women in Professional Services
management services organizations,
independent practice associations, phy-
sicians, dentists, chiropractors, podia-
trists, physical therapists, nurses and
other health care practitioners.  She has also authored chapters for
There are a number of trends in
the health law area that have been re-
ceiving a good deal of attention lately,
Kessler said.
“One of these is the trend for physi-
cians and other practitioners to leave
their small privately owned practices
and join hospitals or large groups,” she
said. “This is happening in large part
because it is difficult for small practic-
es to survive in the current health care
market that is controlled by the health
insurance industry and governmental
payors. Practitioners need to be prop-
erly counseled and protected as they
enter into these new relationships.”
Another issue that is receiving atten-
tion is the prescribing of controlled sub-
stances by physicians, Kessler noted.
“There seems to be increased scru-
tiny by regulators of the prescribing
practices by physicians, and physicians
need to be counseled on proper ap-
proaches to deal with such scrutiny,”
she said. “This heightened focus seems
to be a response to the increased use
of controlled substances in our soci-
ety. I try to help protect the interests
of health care providers as they navi-
gate through many difficult issues.”
Kessler was selected to the 2015
New York Super Lawyers list. She
has written and lectured on various
73 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
health law matters, including the
Stark Law, New York’s I-STOP Pre-
scription Monitoring Program Law,
and the Surprise Medical Bill Law.
the Legal Manual for New York Phy-
sicians, a collaboration between the
New York State Bar Association and
the Medical Society of the State of
New York, which is a valuable re-
source to physicians on the many
legal and regulatory requirements
that affect the practice of medicine.
Kessler attended Hofstra Univer-
sity School of Law (J.D., with distinc-
tion); Teachers College, Columbia
University (M.A.); SUNY Downstate
Medical Center College of Nursing
(B.S., summa cum laude).
Prior to her career in law, Kessler
had a distinguished career in nurs-
ing and nursing education at various
New York hospitals. At law school,
she served as a member of the Hof-
stra Law Review, as coordinator of
the Law Review’s Topic Research and
Development program, and as a Moot
Court Judge. After law school, she
served as law clerk to Judge Jacob
Mishler in the United States District
Court for the Eastern District of New
York. In 2009, Kessler was installed
as a director of the Nassau County
Bar Association for a three-year term.
She is a member of the Associa-
tion’s Hospital & Health Law Com-
mittee for which she has served as a
past chair and vice-chair. Addition-
ally, Ms. Kessler is a member of the
New York State Bar Association and a
member of its Health Law section.
For more than 48 years, Ruskin
Moscou Faltischek P.C. has built a
reputation as one of the region’s lead-
ing providers of innovative legal ser-
vices. Its attorneys are practical, expe-
rienced advocates who measure their
success by their clients’ success. Cor-
nerstone groups in all major practice
areas of the law are represented at the
firm, including corporate & securities,
financial services, commercial litiga-
tion, intellectual property, health care,
real estate, employment, cybersecurity
and data privacy, energy, and trusts &
estates. Clients include large and mid-
sized corporations, privately held busi-
nesses, institutions and individuals.
PATRICIA
KIELAWA
Wells Fargo Bank,
N.A.
Patricia Kielawa is a regional sales
manager at Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. As
a regional sales manager with Wells
Fargo’s Commercial Banking Long Is-
land office in Melville, Kielawa focuses
on creating sales opportunity for the
Regional Commercial Banking Office
(RCBO) increasing Wells Fargo’s rel-
evancy to prospective customers and
position the RCBO, leadership and
product partners for new business op-
portunities through calling efforts, con-
tact marketing strategies and delivery
of value-added ideas.
“In 2015, each of the RCBOs was
asked to develop a marketing list
within RV of women-owned/led busi-
nesses,” Kielawa said. “To reach our
goal, in 2016, we will implement a
focused strategy to specifically target
this market through on-going calling
efforts, blitzing, dimensional mailers
and events geared toward women.”
Kielawa also develops sales strate-
gies and leads marketing efforts. She
assists with the sales process; includ-
ing sourcing prospects, schedules
initial contact and creates pursuit
strategy while identifying the op-
portunities to help with the overall
management of new customer acqui-
sition. She also helps in initiating
and advancing new business transac-
tion throughout all diverse wholesale
channels within the bank.
Kielawa enjoys meeting business
owners and influencers on Long Is-
land. “I find learning about their busi-
ness and how they got started very in-
teresting,” she explained. “When I can
offer new products or services that will
help with efficiency or introduce an in-
ternal partner that can show them an
innovative solution to increase produc-

WHO’SWHO
in Women in Professional Services
tivity or save the company money I feel
like I have succeeded.”
Well-respected in her field, Kiela-
wa is a responsive and results-driven
commercial banking professional spe-
cializing in medium to corporate size
business development. Among her
career highlights include generating
$18MM in deposit relationships and
$44MM in loans during her tenure
at Gold Coast Bank (2011-2015); and
generated $1.5MM in account deposit
relationships and during her tenure
at Empire National Bank (2009-2010).
Earlier in her career, she worked at
other financial institutions including
vice president/business development
officer at CU Business Capital, Miri-
mar, FL; vice president/business devel-
opment officer New York Commercial
Bank, Islandia; assistant vice presi-
dent/small business sales advisor at
European American Bank, Hempstead;
and branch manager at Fleet Bank
N.A. in Plainview/Port Washington.
Kielawa also established and coor-
dinated “What Women Need to Know”
quarterly events with Milieu maga-
zine. She is affiliated with many orga-
nizations in various capacities includ-
ing The Hispanic Network, member;
Caregivers for Life, Inc., president
and founder; Arthritis Fundraising
Luncheon, committee chair; United
Cerebral Palsy Association, golf com-
mittee; Suffolk County Women’s Advi-
sory Commission, Appointed by Legis-
lature Lou D’Amaro; and Long Island
Center for Business & Professional
Women, member.
She is also the team leader for
Long Island for the Women’s Growth
Initiative in the market place. The
Women’s Market Growth Commit-
tee, was formed in 2015 to specifi-
cally target and gain market share
among women-owned or women-led
(CEO, CFO) businesses. Kielawa is
responsible for initiating seminars,
events and marketing geared towards
women-owned or women-led business.
“We are planning a series of educa-
tional seminars focused on business is-
sues and personal security and wealth
that will start in the 3rd quarter of this
year and also some fun and interesting
networking events,” Kielawa noted.
Kielawa’s education includes Fi-
nancial Accounting/Financial State-
ment Risk Analysis Course at Jon A.
Strobel & Associates. She attended
Farmingdale College’s A.S. Program,
Business Administration.
Wells Fargo & Company is a di-
versified, community-based financial
services company with $1.8 trillion in
assets. Founded in 1852, Wells Fargo
provides banking, insurance, invest-
ments, mortgage, and consumer and
commercial financial services through
8,800 locations, 13,000 ATMs, online,
and mobile devices.
Headquartered in San Francis-
co, CA, Wells Fargo is decentralized
so every local Wells Fargo store is a
headquarters for satisfying its cus-
tomers’ financial needs and helping
them succeed financially. Wells Fargo
does business with 70 million custom-
ers and has approximately 269,000
team members in 36 countries across
its more than 90 businesses. In 2015,
Wells Fargo was named “Most Re-
spected Bank” by Barron’s  magazine,
74 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
“Most Admired” among the world’s
largest banks by Fortune  magazine,
and “Best U.S. Bank” by The Bank-
er  magazine. Additionally, Wells
Fargo was named among the 50 most
“community-minded companies” in
the U.S. in 2016 by Points of Light, a
worldwide organization dedicated to
volunteer service.
SYLVIA
KNUTSON-
BARR
Flushing Bank
Sylvia Knutson-Barr is a vice Pres-
ident of Flushing Bank in Uniondale.
Knutson-Barr leads a team of pro-
fessional bankers whose objective is to
build deposit relationships with real
estate borrowers of Flushing Bank.
The team tailors deposit and cash
management solutions for the business
as well as personal solutions for own-
ers and their employees. Knutson-Barr
joined Flushing Bank in 2002 and has
held various relationship management
positions in commercial real estate,
cash management services and retail
banking. Prior to joining Flushing
Bank, she worked at Chase, Citibank
and Fleet Bank where she held various
positions from customer service, busi-
ness specialist and branch manager.
Continuing to offer state-of-the-art
technology and maintaining a strong
connection to its customers are dis-
tinct factors Flushing Bank focuses
on when delivering quality services,
explained Knutson-Barr.
“The anywhere, anytime nature of
the Internet has changed the way peo-
ple conduct business and their expec-
tations of banks,” Knutson Barr said.
“With the introduction, proliferation,
and embracement of online and mobile
devices, customers now expect imme-
diate access to information on a 24/7
basis. At Flushing Bank, we stay cur-
rent with evolving trends so we can pro-
vide our customers with the account ac-
cess, product choices and delivery chan-
nels that enable them to bank where,
when, and how they choose.”
“As a community bank, we also
know the importance of building rela-
tionships through quality service and
personal attention,” she noted. “We
know our customers by name and look
to connect with them on a local level.
The convenience of mobile banking
poses a challenge in that we do not
have as many opportunities to interact
with our customers face-to-face so it is
imperative that we make the most of
each of these interactions. We are de-
termined to continue delivering a con-
sistent and superior customer experi-
ence and leveraging technology to stay
current with consumer preferences.”
Flushing Financial Corporation
is the holding company for Flushing
Bank, a New York State-chartered
commercial bank insured by the Fed-
eral Deposit Insurance Corporation.
The bank serves consumers, business-
es, professionals, corporate clients, and
public entities by offering a full comple-
ment of deposit, loan, and cash man-
agement services through its 19 bank-
ing offices located in Queens, Brooklyn,
Manhattan and Nassau County.
Flushing Bank’s Business Develop-
ment Team is comprised of a group of
experienced bankers who work to pro-
vide a personalized and professional
level of service. Flushing Bank focus-
es on building long term relationships
with its customers and takes the time
to understand their businesses to bet-
ter provide competitive lending and
banking solutions.
DONNA-
MARIE
KORTH
Certilman Balin
Adler & Hyman,
LLP
Donna-Marie Korth is a partner
in the commercial, banking and real
estate litigation practice group at Cer-
tilman Balin Adler & Hyman, LLP in
Uniondale.
Korth concentrates in all aspects
of commercial and real estate litiga-
tion, lending workouts, modifications
and litigation, appellate practice, com-
mercial foreclosure, guardianship pro-
ceedings, and previously concentrated
in cooperative/condominium law.
As a trained mediator, Korth also
focuses on alternative routes to posi-
tive outcomes for her clients.
“In this age of our over-burdened
judicial system, an emerging trend is
Alternate Dispute Resolution (ADR),”
Korth said. “ADR is a means to re-
solve disputes either before or during
litigation. It provides parties the
ability to seek out discreet ways to
conclude disputes. The most common
forms of ADR are mediation and ar-
bitration. Each of these offer unique
possibilities to attain a resolution.”
Both federal and state court judges
are now encouraging ADR as a means
to resolve cases, Korth noted.
“Skilled and trained professionals
usually serve as the ‘neutral’ in ADR
sessions,” she said. “What is especial-
ly attractive to parties in a dispute
is that in mediation, the mediator
does not decide the dispute, but rath-
er encourages the parties to fashion
their own remedy. Thus, the parties
can craft any resolution they desire,
self-determining the outcome, and in-
corporating any terms or conditions
that work between or among them.
When individuals are invested in the
settlement process, it often provides
for a lasting and even amicable result.”
“Recognizing the value of ADR, I be-
came a trained mediator, and believe
this skill set is a valuable tool to better
service clients, offering them the possi-
bility of achieving results in a cost-ef-
fective and time-saving manner.”
Korth was appointed to and served
on the Nassau County Bar Associa-
tion’s Judiciary Committee. She is
also the former dean of the Nassau
Academy of Law, and has moderated
and lectured at several CLE semi-
nars. She is also the former chair/
vice-chair of the Appellate Practice
Committee and a long time organizer
and judge of the annual Moot Court
competition among area law schools.
Korth was also appointed to serve
on the Commercial Mediation Panel
in Nassau County Supreme Court,
Hurricane Sandy Mediation Panel in
Eastern District of the United States
District Court, and Alternative Dis-
pute Resolution Panel of the Nassau
County Bar Association.
Korth graduated, magna cum laude,
from St. John’s University with a bach-
elor’s degree in accounting and gradu-
ated, with honors, from that Universi-
ty’s School of Law. She is admitted to
practice in New York State and before
the United States District Courts for
the Eastern and Southern Districts of
New York and the United States Su-
preme Court. She is a member of the
New York State Bar Association and
Nassau County Bar Association.
Korth has received numerous hon-
ors; she has also achieved the high-
est professional rating by Martindale
Hubbell; and was elected as a fellow to
the New York State Bar Foundation.
Korth serves on the Black and
White Ball Committee for Winthrop
University Hospital’s Cancer Cen-
ter for Kids, and was honored at this
event in 2015. She is involved in var-
ious other fund raising efforts in her
community.
Certilman Balin Adler & Hyman,
LLP, with offices in East Meadow and
Hauppauge, is one of Long Island’s
largest full-service law firms. Its 15
practice areas include: real estate, real
property tax certiorari and condem-
nation, cooperative and condominium,
land use, environmental law, corpo-
rate/securities, litigation, commercial
lending, labor relations/employment
law, bankruptcy and debtor/creditor
rights, nonprofit/tax exempt and reli-
gious organizations, trusts and estates,
elder law, telecommunications law,
and criminal law.
MARIE A.
LANDSMAN
Rivkin Radler LLP
Counsel in Rivkin Radler’s real
estate, zoning & land use practice,
Marie A. Landsman concentrates in
the area of commercial leasing, real
estate and real estate development.
Landsman represents both land-
lords and tenants in all aspects of
leasing various types of property in-
cluding office, retail, restaurant, café,
shopping center, warehouse, televi-
sion studios and antenna towers. Her
transactional experience includes
negotiating and closing complex real
estate transactions including the pur-
chase, sale, finance and development
of a variety of commercial properties
including office buildings, shopping
centers, apartment buildings and in-
dustrial property.
Her representative matters have
included representing a nationally
recognized institutional lender in the

WHO’SWHO
in Women in Professional Services
lease of 1.5 million square feet, which
included an estate for years, ground
lease and option to extend; and repre-
senting a major New York City devel-
oper in all aspects of the acquisition of
a building during the initial revital-
ization of Times Square.
Landsman is currently evaluating
the impact that the New York City rent
freeze may have on lending for future
real estate projects and development in
New York City and Long Island.
“Lenders consider a development’s
projected revenue stream as an im-
portant factor when making under-
writing decisions,” she said. “Conse-
quently, the rent freeze may reduce
lending activity, causing developers
and landlords to look at areas outside
of New York City for a greater return
on their investment. This could in-
crease the available housing stock on
Long Island.”
Landsman is a member of Long Is-
land Real Estate Group; and is a mem-
ber of the Nassau County Bar Associ-
ation, Real Estate Committee and the
New York State Bar Association.
She earned a juris doctor from New
York Law School and a bachelor’s de-
gree from State University of New
York at Binghamton. She is admitted
to practice in New York and California.
With its offices in Uniondale, NY,
New York City, and Hackensack, NJ
— and 160 lawyers — Rivkin Radler
delivers focused and effective legal
services. Successful individuals,
middle-market companies and large
corporations have turned to Rivkin
Radler as their advisor-of-choice. The
firm is committed to its best practices
and ethical standards.
Rivkin Radler is focused on provid-
ing strong representation and build-
ing even stronger client relationships.
Many clients have been placing their
trust in the firm for more than 25
years. Its unwavering commitment to
total client satisfaction is the driving
force behind our firm.
JIL MAZER-
MARINO
Meyer, Suozzi,
English & Klein,
P.C.
Jil Mazer-Marino is a member
of the Garden City law firm Meyer,
Suozzi, English & Klein, P.C. Ma-
zer-Marino joined the firm as counsel
to the firm’s bankruptcy & business
reorganization and corporate finance
law practice in 2008.
In addition to serving as a chapter 7
panel trustee for the Southern District
of New York, Mazer-Marino practices
in the area of bankruptcy and credi-
tors’ rights and has extensive experi-
ence representing debtors, creditors’
committees, and secured and unsecured
creditors in large and complex chapter
11 bankruptcy cases. She has repre-
sented chapter 7 and chapter 11 trust-
ees, chapter 11 debtors in possession,
and plan administrators in all aspects
of bankruptcy case administration.
Mazer-Marino also represents
75 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
banks, indenture trustees, factors and
other lenders in connection with debt-
or in possession financing, out of court
debt restructuring, and debt collection.
Mazer-Marino, a known expert in
her field, remains atop the complex
develops in bankruptcy laws.
“One bankruptcy trend is the use
by multinational companies of U.S.
Bankruptcy proceedings in New York
to reorganize worldwide operations
notwithstanding that those companies
lack significant operations or assets
in the U.S.,” Mazer-Marino said. “In
the 1990s, Maxwell Communication
Corp., a British company and former
parent of the New York Daily News,
broke new ground by commencing re-
structuring proceedings simultane-
ously in both New York and London.
After Maxwell, the Bankruptcy Code
was revised to add chapter 15, which
is designed to coordinate U.S. bank-
ruptcy cases with non-U.S. insolvency
proceedings and to protect a compa-
ny’s U.S. assets pending resolution of
those proceedings.”
“Increasingly, multinational com-
panies with little U.S. assets are filing
chapter 11 reorganization cases in
New York, as opposed to chapter 15
proceedings ancillary to foreign bank-
ruptcy cases,” she said. “For exam-
ple, Meyer Suozzi commenced a New
York chapter 11 bankruptcy case for
China Fishery Group Limited and its
affiliates, a company headquartered
in Hong Kong with substantial opera-
tions throughout the world.”
“The trend may reflect that: in-
ternational finance for foreign com-
panies is often based in New York;
U.S. Bankruptcy law is well evolved
creating predictability in bankruptcy
cases, which is appealing for creditors
as well as debtors located worldwide;
and, the New York Bankruptcy Judg-
es are experienced in dealing with
large, complex, sophisticated cases,”
noted Mazer-Marino.
Prior to joining Meyer, Suozzi, Ma-
zer-Marino was a partner at a bank-
ruptcy boutique firm. From 1990
through 1991, she served as a law
clerk to Hon. Conrad B. Duberstein,
former Chief United States Bankrupt-
cy Judge for the Eastern District of
New York, after which she practiced
in the business reorganization and
restructuring department at a New
York City law firm.
She earned a juris doctor, cum
laude, from St. John’s University
and a bachelor’s degree, magna cum
laude, from State University of New
York Albany. She is admitted to prac-
tice in New York State and before
the U.S. District Court, Southern and
Eastern Districts of New York.
Mazer-Marino is a member Asso-
ciation of the Bar of the City of New
York; a member of National Associ-
ation of Bankruptcy Trustees; and a
board member of the New York Insti-
tute of Credit.
She has lectured on creditors’
rights and bankruptcy topics for the
New York State Bar Association,
Practicing Law Institute, the Asso-
ciation of Corporate Counsel, Great-
er New York Chapter, the Long Is-
land Business Resource Association
and the New York Institute of Credit.
From 2013-2015, she was recognized
as a New York Super Lawyer.
Founded in 1960, Meyer, Suozzi,
English & Klein, P.C. provides legal
services with a reputation for integri-
ty, insight and excellent client service.
Its attorneys are recognized for their
committed to clients, community, pub-
lic affairs and diversity. With offices
in Albany, Garden City, Manhattan
and Washington, D.C., the firm pro-
vides legal advice in 18 practice areas.
CAROL A.
MELNICK
Jaspan Schlesinger
LLP
Carol A. Melnick is a partner in
Jaspan Schlesinger LLP’s education
and municipal law practice groups,
where she handles a wide range of
matters as general and labor counsel
for public school districts, public li-
braries and other municipal entities.
Melnick’s general counsel background
includes policy development, Free-
dom of Information Law and Open
Meetings Law matters, election is-
sues, fiscal management, administra-
tive-level hearings regarding special
education matters, student discipline,
residency issues, and appeals to the
Commissioner of Education and the
State Review Officer. Melnick also
litigates special education matters
in both state and federal courts. Her
labor law experience includes collec-
tive bargaining, contract administra-
tion, grievance arbitration, admin-
istrative-level hearings regarding
employee discipline, practice before
the Public Employment Relations
Board, practice before the State Divi-
sion of Human Rights, and counsel-
ing on various employment-related
matters under the New York State
Labor Laws, Fair Labor Standards
Act, Family Medical Leave Act, Amer-
icans with Disabilities Act, Executive/
Human Rights Laws and Title VII.
Melnick is currently focused on the
United States Department of Educa-
tion’s (USDOE) recent release of its
guidelines aimed at preventing discrim-
ination against students with attention
deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
“Section 504 of the Rehabilitation
Act (Section 504) and federal regula-
tions requires school districts to provide
an equal education opportunity to stu-
dents with disabilities,” she said. “The
guidance clarifies that the Americans
with Disabilities Act Amendments Act
broadened the scope and definition of
‘disability’ to provide greater protec-
tion to students with ADHD. This is
an issue that is worth keeping an eye
on, as the USDOE has received approx-
imately 2,000 complaints relating to
ADHD over the last five years.”
It is imperative that school dis-
tricts are aware of their obligations to
students with ADHD, Melnick noted.
“In order to prevent complaints, dis-
tricts should ensure that all students
suspected of having ADHD are referred
for an evaluation,” she said. “Addition-
ally, districts must provide an adequate
evaluation and make appropriate de-
cisions regarding the special educa-
tion services that each student needs.
Therefore, I will be focusing on future
case law/administrative decisions re-
lating to a school district’s obligation to
provide appropriate services. Such deci-
sions will help provide further guidance
to district’s in providing defensible 504
Accommodation Plans and Individual
Education Plans (IEPs).”
Melnick earned a juris doctor from
Brooklyn Law School and a bachelor’s
degree from the University of Ken-
tucky. She is admitted to practice law
in the courts of the state of New York
and New Jersey and in the United
States District Court for the Eastern
and Southern Districts of New York
and the District of New Jersey. Melnick
is a member of the Nassau and New
York State Bar Associations, and their
respective education, labor and employ-
ment and municipal law sections.
Jaspan Schlesinger LLP in Garden
City is one of Long Island’s premier full
service law firms. Founded in 1946, the
firm’s 60 attorneys provide quality legal
services in virtually every area of prac-
tice. The firm’s practice areas include
complex commercial litigation; educa-
tion and municipal matters; creditors’
rights; banking and financial services;
corporate and commercial transactions;
real estate; tax certiorari and condem-
nation matters; land use and zoning;
labor; estates and trusts; taxation; and
environmental matters.
Jaspan Schlesinger LLP, with of-
fices in Garden City and Wilmington,
Delaware, serves clients that operate
locally, nationally and globally. Its cli-
ents range from start-up companies to
multinational public companies, as well
as individuals, school districts, munici-
palities and not-for-profit organizations.
LINA M.
OBEID
Stony Brook
University School
of Medicine
Lina M. Obeid is a professor of med-
icine and dean for research at Stony
Brook University School of Medicine.
Dr. Obeid, a physician-scientist and
biomedical researcher, oversees the Of-
fice of Scientific Affairs (OSA), the re-
search infrastructure supporting Stony
Brook Medicine scientists engaged in
biomedical discovery.
Dr. Obeid’s personal professional
focus is geriatric medicine and bio-
medical research. She earned her
MD degree, with distinction, at the
American University in Beirut and
completed her internship and resi-
dency in Internal Medicine at Duke
University, followed by a fellowship
in Endocrinology and Geriatrics. She
holds numerous National Institutes
of Health (NIH) grants, and was prin-
cipal investigator for a $11.7 million
core grant from the Center for Biolog-
ical Research Excellence (COBRE) for
lipid signaling. Her research is con-
centrated on bioactive lipid signaling
in cancer biology.
 76 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM

WHO’SWHO
in Women in Professional Services
“I would like to better understand
and discover specific pathways
mediated by bioactive lipids that reg-
ulate cancer,” Dr. Obeid said. “By pur-
suing this, we may get closer to devel-
oping novel and more effective cancer
chemotherapeutic agents and target
new pathways that regulate cancer
metabolism.”
“Important to this pursuit are the
technological advances such as imag-
ing and mass spectroscopy that are
so critical for understanding molecu-
lar mechanisms of cancer, and other
diseases,” she said. “In my laboratory
– I along with my colleagues and with
the help of students – hope to dis-
cover new advances in biomedical re-
search, including bioactive lipid path-
ways then validate these discoveries.
This can be an essential and highly
innovative step toward the develop-
ment of new treatments for cancer.”
Stony Brook Medicine integrates
and elevates all of Stony Brook Uni-
versity’s health-related initiatives: ed-
ucation, research and patient care. It
includes five Health Sciences schools
— Dental Medicine, Health Technology
and Management, Medicine, Nursing
and Social Welfare — as well as Stony
Brook University Hospital and more
than 50 community-based healthcare
settings throughout Suffolk County
. understanding of its unique needs
solutions to their unique financing
needs is evident in the growth of her
loan portfolio. The SBA program al-
lows BNB to make loans to business
that may not meet the parameters of
conventional bank financing.
Small business is the lifeblood of
the Long Island economy, O’Brien said.
“A small business may not have the
same opportunities to finance their
growth, based on where they are in
their own business model,” she said.
“Many small businesses struggle to
survive and grow because they are hin-
dered by the lack of finances available
to them. Recently, BNB has achieved
Preferred Lending status from the
SBA, which allows the bank to stream-
line the SBA approval process and
make it less intimidating to the bor-
rower. Our goal is to get out into the
marketplace and make sure that small
business owners know that we are a
resource that can help them grow.”
“As a community bank, BNB has a
vested interest in taking the mystery
out of the SBA process, helping busi-
ness owners navigate the loan pro-
cess, and seeing them on to the next
level of a thriving business,” O’Brien
said. “There are not many local banks
left on Long Island. A local commu-
nity bank, like BNB, has a real com-
mitment to the marketplace and an
that an outside institution just doesn’t
bring to the table. There is no substi-
in processing and servicing SBA-guar-
anteed loans.
The SBA lending program offers
both a growth opportunity for BNB,
and an increased ability to help the
small local business. BNB has over a
100 years of community banking, and
the SBA program provides a natural
synergy to the bank’s business model.
Prior to her position at BNB,
O’Brien spent the majority of her ca-
reer working for Bank of New York
in various lending roles. O’Brien is a
graduate of SUNY Oneonta and has
an MBA from Adelphi University.
Established in 1910, Bridgehamp-
ton National Bank, with assets of ap-
proximately $3.7 billion, operates 40
retail branch locations serving Long Is-
land and the greater New York metro-
politan area. In addition, the bank op-
erates two loan production offices: one
in Manhattan, and one in Riverhead,
New York. Through its branch net-
work and its electronic delivery chan-
nels, BNB provides deposit and loan
products and financial services to local
businesses, consumers and munici-
palities. Title insurance services are
offered through BNB’s wholly owned
subsidiary, Bridge Abstract. Bridge
Financial Services, Inc. offers financial
planning and investment consultation.
where the statute of limitations expires
before someone ever knows they may
have a potential case.”
“In Lavern’s case, her child with
special needs was not only deprived
of her mother and caregiver, but was
deprived of compensation for the loss
of her mom’s support and care,” she
explained. “The passage of this bill
would encourage hospitals and doc-
tors to improve patient safety mea-
sures, and extend rights for victims of
medical malpractice to seek recourse
based upon fairness.”
A noted expert in her field, Oliva
was recently elected president of Nas-
sau County Women’s Bar Association,
serving a one-year term. She was also
named a 2016 Outstanding Women in
Law by Hofstra University School of
Law’s Center for Children, Families
and the Law. She is on the New York
Super Lawyers lists for 2016, 2015,
and 2014 after a selection process of
independent research, peer nomina-
tions and peer evaluations.
Oliva is a member of the Colum-
bian Lawyers Association of Nassau
County, the Long Island Hispanic
Bar Association, the New York State
Trial Lawyers’ Association, the Nas-
sau County Lawyers Association, the
American Association for Justice, and
the Nassau County Bar Association.
She earned a law degree from St.
John’s University, and an undergrad-
uate degree from Hofstra University.

EILEEN
tution for local knowledge and local LINDA M. Oliva dedicates considerable time to
decision-making. And, that is exactly community services, notably to breast

O’BRIEN
Bridgehampton
National Bank
Eileen O’Brien is vice president
in the SBA lending department at
Bridgehampton National Bank (BNB),
which is headquartered in Bridge-
hampton and has 40 branches locat-
ed throughout Nassau and Suffolk, as
well as Queens and New York City.
O’Brien has been a successful com-
mercial banking officer for over 25
years. At BNB, she is responsible for
providing loans via the SBA lending
program to small business in Queens,
Nassau and Suffolk. Her expertise in
providing exceptional customer ser-
vice to business owners, and finding
place your business
card in the pockets
of premier industry
what I am working to bring to the
Long Island small businesses commu-
nity through our SBA outreach.”
O’Brien joined BNB via the acqui-
sition of Community National Bank
in 2015. In joining BNB, O’Brien and
the SBA team brought a combined 15
years of experience in SBA lending
to the bank. O’Brien has been intri-
cately involved in developing the SBA
department, a program that was a
new line of business for BNB. Most
recently, as part of this process, BNB
was granted Preferred Lender Pro-
gram (PLP) status. Under the PLP
program, SBA delegates the final
credit decision and most servicing and
liquidation authority and responsibil-
ity to carefully selected PLP lenders.
Lenders are considered for PLP status
based on their record with SBA, and
must have demonstrated a proficiency
OLIVA
Pegalis & Erickson,
LLC
Linda M. Oliva is an attorney at
Pegalis & Erickson, LLC in New Hyde
Park. Oliva is an represents plaintiffs
in medical negligence cases. She man-
ages pretrial litigation and appeals,
representing children who have suf-
fered from birth injuries, people of
all ages who have experienced surgi-
cal complications and cardiovascular
medical errors, and women who have
suffered health care negligence such
as the failure to diagnose and treat
breast cancer.
A pressing item in consumer health
law is for the second year in a row,
the New York State Legislature failed
to vote on Laverne’s Law, Oliva said.
“Although the bill was passed by
the NYS Assembly, the governor
promised to sign it into law, and ap-
proximately 30 senators supported it,
the bill didn’t make it to the senate
floor for a vote. The bill is named for
Laverne Wilkinson who died of a cur-
able form of lung cancer after being
cancer awareness with the Babylon
Breast Cancer Coalition, and the Adel-
phi/New York State Breast Cancer Ho-
tline Creative Cups program.
Pegalis & Erickson, LLC is a per-
sonal injury law firm focused on rep-
resenting people who suffered medi-
cal negligence. U.S. News and World
Report named the firm to its 2016
Best Law Firms list for medical mal-
practice in New York, and the firm’s
founder, Steven Pegalis, as 2016 Law-
yer of the Year.
In its 45 years of practice, the firm
has helped thousands obtain funds for
services they need to survive day-to-
day. The firm is a known advocate for
patient safety and medical account-
ability to ensure safer medical prac-
tices for better patient care.
MICHELLE
PAPAJOHN
St. Joseph’s College

professionals
misdiagnosed. Her situation is one of
many in New York, where people are
not correctly diagnosed, and don’t find
out about the misdiagnosis until after
the time to file a suit expires.”
“Unfortunately, New York is one of
libn.com only six states that doesn’t have a dis-
covery rule, which allows someone to
file a claim within a specific time pe-
Contact our advertising riod after finding out that negligence
department to discuss options occurred, rather than having to bring
suit within a specific time period based
for your business at 631.737.1700 upon when the negligent acts occurred,”
Oliva said. “This can create situations
Michelle Papajohn is vice president
for information technology and chief
information officer at St. Joseph’s Col-
lege (SJC), which has campuses in
Patchogue and Brooklyn.
Papajohn provides strategic man-
agement and innovative leadership
of the Information Technology Ser-
vices department for a multi-campus
environment. She leads the develop-
ment and implementation of St. Jo-
seph’s College’s information technol-
ogy strategy. As the college’s chief

WHO’SWHO
in Women in Professional Services
information officer, she oversees the
areas of computing, networking, in-
structional technology, project man-
agement and institutional research.
Assuring best practices are being
performed, she collaborates and com-
municates with the campus admin-
istration, faculty, students and staff
for the purpose of developing healthy
campus dynamics and effectively im-
plementing strategic initiatives.
Papajohn is responsible for the
departments, which support en-
terprise applications, data and an-
alytics, teaching and learning, user
support, infrastructure and project
management. During her tenure at
St. Joseph’s she led the organization
through an ERP replacement, the in-
troduction of Google Apps cloud based
email and collaboration suite and an
employee portal.
In almost every industry and as-
pect of life, technology is at the core,
Papajohn said.
“In higher education, it is inter-
twined with the daily functions of every
student, staff and faculty member,” she
said. “Students have high expectations
for technology, and we need to meet
those demands. Just a few short years
ago, having a computer and a projector
in a room was considered state-of-the-
art — a ‘smart’ classroom. The bar has
risen and we continue to re-define what
state-of-the-art is.”
“In my position, I work closely with
Academic Administration to add tech-
nologies that will elevate the learning
experience and improve student suc-
cess,” Papajohn explained. “The col-
lege continues to make technological
enhancements, and we are currently
adding interactive projectors, which
effectively turn a whiteboard into a
giant tablet. We are making rooms
lecture capture capable, so faculty can
record lectures and students can re-
visit or catch up on missed lectures.
Students are granted access to soft-
ware in the cloud. This lets us extend
the resources we provide beyond our
campus and provides convenience to
our students.”
“We have to think beyond the phys-
ical environment so that students are
able to obtain the same quality learn-
ing experience whether face-to-face or
online,” Papajohn noted.
Prior to being named vice president
for information technology and chief
information officer in 2015, Papajohn
was director of enterprise systems at
SJC where she managed all aspects
of Enterprise Systems including the
Datatel Colleague and WebAdvisor
systems, as well as Astra room sched-
uling. She also a held project manag-
er position, in 2004, and began her
work at SJC, in 1999, as coordinator
of scheduling and registration.
Papajohn earned an EMBA, man-
agement; a bachelor’s degree in orga-
nizational management from St. Jo-
seph’s College. She serves on the CIO
Advisory Board for Ellucian.
St. Joseph’s College has been ded-
icated to providing a diverse popu-
lation of students in the New York
metropolitan area with an affordable
education rooted in the liberal arts
tradition since 1916. Independent and
coeducational, the college provides a
strong academic and value-oriented
77 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
education at the undergraduate and
graduate levels, aiming to prepare
each student for a life characterized
by integrity, intellectual and spiri-
tual values, social responsibility and
service. Through SJC Brooklyn, SJC
Long Island and SJC Online, the col-
lege offers bachelor’s degrees in 49
majors, special course offerings and
certificates, affiliated and pre-profes-
sional programs.
KAYLIN
PETERSON
Jefferson’s Ferry
Foundation
Kaylin Peterson is development
manager at Jefferson’s Ferry Foun-
dation in South Setauket, which was
created to offer outstanding giving
opportunities for those who support
Jefferson’s Ferry’s overall mission
and vision. The foundation nurtures
a philanthropic environment that has
enriched the lives of the seniors and
staff served by Jefferson’s Ferry by
providing new technologies to encour-
age a supportive environment, mak-
ing building improvements and pro-
viding financial assistance in times of
unexpected need.
Peterson works closely with the
foundation board, manages the foun-
dation’s fundraising activities, includ-
ing its annual fundraiser Monte Carlo
Night and manages and process dona-
tions and pledges.
The elderly population is living lon-
ger and healthier lives due to advanc-
es in health care and optimal living
environments like that of Jefferson’s
Ferry, Peterson said.
“Because of their increased longev-
ity, some of our residents may outlive
their assets,” she said “The good news
is that the Resident Assistance Fund
maintained by the Jefferson’s Ferry
Foundation helps pay the monthly fees
of residents who experience a short-
fall through no fault of their own so
that they can continue to age in place
and live comfortably without having to
worry. The best source of funding for
the Resident Assistant Fund has been
Jefferson’s Ferry residents, who have a
strong community feeling.”
Many residents have donated to
the Fund, Peterson noted. “Many of
them want to help their neighbors in
need, sometimes offering to match con-
tributions, but we also look for help
from outside the community,” she
said. “Since Jefferson’s Ferry’s incep-
tion in 2001, the Resident Assistance
Fund has helped five residents contin-
ue the lifestyle that they sought at Jef-
ferson’s Ferry. We expect the number
of residents in need of funds to rise,
so our challenge will be to continue to
find creative ways fund the program.”
Peterson is a member of Jefferson’s
Ferry’s Teamwork Committee, where
she helps plan for fun activities for
the staff to do together. A member of
and sergeant-at-arms for the Stony
Brook Rotary Club, Peterson has par-
ticipated in many volunteer activities
including Habitat for Humanity and
Camp-Pa-Qua-tuck, which serves peo-
ple with disabilities. She also volun-
teers at the Welcome INN Soup Kitch-
en, preparing and serving the meals
for guests, and helping with clean up,
Peterson is a member of the Asso-
ciation of Fundraising Professionals,
and through this organization attends
educational sessions on various topics
in philanthropy, participates in its
Mentor Express program and annual
Philanthropy Day.
Prior to joining Jefferson’s Ferry,
Peterson worked in the development
office of the Leslie Munzer Neurolog-
ical Institute. She earned a bachelor’s
degree in psychology from St. Joseph’s
College and earned a certificate in
not-for-profit management at Hofstra
University.
Jefferson’s Ferry is a non-profit
lifecare continuing care retirement
community (CCRC that integrates all
the elements of an active retirement
with a mix of recreation and activi-
ties, readily available health care and
peace of mind. Residents pay a one-
time entry fee and thereafter, a pre-
dictable monthly fee.
Over 400 residents aged 62 years
and older live in either independent
living residences (248 units include
cottages and apartments); enhanced
assisted living apartments (60 units);
or skilled nursing (60 private suites,
20 of which are memory care).
With attractive and spacious pri-
vate Enhanced Assisted Living stu-
dio and one-bedroom apartments
and state-of-the-art-private nursing
and rehabilitation suites, the Vin-
cent Bove Health Center at Jeffer-
son’s Ferry offers comfort and com-
passionate care. Whether a resident
requires short-term rehabilitation, or
long-term nursing care, personalized
health care plans or memory support,
every resident receives the assistance
they need—when they need it.
Resident amenities include a fit-
ness center with a full-time fitness
instructor, indoor swimming pool,
extensive activity and wellness pro-
grams, formal dining room, café and
pub, spa services, country store, li-
brary, billiards, theater, card room,
computer room and 50 acres of beau-
tiful grounds with ponds, water fea-
tures, walking paths.
NIKKI S.
REISS, CPA
Sanders Thaler
Viola & Katz, LLP
Nikki S. Reiss, CPA, is a senior
professional at Sanders Thaler Viola
& Katz, LLP in Jericho.
Reiss focuses on tax accounting
with an emphasis on the prepara-
tion and review of complex multi-ju-
risdictional federal state and local
tax returns in a wide variety of in-
dustries, as well as high net worth
individuals and business owners.
She also assists in analyzing cli-
ents’ books and records to ensure
completeness and reasonableness;
interim and year-end tax planning
for both businesses and individuals;
tax research; and corresponding with
all levels of taxing authorities to as-
sist clients in resolving tax matters.
Assuring that she provides her cli-
ents high-level services, Reiss spends
time examining new industry trends
and issues.
“I have spent significant time re-
searching and have analyzed over the
past few years the issue of how many
states are shifting to a market based
sourcing of sales, as opposed to the
traditional cost of performance factor-
ing,” she said. “As the states start-
ed shifting, companies did not have
the resources in place to track sales
of services under both methods, which
left them vulnerable to tax exposure
and liabilities in states where they
had never previously filed. Additional-
ly, due to the inconsistent treatment
of sourcing by the various states, it
opened the potential for double taxa-
tion on the same sales base.”
“As this shift is relatively new, no
legal precedent has been established
for companies to rely upon in taking
a position on their tax filings,” Reiss
noted. “As cases begin to head to court
over this matter it should be interest-
ing to see how each state interprets
the rules and whether a unified meth-
od of state sourcing is once again es-
tablished amongst all states.”
Reiss earned a bachelor’s degree in
accounting from Binghamton Universi-
ty in 2000. She completed all four parts
of the CPA exam in 2000 and became a
certified public accountant in 2004. She
helps train and mentor professionals
who are entering the industry.
Sanders Thaler Viola & Katz, LLP,
with offices in Jericho and New York
City, offers a full spectrum of account-
ing and tax services with a hands-on
approach for all clients. The firm is
committed to providing close person-
al attention to each client and takes
pride in providing assurance and per-
sonal assistance along with years of
advanced training, technical experi-
ence and financial acumen. Among
its full slate of services include gen-
eral tax preparation and planning,
handling IRS, state and local tax
grievances, trust and estate planning
and filings, business management,
audit services and financial statement
preparation and accounting and book-
keeping services.
LISA M.
RICCIARDI,
CPA, CCA
Castellano,
Korenberg, &
Company
Lisa M. Ricciardi, CPA, CCA is a
partner at Castellano, Korenberg,
& Company in Hicksville. Ricciardi
has more than 25 years of experience
providing auditing, accounting, con-
sulting, and tax services to individu-

WHO’SWHO
in Women in Professional Services
als and businesses. She is an expert
advisor to clients in construction and
construction-related industries and
has a strong background serving man-
ufacturers, not-for-profit organiza-
tions, professional service firms, and
wholesalers.
As a member of the Association of
Certified Fraud Examiners and the
American College of Forensics Exam-
iners, she is also uniquely qualified
to respond to clients’ needs regarding
forensic engagements and uncovering
unauthorized activity.
Ricciardi also holds the designa-
tion of Certified Construction Audi-
tor (CCA) granted by the National
Association of Construction Auditors
for those professionals who focus on
accounting, auditing, and consulting
within the construction industry.
Accounting firms are focusing on
developing specialty practices rather
than being generalists, Ricciardi said.
“Clients receive expertise from
accountants who really understand
their particular business,” she said.
“Clients expect you to know all there
is to know about taxes, financial
statements, labor issues and pretty
much everything on earth. But if you
want show them that you can truly
be an asset to their company then you
must demonstrate your expertise in
their industry. For example, almost
any accountant can prepare an in-
come tax return but do most accoun-
tants know that most construction
contractors are entitled to a domestic
production activities deduction? The
answer is no. One of our specialties at
CK & Co. is in the construction indus-
try. Far too many times we will take
on a new client that lost out on many
of the credits or deductions allowed
to them because of the lack of exper-
tise by their prior accountant. After
all, would you go to a doctor who’s a
general practitioner if you had a heart
problem or a cardiologist?”
Prior to joining Castellano,
Korenberg & Company, Ricciardi
was a partner at a Nassau County-
based CPA firm for over 20 years.
She earned a bachelor’s degree in
Business Administration from
Hofstra University and is a frequent
lecturer and author on topics of
accounting and auditing for the
construction industry, as well as
asset protection, estate planning, and
business succession.
Among Ricciardi’s many recog-
nitions, the National Association of
Women Business Owners (NAWBO)
named her a Businesswoman of Ex-
cellence in 2015 and the Town of Oys-
ter Bay named her a Women of Dis-
tinction in 2015.
She is a member of the American
Board of Forensic Accounting, Amer-
ican Institute of CPAs, Construction
Financial Management Association,
National Association of Women in
Construction, New York State Society
of CPAs, Regional Alliance for Small
Contractors, Long Island Contractors
Association and Nontraditional Em-
ployment for Women (NEW).
She volunteers at the Interfaith
Nutrition Network (The INN), The
Mary Brennan INN, Jones Beach
Power Squadron and the Town of
Oyster Bay W.A.K.E. U.P. environ-
78 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
mental program, which helps clean
and protect area waterways.
Castellano, Korenberg & Company
is a full-service accounting firm pro-
viding audit, accounting, tax, and con-
sulting services to privately held busi-
nesses, their executives, and high net
worth individuals throughout the New
York metropolitan area. The firm spe-
cializes in serving clients who operate
in the construction, manufacturing,
distribution, and real estate industries.
Since its founding in 1991, Castella-
no, Korenberg & Company has helped
its clients achieve success by providing
technical expertise, customized busi-
ness solutions, and personalized atten-
tion to help them navigate through to-
day’s challenges and plan for the future.
ELIZABETH
COLLARD
RICHTER
Collard & Roe, P.C.
Elizabeth Collard Richter is a part-
ner at Collard & Roe, P.C. in Roslyn,
where she specializes in patent prose-
cution, licensing and litigation. Richter
has extensive experience in prosecuting
patents in all technical areas, including
chemistry, mechanical and electrical
engineering and business methods and
designs. She represents clients of all
types and sizes, ranging from large in-
ternational corporations to individuals.
Among top issues Collard & Roe
is watching is the effect of Brexit on
patents and trademarks in Europe,
Richter said.
“The exit of the UK from the Euro-
pean Union could have widespread ef-
fects on the filing and enforcement of
EU trademarks, as well as on the fil-
ing of patents in the European Patent
Office under the new Unitary Patent
system, and enforcement by the new
Unified Patent Court,” Richter noted.
Prior to joining Collard & Roe, Rich-
ter was an associate at a major New
York City intellectual property law
firm, where she specialized in litigation,
interferences and patent prosecution.
She is a member of the New York
Intellectual Property Law Associa-
tion, the American Bar Association,
the AIPLA, AIPPI, and the Nassau
County Bar Association. She is also
a member of the Inventor of the Year
selection committee of the Long Is-
land Technology Hall of Fame.
She is a graduate of Cornell Univer-
sity and New York University School of
Law, where she was a member of the
Moot Court Board. She is a past chair
of the Intellectual Property Committee
of the Nassau County Bar Association,
and has had many articles published
in the Nassau Lawyer, The Attorney
of Nassau and the New York State Bar
Journal. She is also active in the Hun-
tington community, where she serves
on several boards and committees.
Collard & Roe, P.C. has served cli-
ents’ intellectual property needs for
over 40 years. It has a broad practice
encompassing all aspects of intellectual
property law, including patent, trade-
mark, and copyright prosecution and
litigation, domain name procurement,
licensing, franchising, as well as other
related areas of law and technology.
The firm also serves as special counsel
to other domestic attorneys seeking our
specialized renowned expertise.
Collard & Roe has over a dozen
patent and trademark attorneys and
agents. The members of the profes-
sional staff have degrees and experi-
ence in diverse fields of technology,
including biotechnology, chemistry,
computer programming, and various
fields of engineering. Its staff includes
members conversant in several lan-
guages including French, German,
Italian and Spanish.
Collard & Roe has obtained for its
clients over 10,000 patents granted
and over 17,000 trademarks. The firm
represents clients of all sizes, from
the solo inventor to large multi-na-
tional corporations and in diverse in-
dustries ranging from state-of-the-art
technologies to traditional manufac-
turing corporations.
Collard & Roe has close relation-
ships with law firms and major corpo-
rations throughout the world for whom
the firm prosecutes foreign applica-
tions in the United States. The firm
provides personalized customer service
and has the resources of a global net-
work of foreign associates who assist
domestic clients when they are consid-
ering international applications.
Collard & Roe is an active partic-
ipant in such organizations as the
International Intellectual Property
Society and the Nassau County Bar
Association. The attorneys have au-
thored over 200 articles for various
industry and local journals.
RISË E.
ROSEN
Koeppel Martone &
Leistman, LLP
Risë E. Rosen is an associate at the
Mineola law firm Koeppel Martone
& Leistman, LLP, one of the largest
New York State law firms devoted ex-
clusively to the field of real property
valuation review and condemnation.
Rosen is currently focusing on
commercial property tax bill develop-
ments in Nassau County. “The idiom
‘the devil is in the detail’ has never
been truer than it is in relation to
the 2016/17 property tax bills of Nas-
sau County commercial property tax-
payers,” she said. “Nassau’s recently
enacted Disputed Assessment Fund
(DAF), codified in the Nassau County
Administrative Code, is an attempt
to shift the burden of financing the
successful assessment challenges of
commercial taxpayers from the collec-
tive tax base to solely the commercial
taxpayer. DAF is certain to result in
significantly increased tax rates, in-
creased taxes and increased stress
to fiscal bottom lines already reeling
from years of financial challenge.”
“Application of the DAF legislation
requires that those commercial prop-
erty owners who challenge their as-
sessment will have 10 percent of their
taxes escrowed in order to finance any
potential refund,” Rosen said. “The
immediate effect is that the taxing ju-
risdictions must, at the onset, use an
inflated formula to promulgate their
tax rates in order to take into account
the 10 percent that they will not re-
ceive. It is this detail that makes it
more crucial than ever for commercial
property owners to challenge their as-
sessments.”
“While it remains to be seen how
far reaching an effect the implemen-
tation of DAF will have and the po-
tential legal challenges that it may
face, what remains certain is our
firm’s commitment to fiscal vigilance
on behalf of our clients,” Rosen ex-
plained.
Prior to joining Koeppel Martone
& Leistman, LLP in 1988, Rosen was
employed by the Nassau County Trea-
surer’s Office in the Tax Collection
and Claims Service Division.
Rosen is a graduate of Hofstra Law
School and was admitted to the New
York State Bar in 1991. She is a mem-
ber of the Nassau County Bar Associ-
ation, Suffolk County Bar Association,
New York State Bar Association, Nas-
sau County Women’s Bar Association,
American Property Tax Counsel Syos-
set Chamber of Commerce, and the
Hicksville Chamber of Commerce.
Koeppel Martone & Leistman, LLP
is one of the largest New York State
law firms devoted exclusively to the
field of real property valuation review
and condemnation. Having been in
existence for more than 50 years, its
partners and associates have over 230
years combined experience in these
matters. The firm consists of ten at-
torneys and a large staff of parale-
gals with extensive experience in tax
certiorari and condemnation law. Our
attorneys are admitted to practice law
in New York, New Jersey, Connecti-
cut, District of Columbia, Florida, and
Georgia. In the State of New York
alone, we have represented clients
from Buffalo to Montauk Point and
have handled every type of property
from residential homes, multi-fami-
ly residentials, condominiums, coop-
eratives, industrials, manufacturing
plants, shopping centers, nursing
homes, golf and country clubs, office
buildings and hotels.
MARCY
SAFYER
Adelphi University
Marcy Safyer, Ph.D., is director of
the Adelphi University Institute for
Parenting. Safyer has held this posi-
tion for about nine years and under
her direction, the Institute has be-
come a leader in the field of Infant
Mental Health (IMH) providing high
quality, developmentally informed,
trauma focused evidence-based ap-
proaches to improve the lives of at-
risk young children and caregivers.

WHO’SWHO
in Women in Professional Services
Safyer’s efforts led the Institute to
become a highly valued, well-regarded
regional professional training and clin-
ical services resource. These accom-
plishments came from Safyer’s pas-
sion, work ethic, effective leadership,
decision-making and collaborative
spirit. She successfully secured more
than $4 million in public and private
funds to support the Institute result-
ing in new resources and opportunities
for underserved young children.
“Recently, our understanding of
infant development has changed,”
Safyer said. “During the first few
years of life, when brain development
is in its most crucial phase, a child
develops the foundational capabilities
on which all subsequent development
builds. Parent-child relationship trau-
ma has devastating developmental
consequences. Upwards of 85 percent
of children in the child welfare sys-
tem have experienced early relational
traumas and attachment disruptions
exhibiting some form of emotional,
mental or behavioral health problem.”
“There is a continued need for ef-
fective services provided by a trained
and competent workforce,” Safyer
noted. “The science of early childhood
is shaping effective approaches for
healing those relationships and get-
ting young children and their fami-
lies (bio/foster/pre-adoptive) back on
track. Using this scientific knowledge,
Infant Mental Health specialists,
caseworkers, attorneys and judges
have the opportunity to participate in
a holistic culture and systems change
to create programs and policies that
heal, protect and promote permanen-
cy. Regardless of the fact that we pos-
sess the knowledge to do this work, it
is not being done effectively. There is
still a need to help the court and child
welfare system embrace the approach-
es that lead to successful futures for
today’s 0-5 year olds in foster care.”
A testimony to Safyer’s success
was her award from the 6 th annual
“What’s Great in Our State” commit-
tee, comprised of leading experts in
New York to honor individuals and
programs that successfully address
the issues of children’s mental health.
The award was given for IMH ser-
vices provided by the Institute for the
Babies Can’t Wait collaboration proj-
ect with the Nassau County Child
Welfare System. This ongoing ini-
tiative reduces the risk of repeated
abuse and neglect and increases safe-
ty for young children.
Most recently, Safyer received a
grant from the Federal Department
of Education for a training program
that increases the competency of mul-
tidisciplinary graduate students at
Adelphi. Candidates will become IMH
specialists serving high-risk 0-5 year
olds with social, emotional challenges
and other special needs.
Safyer holds a doctorate in psychol-
ogy and social work from the Univer-
sity of Michigan.
Adelphi University is a nationally
ranked, doctoral research university
offering exceptional liberal arts and sci-
ences programs and professional train-
ing with particular strength in its Core
Four—AU Arts and Humanities, AU
STEM and Social Sciences, AU Profes-
sions, and AU Health and Wellness.
79 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
Founded in Brooklyn in 1896, Adel-
phi serves nearly 7,500 students from
38 states and 46 countries at its main
campus in Garden City. Adelphi has
made the Fiske Guide to Colleges
Best Buy list for 11 consecutive years.
Adelphi serves communities through
faculty research, service-based learn-
ing, cultural events and, most impor-
tantly the education of future leaders
and informed citizens.
More than 100,000 Adelphi gradu-
ates have gained the skills, knowledge
and exposure to thrive as profession-
als and active citizens in an intercon-
nected and fast-paced global society,
making their mark on the university
and the world beyond.
NOELENE
SHERIDAN,
CPA, MST
Friedman LLP
Noelene Sheridan is a tax princi-
pal at Friedman LLP in Uniondale.
Sheridan has more than 25 years of
experience in public accounting. She
specializes in providing tax services
for commercial and residential real
estate owners, high-net-worth individ-
uals, trusts and estates.
Sheridan has expertise in review-
ing individual, partnership, trust, gift
and estate tax returns; developing
and maintaining client relationships;
performing income and estate tax
planning; providing tax advisory ser-
vices to closely held businesses; and
assisting with notices and audits from
federal and state taxing authorities.
In this election year, Friedman LLP
compiled a market study analyzing
business leaders’ sentiments about
proposed tax changes in response to a
survey the firm launched addressing
these issues, Sheridan said.
“One surprising finding was that
business leaders typically were sig-
nificantly more concerned with per-
sonal tax issues than issues poten-
tially impacting their business,” she
said. “The other surprising result was
whether state and local tax nexus
would influence their future expan-
sion plans – to which the majority
either did not believe that it would
play a role or were unsure of its ef-
fect. One factor coming into play may
be that business leaders are overall
less aware of the impact of the overall
tax system on their enterprises.  Our
professionals continue to monitor the
tax landscape ahead and ensure that
our clients are well informed of chang-
es that can impact both their business
and their personal financial situation.
Sheridan is a member of many or-
ganizations including New York State
Society of Certified Public Accoun-
tants, American Institute of Certified
Public Accountants and Friedman
LLP’s Women’s Development Network.
Sheridan earned a bachelor’s degree
in accounting from St. Johns Univer-
sity and a master’s degree in taxation
from C.W. Post University. She is also
a certified public accountant.
Friedman LLP has been serving
the accounting, tax and business
consulting needs of public and pri-
vate companies since 1924. Our in-
dustry-focused practice features
concentrated areas of expertise and
understanding of the economic envi-
ronment. We have the ability to be in-
novative in our approach, act quickly
in our decision-making and be flexible
in our delivery of services. Our clients
benefit from hands-on contact with
our partners, cutting-edge technical
expertise and our understanding of
their industry and their business.
SUSAN A.
SIPOS
Hoffmann & Baron
LLP
Susan A. Sipos is a senior attorney
at Hoffmann & Baron LLP, with offic-
es in Syosset, New York and Parsip-
pany, New Jersey.
After earning a bachelor degree in
mathematics from NYU, Sipos had a
career in actuarial sciences. She then
returned to NYU to earn a master’s
degree in Biology.
In 1998, after earning a law degree
from St. John’s University, Sipos joined
Hoffmann & Baron LLP in the practice
of intellectual property law. She spe-
cializes in patent prosecution, includ-
ing the fields of biotechnology, bioinfor-
matics, pharmacology, nanotechnology,
organic and inorganic chemistry.
Among the many issues Sipos re-
mains well-informed on is patent
eligibility.
“The patent eligibility landscape
has shifted in the past few years with
the courts issuing a series of decisions,
which challenge the patentability of
biotechnological innovations,” she
said. “For example, these decisions
have affected the eligibility of medi-
cal diagnostic methods. Such meth-
ods are typically based on the detec-
tion of certain genetic markers and
particular protein expression levels
in a patient. Our firm provides high-
ly skilled patent drafting and prose-
cution to navigate the ever-changing
criteria for patent eligibility in order
to obtain strong, enforceable patents
for such biotechnological inventions.”
For the past several years, Sipos has
participated as an adviser on intel-
lectual property matters in the Long
Island Innovation Boot Camp, which
is an annual Pre-Seed Workshop pro-
viding strategic business development
services to foster entrepreneurship and
support emerging company growth.
Hoffmann & Baron, LLP is a
full-service intellectual property law
firm that specializes in prosecution,
counseling, licensing, and litigation of
patent, trademark, and copyright-relat-
ed issues worldwide. The firm’s practice
also includes trade secrets, technology
transfer, and unfair competition.
Hoffmann & Baron, LLP serves cli-
ents throughout the United States and
internationally. Clients include indi-
viduals, entrepreneurial firms, univer-
sities, national research laboratories,
and multinational corporations.
The firm’s attorneys possess exper-
tise in the acquisition, protection and
strategic planning for all forms of in-
tellectual property. The firm is espe-
cially experienced in acquiring pat-
ent protection, trade secret protection,
copyright protection, and establishing
appropriate and related trademark,
brand, and trade dress protection. The
firm also has a robust Inter Partes
Review (IPR) practice. IPRs are a rel-
atively new vehicle to attack the va-
lidity of patents in the US Patent Of-
fice without having to go to a Federal
District Court and to stay a Federal
District Court action for infringement
while the US Patent Office reconsid-
ers the merits of validity/invalidity of
the patent(s) in issue. The firm is also
experienced in all phases of intellec-
tual property litigation, post grant in-
ter-parties matters, and oppositions in
the United States and abroad.
Hoffmann & Baron, LLP serves cli-
ents in all major scientific and engi-
neering fields including biotechnolo-
gy, pharmaceuticals, medical devices,
chemical, organic and inorganic chem-
istry, biochemistry, electrical, mechan-
ical, electro-mechanical, consumer
products, drug delivery systems, mo-
lecular biology, genomics, proteomics,
bio-affecting agents and delivery sys-
tems, petroleum processing and prod-
ucts, computers, software, optics, la-
sers, and e-commerce, among others.
In addition to enforcing and de-
fending its clients’ rights in the
areas of patents, trademarks, and
copyrights, Hoffmann & Baron pro-
vides counseling regarding a variety
of other legal issues associated with
technology development.
Established in 1984 by co-founders
Charles R. Hoffmann and Ronald J.
Baron, the firm currently serves cli-
ents around the globe in all scientific
and engineering fields.
MARGUERITE
SMITH
Empire National
Bank
Marguerite Smith is vice president,
BSA, CRA and compliance officer at
Empire National Bank in Islandia.
Smith previously held the title of as-
sistant vice president, deputy BSA/
compliance officer.
Empire National Bank remains
steadfast in providing quality service
as it fulfills regulation requirements.
“A compliance directive we are cur-
rently working on is the Financial
Crimes Enforcement Network’s (Fin-
CEN) Customer Due Diligence Rule,”
Smith said. “The requirements be-
came effective July 2016 and will be-
come mandatory in 2018.”
“As part of the U. S. Treasury De-
partment’s ongoing effort to prevent
entities from using U. S. companies
to conceal money laundering, tax eva-
sion and other illicit financial activi-
ties, this provision requires banks to

WHO’SWHO
in Women in Professional Services
collect and verify the accuracy of cer-
tain personal information from ben-
eficial owners of commercial entities
when an account is opened,” she said.
“While financial institutions may rely
on client provided information, we are
also developing our own data collec-
tion process.”
One of the bank’s first employ-
ees, Smith has more than a decade
of banking experience. For 10 years,
she worked at the former Long Island
Commercial Bank where she was an
assistant branch manager and invest-
ment and insurance advisor.
Smith earned a bachelor’s degree
in communications from SUNY Oneo-
nta and a master’s degree in banking
and finance from Dowling College.
Dedicated to helping small to mid-
sized privately-owned businesses, pro-
fessional practices, not-for-profit organi-
zations, municipalities and real estate
professionals grow and prosper, Empire
National Bank is committed to bringing
the personal touch back to customer
service while providing a “neighbor-
hood” banking experience. Headquar-
tered in Islandia, New York, Empire
National Bank has branches in Port
Jefferson Station, Shirley and Mineola.
KAREN
TENENBAUM
LL.M., CPA
Tenenbaum Law,
P.C.
An attorney for more than 30
years, Karen Tenenbaum, LL.M.,
CPA founded Tenenbaum Law, P.C.,
which provides services to individ-
uals and businesses facing IRS and
New York State tax problems. Tenen-
baum and her team represent clients
in matters including federal & state
audits; IRS appeals & NYS concilia-
tion conferences; federal & NYS col-
lection issues, including liens, levies,
warrants & seizures; offers in com-
promise and installment agreements;
responsible officer assessments; NYS
residency audits; and NYS voluntary
disclosure.
The firm focuses exclusively
on IRS and NY tax controversies,
Tenenbaum said.
“Successfully representing clients
is not just about knowing the tax
laws, but understanding how the laws
are being interpreted and enforced by
the commissioner and auditors, and
how they impact New York State res-
idents,” Tenenbaum said. “One area
in which we see increasing numbers
of cases is NY residency audits. Many
individuals, especially on Long Island,
have multiple residences and don’t re-
alize they could be subject to an audit
because NYS considers them NY res-
idents, even though they live most
of their time in another state. These
individuals can then be hit with a sig-
nificant tax bill.”
“In addition, we’re concerned
about the NYS driver’s license sus-
pension program, which allows the
state to suspend the driver’s license
of delinquent taxpayers who owe
80 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
more than $10,000,” Tenenbaum
noted. “NYS has been very aggres-
sive about imposing this penalty and
taxpayers need to respond promptly
in order to avoid losing their licenses.
To date, the state has collected over
$300 million in back taxes so it’s un-
likely to relax its enforcement.”
“One silver lining is the voluntary
disclosure program, which can help
qualified NYS taxpayers avoid ad-
ditional penalties for failing to file
taxes,” she said.
Tenenbaum is a frequent speaker
on IRS and NYS tax issues for nu-
merous professional groups on topics
including New York State residency,
IRS and NYS collections.
Among her many recognitions,
Tenenbaum was selected as a New
York Super Lawyer as a practitioner
in tax law for the past three years;
received a SmartCEO’s Future 50
Award recipient; earned a Judge Gail
Prudenti Top Women in Law Award;
and has been rated a Top Wom-
en-Owned Law Firm in New York by
the New York Law Journal.
Tenenbaum earned a LL.M. (tax-
ation) from New York University
School of Law and a juris doctor from
Brooklyn Law School. She is admit-
ted to the State Bar of New York and
to the U.S. Tax Court. Tenenbaum is
also a certified public accountant.
Tenenbaum Law, P.C. is located
in Melville, NY. The tax attorneys at
Tenenbaum Law, P.C. help individ-
uals and businesses facing IRS and
New York State tax problems.
DEBORA
THIVIERGE,
BCABA,
CBAA
The ELIJA School
and Foundation
Debora Thivierge, BCaBA, CBAA,
is the founder and executive director
of The ELIJA School and Foundation
in Levittown. In 2000, after her tod-
dler son was diagnosed with Autism,
Thivierge set out to secure him the
most effective, contemporary support
available. Thus began Thivierge’s pi-
oneer voyage for her family, and a
steadfast dedication to the lives of
Long Island children with Autism.
In 2002, she founded a small foun-
dation and later in 2006, a school,
in a church basement for children
with Autism. ELIJA continued to ex-
pand and, in 2014, began to focus on
the most challenging children, ages
3 to 21, who are diagnosed with the
severe end of the Autism Spectrum
Disorders. ELIJSA and her team
offer intensive treatment to these
kids and their families from Montauk
to Manhattan.
While employing the best, the
brightest and most fit team of pro-
fessionals to work with kids with se-
vere Autism, Thivierge advanced her
own knowledge and became one of
the first to be licensed in the state
of New York in Applied Behavior
Analysis. She and her team regu-
larly offer cutting-edge, year-round
training and workshops for parents,
instructors and first-responders.
Thivierge has made remarkable
inroads during the past year with
a working farm in Huntington, and
ELIJA School children are slowly but
surely learning to farm. Hands-on
training at a garden at the school
carries over on to the enclosed green-
houses and outdoor acreage at the
Fox Hollow Farm in Huntington.
“Initial results and science-based
data on the children have been ex-
traordinary,” Thivierge said. “The
wide spread and long-time belief that
children with Autism are incapable
of completing tasks, working in a
team-like setting, and/or communi-
cating in any manner to co-workers,
has been turned upside down.”
In order to bring change, Thiv-
ierge and her team are undertaking a
philanthropic giving campaign to buy
and manage the farm on behalf of in-
dividuals with Autism.
Over the years, Thivierge has
been recognized for her dedication. In
2007, she was honored by the Nassau
County Office of the Executive for
her significant contributions to the
county; and in 2014 she received a
Town of Hempstead Citation for out-
standing individual significant con-
tributions and spirited leadership. In
2015, Thivierge received the Service
Award for five years of extraordinary
support and assistance by the Be-
havior Analyst Certification Board;
and most recently, she received the
Town of Hempstead’s 2016 Make A
Difference Award, for her “extraor-
dinary selfless nature and volunteer
activities.”
Thivierge earned a bachelor’s de-
gree in sociology from Hofstra Uni-
versity and is a New York State
Board Certified Assistant Behavior
Analyst.
Prior to serving as executive direc-
tor and founder of The ELIJA School
and Foundation, she was co-director
of Effective Interventions Clinic, a
behavioral clinic/agency serving the
needs of individuals with Autism.
She has volunteered her time to
numerous groups such as Nassau
County’s Department of Health Early
Intervention Coordinating Council,
New York State Association of Be-
havior Analysis, Nassau County Au-
tism Coalition. She also served as a
board member of The Behavior An-
alyst Certification Board®. She was
recently appointed to the New York
State Licensure Board for Applied
Behavior Analysis.
The ELIJA School is a progres-
sive organization in Levittown, New
York, founded in 2002, providing
educational training to parents and
professionals who live and work with
individuals diagnosed with Autism
Spectrum Disorders. The school en-
deavors to empower the growing Au-
tism community to improve the lives
of individuals with Autism. Year-
round school educates children with
Autism, ages three to twenty-one
from Manhattan to Montauk, uti-
lizing the science-based approach of
Applied Behavior Analysis.
ELLEN
TOBIN
Westerman Ball
Ederer Miller Zucker
& Sharfstein, LLP
Ellen Tobin is an associate in Wes-
terman Ball Ederer Miller Zucker &
Sharfstein, LLP’s litigation depart-
ment, representing individuals and
businesses in federal and state courts
and arbitration. Tobin’s practice fo-
cuses on complex commercial litiga-
tion, including contract and real es-
tate disputes, accounting and securi-
ties fraud, bankruptcy litigation and
antitrust, maritime and intellectual
property matters.
While business divorce can be bit-
ter, it is perhaps the most preventable
type of dispute, Tobin said.
“Business partners need to plan
ahead – just in case things go wrong
down the road,” she noted. “Partner-
ships and close corporations should
have written agreements that include
clearly defined roles and responsibili-
ties for the principals and clear prof-
it-sharing — and loss-sharing — ar-
rangements.”
“The written agreements should
provide a roadmap in case of irrecon-
cilable differences, including termi-
nation and dissolution provisions and
mechanisms for valuing and dividing
assets,” she said. “Family businesses
should also create succession plans
long before they are needed.”
“In any business relationship, con-
sider discussing sensitive issues by
phone or in person,” Tobin advised.
“Before you hit ‘send’ on an email,
consider whether you would want it
read out loud at a deposition.” 
Prior to joining the firm, Tobin
worked in the Manhattan office of a
prominent international law firm,
where she represented clients in com-
plex commercial cases, government in-
vestigations in federal and state courts,
arbitrations and in matters before the
Securities and Exchange Commission
and the Public Company Accounting
Oversight Board. She also served as a
law clerk for the Honorable A. Kathleen
Tomlinson of the U.S. District Court for
the Eastern District of New York.
Tobin has done extensive pro bono
work, including advocating for chil-
dren and indigent parents in family
court disputes on behalf of the Chil-
dren’s Law Center and the Brooklyn
Family Defense Practice. She has also
done pro bono work for the Queens
County District Attorney’s Office, au-
thoring an appellate brief and suc-
cessfully arguing a criminal appeal
before the New York State Appellate
Division, Second Department.
Tobin earned a juris doctor from the
University of Pennsylvania and earned
a bachelor’s degree from the Univer-
sity of Pennsylvania, from which she
graduated magna cum laude and with
distinction in International Relations.
She is admitted to practice law in
New York State, the United States
Court of Appeals for the Second Cir-
cuit, and the United District Courts

WHO’SWHO
in Women in Professional Services
for the Southern and Eastern Dis-
tricts of New York.
Westerman Ball Ederer Miller Zuck-
er & Sharfstein, LLP is a full service
commercial law firm with offices head-
quartered in Uniondale. The firm offers
a wide range of legal services in the
areas of corporate and partnership law;
litigation and alternative dispute reso-
lution; real estate leasing, acquisition,
sale, development and finance; bank-
ruptcy, restructuring and workouts,
and all related practice areas.
The firm’s clients include public and
private companies, financial service
firms, institutional and private lend-
ers, governmental entities, foreign and
domestic investors, retail and restau-
rant chains, and owners, developers
and managers of real estate. Its attor-
neys are recognized for providing so-
phisticated legal advice, with personal
attention and responsiveness.
ANDREA
TSOUKALAS
Forchelli, Curto,
Deegan, Schwartz,
Mineo & Terrana,
LLP
Andrea Tsoukalas is a partner at
the Uniondale law firm Forchelli,
Curto, Deegan, Schwartz, Mineo &
Terrana, LLP. Tsoukalas joined the
firm in 2005 and concentrates her
practice in zoning, land use, environ-
mental and municipal law matters.
She represents a wide variety of cli-
ents including national corporate
chains, local developers and small
business owners in the development of
commercial and residential properties.
Tsoukalas also has substantial
experience in appellate practice and
civil litigation. She litigates contract
and real estate claims, corporate and
partnership disputes, and regulatory
claims arising out of building and zon-
ing code violations.
Among the current real estate
81 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
trend in the area of land use and mu-
nicipal law is the emergence of new
health care facilities on Long Island,
Tsoukalas said.
“My partners and I have worked
recently to obtain approvals for major
hospitals and medical campus expan-
sions, as well as new urgent care fa-
cilities and medical offices,” she said.
“Major hospitals are merging and cre-
ating larger health care systems that
provide an ever-expanding range of
services for their patients, enhanced
training for medical students and more
opportunities for medical research.”
“At the same time, urgent care fa-
cilities that provide walk-in access to
medical care are popping up all over
Nassau and Suffolk Counties,” Tsou-
kalas said. “These facilities, which are
often affiliated with a major hospital,
provide a convenient alternative to
the traditional emergency room.”
Another trend is the conversion of
retail space to medical offices along
major thoroughfares, again to provide
convenient medical care to patients,
Tsoukalas noted.
“Many of these medical facilities,
from hospitals to urgent care, require
zoning relief from local municipal
boards,” she said. “As a land use at-
torney, I appear before these boards,
along with a variety of consultants
and experts, to obtain the approvals
needed to ensure that Long Islanders
continue to have access to the best
health care in the country.”
Tsoukalas is general counsel to
the Long Island Gasoline Retailers
Association, a nationally recognized
non-profit trade association with over
600 members. She also serves as coun-
sel to the Village of Kensington Board
of Trustees, Zoning Board of Appeals
and Architectural Review Board.
She earned a juris doctor, cum laude,
from New York Law School and is ad-
mitted to practice before the New York
State Bar. She is also a member of the
New York State Bar Association, Nas-
sau County Bar Association and Nas-
sau County Women’s Bar Association.
She also served as treasurer and was
recently appointed a director of the
Nassau County Women’s Bar Founda-
tion, the charitable arm of the Nassau
County Women’s Bar Association.
Tsoukalas was honored by the
John J. Byrne Community Center
with its Long Island Outstanding Ad-
vocate for Children and Youth Award
in 2012. Most recently, she was hon-
ored by the Queens Courier with its
Top Women in Business Award, hon-
oring influential women in business
whose achievements make a differ-
ence in the community.
Formed in 1976, under the helm
of Managing Partner Jeffrey D.
Forchelli, Forchelli, Curto, Deegan,
Schwartz, Mineo & Terrana, LLP’s
areas of expertise have expanded to
include banking, bankruptcy, employ-
ment and labor, municipal incentives/
IDA, entertainment, construction
law and more. Throughout the firm’s
growth, one thing has remained con-
stant - its focus on obtaining results
for clients. The firm employs more
than 60 attorneys who handle com-
plex matters for a broad client base
including national, regional and local
businesses, major real estate devel-
opers and organizations, banks, in-
surance companies, municipalities,
educational institutions, contractors,
architects/engineers and individuals.
MIRIAM E.
VILLANI
Sahn Ward
Coschignano, PLLC
Miriam E. Villani is a partner at
Sahn Ward Coschignano, PLLC in
Uniondale. Villani’s practice focuses
on all aspects of environmental law,
including litigation, transactional
matters, permitting, and regulatory
and compliance proceedings. Villani
represents and advises developers,
corporations, municipalities, buyers,
sellers and lenders in transactions in-
volving brownfields and other contam-
inated properties. She also represents
clients in environmental litigation in
both federal and state courts and be-
fore administrative agencies. Her ex-
tensive experience and her knowledge
of environmental law includes the
New York State Environmental Con-
servation Law, the New York State
Navigation Law, the Wetlands Acts,
RCRA, TSCA, and CERCLA.
Villani began her legal career as an
assistant regional counsel for the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency.
She was counsel with environmental
law practice groups at two prominent
Long Island law firms, and was spe-
cial environmental counsel to Pfizer
Inc., where she managed complex en-
vironmental insurance litigation.
Villani has served as chair of the
Environmental Law Section of the
New York State Bar Association and
is currently editor-in-chief of The New
York Environmental Lawyer, a quarter-
ly journal published by the New York
State Bar Association. She has been
published in several legal journals and
books, including West’s New York Prac-
tice Series, and regularly teaches and
speaks on environmental issues and the
law. In addition to the New York State
Bar Association, she is a member of the
Nassau County Bar Association.
Villani is admitted to practice in
the State of New York and before the
United States District Courts for the
Eastern and Southern Districts.
Villani earned a bachelor’s degree,
cum laude, from the State University
of New York at Stony Brook and a
juris doctor from St. John’s University
School of Law.
Sahn Ward Coschignano, PLLC is
a full service law firm concentrating
in the areas of zoning and land use
planning; real estate law and trans-
actions; civil litigation and appeals in
state and federal courts; municipal law
and legislative practice; environmen-
tal law; corporate law and commercial
transactions; matrimonial and family
law; estate and trust practice including
special needs planning and elder law;
labor and employment; real estate tax
certiorari and condemnation; and tele-
communications.
 82 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
WHO’s WHO
MATTHEW
BARNES,
CPA
Albrecht, Viggiano,
Zureck & Company,
in Accounting
P.C./AVZ
Matthew Barnes, CPA is a man-
Long Island’s accounting firms are honing in on ager at Albrecht, Viggiano, Zureck &
Company, P.C. (AVZ) and a member
year-end planning strategies to provide the best of the firm’s Quality Control Commit-
solutions for their clients as they enter the last tee. Barnes joined AVZ in 2011, was
promoted to supervisor in 2013, and
quarter of 2016. In this Who’s Who in Accounting to manager in 2016. With more than
10 years of experience, he provides
section, many of the region’s leading accounting accounting, auditing, and taxation
professionals share what issues they are focusing services to a diversified client base
on to promote growth in the new year.
in a variety of industries including
financial services, engineering, manu-
facturing, technology, real estate, and
local municipalities.
Entering the last quarter of 2016,
AVZ’s main focus is on education and
planning, Barnes said.
“In any given year, there can be
many changes to auditing and ac-
INDEXINDEXINDEX counting standards as well as tax reg-
ulations,” he said. “In order to keep
staff up to date, AVZ offers continu-
ing professional education seminars
82 MATTHEW BARNES, CPA Albrecht, Viggiano, Zureck & Company, P.C./AVZ
and also strongly encourages that we
82 JOHN BONO, CPA Friedman LLP attend outside educational seminars
geared specifically to our client base.
84 LEE FERBER, CPA Gettry Marcus CPA, P.C. It is also important that I keep cur-
84 CRAIG M. FINE, CPA, CGMA WeiserMazars LLP rent with the latest trends and chang-
es that impact each of my client’s
84 BARRY GARFIELD, CPA Baker Tilly Virchow Krause, LLP businesses and in the industries in
which they operate. If we also perform
85 MATTHEW JAHRSDOERFER Berdon LLP
individual tax services for that client,
85 MICHAEL KATZ, CPA, ATA Sanders Thaler Viola & Katz, LLP I also need to be brought up-to-date
on changes in their personal lives.”
85 STEVEN KREIT EisnerAmper LLP “It is our practice to be in constant
communication with our clients, so as
86 ANDREW H. KUBRICK, CPA Marks Paneth LLP
year-end approaches I make sure that
86 JOHN E. LARKIN, CPA/ABV Markowitz, Fenelon & Bank, LLP I schedule meetings or phone calls
with all of my clients so that I am
86 EDWARD LEE KPMG LLP fully prepared to service their needs,”
88 JOSEPH MOLLOY, CPA Marcum LLP Barnes noted. “All of this prepara-
tion and knowledge is a valuable tool
89 FELIX RUSSO BDO in planning year-end audit and ac-
counting engagements in addition to
89 FRANK SCALA Castellano, Korenberg & Co., CPAs, P.C. being able to develop client specific
89 CHRIS SENA, CPA Demasco, Sena & Jahelka LLP tax plans. I’ve always found that with
effective education and planning prior
to the end of the year, all of my as-
signments during the busy tax season
are able to be completed much more
efficiently and with few surprises.”
“AVZ prides itself on being cli-
ent-centric and this approach is just
our standard way of making sure our
clients know that they are our great-
est resource,” Barnes said.
Barnes began his career in 2007
with a mid-sized accounting firm in
Nassau County. He earned a bache-
lor’s degree in accounting from St. Jo-
seph’s College. He is a member of the
American Institute of Certified Public
Accountants (AICPA) and the New
York State Society of Certified Pub-
lic Accountants (NYSSCPA). He also
serves as treasurer for a local library.
AVZ is located in Hauppauge and
is one of the largest certified public
accounting firms on Long Island pro-
viding a wide range of financial, ac-
counting, auditing, tax and consult-
ing services to a variety of businesses
and industries. AVZ serves a myriad
of clients primarily on Long Island —
and has been doing so for more than
60 years.
The firm considers itself a partner
in growth for privately held business-
es, not-for-profit organizations and
government agencies AVZ is also an
independent member of BKR Interna-
tional, a leading global association of
independent accounting and business
advisory firms representing the exper-
tise of more than 130 member firms
with over 300 offices in over 70 coun-
tries around the world.
JOHN
BONO,
CPA
Friedman LLP
John Bono, CPA is a partner at
Friedman LLP in Uniondale. Bono
has more than 20 years of experience
in public and private accounting and
performs a variety of tax services
for a range of clients in various in-
dustries including commercial and
residential real estate, engineering,
apparel, service organizations, pro-
fessional athletes, as well as high-
net-worth individuals.
His expertise includes providing
real estate owners and developers
with tax planning and saving strate-
gies; advising high-net-worth individ-
uals and their families on tax plan-
ning; planning tax-saving strategies
for closely held businesses;
directing sophisticated I.R.C. §1031
like-kind exchanges, including coordi-
nating with Qualified Intermediaries;
and representing clients at federal
and state government tax examina-
tions and collection matters. Bono
also has experience managing the in-
ternal accounting and tax department
of a large real estate owner and devel-
opment company.
As the end of 2016 approaches, the
firm is focusing on assisting clients
with year-end tax planning strategies,
Bono said.
“We are always looking for ways
to help our clients reduce their tax
bills and manage their cash flow,” he
noted. “For example, a client may be
looking to purchase a large piece of
equipment for their business within
the next six months. By reviewing
the current P&L and the remaining
year-end projection, we may be able
to advise them that if they purchased
the equipment before the end of 2016,
they could deduct the full cost of the
equipment this year. Alternative-
ly, if they purchase it in 2017, they
wouldn’t be able to take the full de-
duction for a year or even later if they
are projecting a loss for 2017.”
“Another tax savings opportunity
we look at is whether or not the client
would get a federal deduction from
prepaying their state tax liability in
December vs. January or April,” Bono
explained. “Certain taxpayers don’t get
a benefit from doing so as they may be
in the Alternative Minimum Tax.”
“By meeting with our clients and
83 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM

WHO’SWHO
in Accounting
reviewing their year-to-date activity, we
are able to see where they stand finan-
cially, and ascertain their short-term
goals for the remainder of 2016, as well
as their long-term goals, Bono said.
A certified public accountant,
Bono a bachelor’s degree in account-
ing at St. John’s University. He is a
member of the American Institute of
Certified Public Accountants and the
New York State Society of Certified
Public Accountants.
He is also a member of the exec-
utive board for the Albertson-Her-
ricks Little League and has managed
both travel baseball and Williamsport
baseball teams in the area. He has
also been a CYO basketball coach the
past several years.
Friedman LLP, headquartered in
Manhattan with locations throughout
Long Island, New Jersey, Philadel-
phia, and Beijing has been serving
the accounting, tax and business con-
sulting needs of public and private
companies since 1924. Its clients have
the advantage of working with a mid-
size accounting firm that combines
the staff and resources of a large firm
with a philosophy of personal respon-
sibility for its clients.
LEE FERBER,
CPA
Gettry Marcus CPA,
P.C.
Lee Ferber, CPA is partner-in-
charge of the Gettry Marcus CPA,
P.C.’s business advisory group and co-
chair of the firm’s health care consult-
ing group. A partner with the firm since
1999, Ferber has gained specialization
in many areas including auditing, ac-
counting, tax and business advisory
services for closely held businesses.
As co-chair of Gettry Marcus’
health care consulting group he pro-
vides accounting, tax, audit and con-
sulting services to group practices,
ambulatory surgery centers, diagnos-
tic & treatment facilities, urgent care
centers, single and multi-specialty
“super-groups” and other ancillary
service providers. He regularly works
with providers across the health care
spectrum advising on group consolida-
tions, mergers & acquisitions, physi-
cian-hospital arrangements, physician
compensation and revenue-sharing
matters and advises practices in areas
of financial management.
As a CPA firm, Gettry Marcus
CPA, P.C. recognizes its clients want
services that provide greater value,
Ferber said.
“Why not? — with more robust ac-
counting, financial and analytic soft-
ware available to businesses, business
owners see less value in traditional
CPA attest-type services, such as fi-
nancial statement audits and tax com-
pliance,” he said. “Put simply, provid-
ing superior technical expertise and
client service is a given and is just not
enough. Clients want real value.”
“Gettry Marcus’ tagline ‘always
looking deeper’ is what the firm lives
84 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
by,” Ferber said. “Our clients want a
CPA that will advise and guide them
in ways that will help them identify
areas in their business that need im-
provement and then work with them
to implement change; change that
will provide long-term growth, profit-
ability, sustainability, and ultimately
maximize the value of their business-
es. We strive to become an extension
of our client’s management team, a
‘facilitator’ for change.”
“Just as we advise our clients to ex-
plore new approaches to evaluate and
manage their business, Gettry Marcus’
consulting group does the same,” Fer-
ber noted. “We continuously strive to
identify new technologies and adapt
innovative approaches that can be im-
plemented in our consulting group.
This ongoing effort allows us to work
with our clients in a more efficient,
structured, strategic, and goal-oriented
manner; always with an eye toward
maximizing the value of our client’s
business.”
A graduate from the State Univer-
sity of New York at Albany, Ferber is
a member of the AICPA and the New
York State Society of Certified Pub-
lic Accountants (NYSSCPA). He also
belongs to several healthcare organi-
zations including the Nassau Chapter
of the NYSSCPA’s Healthcare Com-
mittee and the Healthcare Financial
Management Association. In addition,
he is past president of the National
CPA Health Care Advisors Associ-
ation and is president of the Long
Island Chapter of the Medical Group
Management Association.
Ferber also speaks regularly on
health care payment reform and
what medical practices should be
doing, today, to remain competitive
and financially viable in the changing
health care landscape.
Gettry Marcus CPA, P.C. is a Top
200 firm nationally with offices in
Woodbury, Long Island and New York
City. The firm provides accounting,
tax, and consulting services to com-
mercial businesses, high net worth
individuals and various industries,
which include real estate and health
care. Gettry Marcus has one of the
most credentialed Business Valua-
tion and Litigation Groups in the New
York area.
The firm’s experience in diverse
industries and a highly talented and
experienced professional staff gives it
the ability to share valuable insights
into its clients’ businesses, to better
understand their goals and problems
and to help them attain the vision
they have for their company.
 
CRAIG M.
FINE, CPA,
CGMA
WeiserMazars LLP
Craig M. Fine, CPA, CGMA is the
Long Island office managing partner at
WeiserMazars LLP in Woodbury. Fine
has more than 25 years of experience
providing one-on-one business advi-
sory services to the manufacturing,
distribution and service industries.
He focuses primarily on food and bev-
erage, pharmaceutical and consumer
product companies. He has significant
expertise in auditing, accounting and
tax for closely held businesses as well
as employee benefit plans, including
pensions and 401(k) plans.
In addition to overall finance man-
agement, he advises his clients on
various areas of their business includ-
ing accounting, tax, business adviso-
ry, auditing, internal control matters
and mergers and acquisitions.
In September 2016, Fine succeed-
ed Andy Cohen as the office manag-
ing partner of WeiserMazars’ Long
Island practice.
“Although we are approaching the
end of the calendar year, it’s the be-
ginning of a new and exciting chapter
in my career,” Fine said. “One of the
most important factors I am going to
focus on in my new role as office man-
aging partner is value-added services
for clients.”
“I have discovered through many
discussions with business owners that
what they want the most, besides
great customer service and accurate
compliance services, are strategies and
advice that legitimately minimizes
taxes, as well as helps them devel-
op methodologies that increase profits
and cash flow,” he explained. “In order
to meet these requests, we will con-
tinue to focus on strategic hiring and
detail-oriented training for our staff.”
”In addition, WeiserMazars has de-
veloped an operational tool that as-
sists in performing a high-level diag-
nostics analysis of a company which
allows us to identify client issues and
deliver the right expertise to provide
solutions,” Fine said. “ I look forward
to continuing to work with our Long
Island practice staff and hope to con-
tinue to be a valuable resource to both
them and our clients.”
Prior to joining WeiserMazars, Fine
was a partner at Biscotti, Toback &
Company, where he headed up quality
control and led the accounting and au-
diting department, which specialized
in closely-held middle market busi-
nesses. He also acted as the person-
nel partner, providing leadership and
training in all aspects of accounting,
auditing and client service-related is-
sues to the firm’s managers and staff.
Fine earned a Bachelor of Science
Degree from the State University of
New York at Albany. He has lectured
at several colleges regarding careers
in public accounting and participates
in the firm’s campus recruiting efforts.
He also speaks annually at the firms’
Food and Beverage CFO Boot Camp.
He is a certified public accountant
and a chartered global management
accountant; a member of the Ameri-
can Institute of Certified Public Ac-
countants and its Employee Benefit
Forum; and the New York State So-
ciety of Certified Public Accountants.
WeiserMazars LLP provides in-
sight and specialized skills in ac-
counting, auditing, tax, consulting
and advisory services. Since 1921, our
dedicated professionals have lever-
aged technical industry expertise to
develop customized solutions for cli-
ents, create value, and optimize their
performance. As the independent U.S.
member firm of Mazars Group, our
global reach includes 17,000+ profes-
sionals across 75+ countries. At local
and global levels, we are proud of our
value-added services in building last-
ing relationships with our clients and
communities. 
BARRY
GARFIELD,
CPA
Baker Tilly Virchow
Krause, LLP
Barry Garfield, CPA is the Long
Island market leader and partner in
Baker Tilly Virchow Krause, LLP’s
Melville office. Garfield coordinates
the growth efforts of the Long Island
office and brings more than 30 years
of public accounting experience to his
role. He is also a member of the firm’s
Ownership & Deferred Compensation
Committee.
Garfield has extensive experience
in accounting and auditing of both
public and privately-held companies,
including manufacturing and whole-
sale distribution. He counsels clients
in connection with acquisitions and
divestitures of businesses, divisions
and product lines. He also assists cli-
ents with cash management, reviews
of operational policies, procedures and
controls, reorganizations, budgeting,
as well as with debt restructuring and
obtaining traditional and non-tradi-
tional financing.
Baker Tilly’s focus in Long Island
includes two specific niche capabili-
ties — professional services and life
sciences, Garfield said.
“In the professional services indus-
try, we work closely with law firms to
enable effective management of the fi-
nancial, tax and other important busi-
ness issues the face,” he said.
“We understand that these are chal-
lenging times for law firms, and we
work to help them adapt to changing
regulations, understand cybersecuri-
ty threats, improve accounting sys-
tems and internal controls and moni-
tor rapidly-changing state regulations.
In addition, we assist law firms with
partnership matters such as partner
capital, distributions and retirement
planning,” Garfield explained.
Long Island also has a large num-
ber of life sciences companies with very
unique needs, he noted. “We under-
stand the issues faced by these com-
panies and offer comprehensive tax,
accounting, and consulting services in
each stage of the corporate life cycle
including market access and commer-
cialization, international expansion and
ongoing funding requirements.”
“Baker Tilly’s life sciences special-
ists work with medical device, biotech-
nology, pharmaceutical and medical
technology companies to navigate myr-
iad challenges,” Garfield said. “We are
industry experts. We know our clients’
businesses and offer solutions to help
grow, expand and minimize risk.”
Garfield earned a bachelor’s degree
in accounting from Queens College.

WHO’SWHO
in Accounting
He is a member of the American In-
stitute of Certified Public Accountants
and the New York State Society of
Certified Public Accountants (NYSS-
CPA). He is also vice president, ACG
New York chapter; a board member,
Long Island Association (LIA); board
member, Advancement for Commerce
Industry and Technology (ACIT); and
advisory board member, Risk Man-
agement Association (RMA).
Baker Tilly Virchow Krause, LLP
(Baker Tilly) is a nationally recog-
nized, full-service accounting and
advisory firm whose specialized pro-
fessionals connect with clients and
their businesses through refreshing
candor and clear industry insight.
With approximately 2,700 employees
across the United States, Baker Tilly
is ranked as one of the 15 largest ac-
counting and advisory firms in the
country. Headquartered in Chicago,
Baker Tilly is an independent mem-
ber of Baker Tilly International, a
worldwide network of independent ac-
counting and business advisory firms
in 141 countries, with 28,000 profes-
sionals. The combined worldwide rev-
enue of independent member firms is
$3.8 billion.
 
MATTHEW
JAHRSDOERFER
Berdon LLP
Matthew Jahrsdoerfer is an audit
principal at Berdon LLP in Jericho.
Jahrsdoerfer has nearly 25 years of
accounting and consulting experience
providing services to clients in the
manufacturing, distribution, technol-
ogy, professional services, and finan-
cial services industries.
Jahrsdoerfer’s areas of expertise
include auditing of financial state-
ments and due diligence and report-
ing services on mergers, acquisitions,
initial public offerings, financing ar-
rangements and recapitalizations of
both public and private companies.
Regardless of the time of year, Ber-
don LLP’s soul focus is providing solu-
tions to the challenges and needs of
its clients, Jahrsdoerfer said.
“Some challenges that Long Island
businesses face today include employ-
ment and workforce issues, difficul-
ties in accessing capital, increasing
operational costs, and national and
international competition,” he ex-
plained. “While these are serious chal-
lenges there is also a renewed sense
of optimism and growth. Our clients
look to us to provide quality audit,
tax, and consulting services to deal
with these challenges as well as plan
for future growth. Berdon profession-
als advise our clients on financial re-
porting requirements, as well as tax
law changes and compliance, helping
them stay ahead of issues and prevent
potential problems.”
“There is nothing more satisfying
than achieving client growth through
our consulting services,” Jahrsdoerfer
said. “This could include advising on
85 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
mergers and acquisitions, assisting in
obtaining financing, or analyzing in-
ternal controls to identify weaknesses.
While performing due diligence and
advising on transactions we work to
ensure that the outcome is beneficial
both in the short- and long-term to
maximize value.”
The firm also acts as a resource to
the marketplace by educating through
presentations, round table events, ar-
ticles and blogs, Jahrsdoerfer noted.
“Our goal is to advise our clients
and the business community to help
maximize their success,” he said.
Among Jahrsdoerfer’s professional
activities, Jahrsdoerfer is a member
of the American Institute of Certi-
fied Public Accountants (AICPA); New
York State Society of Certified Pub-
lic Accountants (NYSSCPA); and the
New York Hedge Fund Roundtable, a
non-profit organization committed to
promoting education and best practic-
es in the hedge fund industry. 
Jahrsdoerfer has spoken at indus-
try conferences, has written articles,
and has taught continuing education
seminars on various accounting and
auditing issues.
Berdon LLP, with offices in New
York City and Jericho, is consistently
ranked among the nation’s top CPA
and advisory firms. With nearly 400
professionals and staff — at offices in
Jericho and New York City — clients
can access a comprehensive array of
accounting, tax, financial, and man-
agement advisory services.
Berdon advises on almost every
aspect of a business at any stage of
development — from startup through
growth, diversification, and succes-
sion. Berdon is a recognized leader in
advising the real estate industry and
works with numerous businesses in
the manufacturing and distribution
sector as well as high net worth in-
dividuals. If needs cross internation-
al borders, Berdon service extends
worldwide through membership in
TIAG, a global alliance of more than
115 independent accounting firms in
over 65 countries.
MICHAEL
KATZ, CPA,
ATA
Sanders Thaler Viola
& Katz, LLP
Michael Katz, CPA, ATA is admin-
istrative partner at Sanders Thaler
Viola & Katz, LLP in Jericho. Katz is
responsible for managing the day-to-
day operations of the firm and over-
seeing all of the staff.
During this past year, Katz became
administrative partner of the firm.
“In this role I have assisted Managing
Partner Scott Sanders in running the
day-to-day operations of the firm,” he
said. “My role as administrative part-
ner includes the supervision of the
professional and administrative staff.
At times this expanded role has been
challenging, but overall, it has been
very rewarding as I enjoy working
more closely with our staff.”
Katz caters to both regional and
national companies by providing
them with information on tax plan-
ning, projections & business planning,
audit representation for federal &
state tax problems, insurance compa-
ny audits, and federal & state Depart-
ments of Labor audits.
He has almost 25 years of experi-
ence in the accounting industry. He
was chief operating officer and CFO
of Geller Marzano & Company, CPAs
PC prior to merging with Sanders
Thaler. His continued success lies in
his ability to recognize the underlying
facets of his clients’ financial plans
that are most overlooked and directly
affect their tax structure.
As the end of 2016 approaches,
Sanders Thaler Viola & Katz has
been focusing on several key areas,
Katz said.
“The first major area of focus is
maintaining and expanding our al-
ready very strong staff,” he said.
“Over the last couple of years, my
firm has continued to grow, which
includes not only external growth
through mergers and acquisitions
of other CPA firms but also internal
growth due to an increase in our cli-
ent base which necessitates an ex-
pansion of our professional and ad-
ministrative staff. We credit our fine
staff for their efforts in allowing us to
grow in a way that does not affect our
already effective professional service
to our clients.”
“With continuous expansion and
growth comes the challenge of main-
taining efficient and streamlined
operations of the firm,” Katz noted.
“Similar to the advisory and consult-
ing services we provide to our clients
to assist them in operating their busi-
nesses efficiently in order to maximize
profits, we look to take our own advice
in streamlining the operations of our
own firm so that the infrastructure
is in place to absorb growth without
experiencing major issues that may
cause financial setbacks.”
Katz earned an associate’s degree
in accounting, magna cum laude, from
Nassau Community College (NCC).
During his studies at NCC, he was
president of Nassau Community’s
Chapter of Phi Theta Kappa, which
is the National Honor Society of Two-
Year Colleges. Upon graduation from
NCC, he was awarded with the only
scholarship the accounting department
offered, as well as several other schol-
arships and entered Hofstra Univer-
sity where he earned a bachelor’s de-
gree in accounting, earning Dean’s List
honors every semester at both colleges.
He is a member of the American
Institute of Certified Public Accoun-
tants, the New York State Society of
Certified Public Accountants, and the
National Society of Accountants. His
specialized brand of service as an Ac-
credited Tax Advisor (ATA) has been
commended by the Accreditation
Council for Accountancy and Taxa-
tion, which recognizes professionals
who handle sophisticated tax planning
issues, including ownership of closely
held businesses, qualified retirement
plans and complicated estates.
Sanders Thaler Viola & Katz, LLP
(STVK) offers a full spectrum of ac-
counting and tax services, with a
hands-on approach for all of its cli-
ents. This includes general income tax
preparation for individuals and all cat-
egories of business, as well as special-
ized practices like IRS and State tax
grievances, for which STVK has an
entire division. Additional niche areas
include gift, trust and estate planning
and filings; entertainment related
fields; and personal business manage-
ment. The firm also provides financial
statement preparation, tax planning,
audit services and monthly accounting/
bookkeeping services. STVK’s part-
ners and professionals maintain con-
stant communication and respond in a
prompt and professional manner.
STEVEN
KREIT
EisnerAmper LLP
Steven Kreit is partner-in-charge of
EisnerAmper LLP’s New York Com-
mercial Audit and Assurance Practice,
as well as the Life Sciences and Tech-
nology groups in New York. Kreit has
expertise in serving industries across
major markets, including life sciences,
technology, pharmaceuticals, media,
manufacturing and distribution. His
experience benefits companies through
their entire lifecycle — from emerging
entities through growth stages and
transactions, as well as maturity.
Kreit has taken companies through
the IPO and reverse merger process-
es, and numerous registration state-
ments, including drafting sessions
with investment bankers, attorneys,
and ensuring compliance with SEC
rules and regulations. His insight and
guidance is based on his more than
25 years of auditing public companies
and working with the SEC.
EisnerAmper LLP is currently fo-
cusing on ways to improve the work/
life balance for its clients and staff
using technology, Kreit said.
“We’ve all experienced disruption
due to the emergence of new technol-
ogies, but we’re focused on harness-
ing change and improving the way
we communicate with our clients,” he
said. “Technology is a great equalizer;
it allows us to streamline communica-
tions and work processes and provides
our employees the ability to move
from one client to the next and back
to the office — often without leaving
their desks, or even the comfort of
their own homes.”
“However, sometimes there’s no
substitute for a physical presence,”
Kreit noted. “One of the biggest moves
as we push into 2017 is doubling our
space at 6900 Jericho Turnpike in
Syosset, for a number of reasons. Our
client base on Long Island is growing
by leaps and bounds. The technology
and life sciences sectors are boom-
ing, and the local focus on real estate,
health care and financial services is
reflected by very significant practice
groups at our firm. With the number
of our professionals who are Long Is-
land-based, it is a very prudent move,

WHO’SWHO
in Accounting
both financially and for the conve-
nience of our clients and people.”
Kreit spearheads the firm’s annual
research report, Concerns About Risks
Confronting Boards, which is broadly
acknowledged by the media and finan-
cial outlets, as well as by organizations
focused on the issues of risk and repu-
tation. His analysis of accounting- and
risk-related topics is regularly quoted
in professional publications, and he is
a sought-after speaker at life sciences
and technology conferences. Kreit has
also led numerous training sessions on
critical topics, including audit meth-
odology and Section 404 of the Sar-
banes-Oxley Act.
Kreit is a certified public accoun-
tant. He earned a bachelor’s degree
from the State University of New
York-Buffalo. Prior to joining the
firm, he was with a Big Four account-
ing firm.
Kreit is a member of the American
Institute of Certified Public Accoun-
tants and the New York State Society
of Certified Public Accountants.
EisnerAmper LLP is a premier ac-
counting and business advisory ser-
vices firm, and among the largest in
the United States with offices in New
York City; Syosset, NY; Pennsylva-
nia; Massachusetts; Connecticut; New
Jersey; California; Florida; Israel; and
the Cayman Islands. The firm fea-
tures 180 partners and principals and
approximately 1,300 professionals.
EisnerAmper provides audit, ac-
counting, and tax services, as well as
corporate finance, including advising
on IPOs and M&A, as well as con-
ducting valuations and due diligence
reviews; internal audit and risk man-
agement; litigation consulting and fo-
rensic accounting; information tech-
nology, and other professional ser-
vices to a broad range of clients across
many industries, including services to
more than 200 public companies.
ANDREW H.
KUBRICK,
CPA
Marks Paneth LLP
Andrew H. Kubrick, CPA, JD, is
partner-in-charge of the Long Island
office of Marks Paneth LLP in Wood-
bury. Kubrick oversees client service,
business development, and talent man-
agement for the Long Island region.
Kubrick provides services to a
broad range of clients, including real
estate entities, law firms, restau-
rants, liquor distributors, furniture
companies and private foundations.
He advises his clients on all facets
of accounting and tax issues. With a
background in law and accounting,
Kubrick’s specialty is serving lawyers
and law firms.
Prior to joining Marks Paneth,
Kubrick worked in private accounting
for several years before transitioning
to public accounting at a small CPA
firm. He quickly advanced to partner,
a status he retained when the firm
combined with Marks Paneth in 2000.
86 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
He currently serves on the firm’s ex-
ecutive committee, which sets policy
and strategy for the firm.
Kubrick is a member of the Amer-
ican Institute of CPAs and the New
York State Society of CPAs. He is li-
censed to practice public accounting
in New York.
Kubrick earned a bachelor’s degree
in accounting from Ithaca College and a
juris doctor from New York Law School.
Marks Paneth LLP, whose origins
date back to 1907, is an accounting
firm with more than 550 people, in-
cluding over 70 partners and princi-
pals. The firm, with headquarters in
New York City and additional offices
in Washington, DC, New Jersey, Long
Island and Westchester, provides pub-
lic and private businesses with a full
range of auditing, accounting, tax, con-
sulting, trade remediation and valua-
tion services as well as litigation and
financial advisory services to domestic
and international clients. The firm also
specializes in providing tax advisory
and consulting for high-net-worth in-
dividuals and their families, as well
as a wide range of services for interna-
tional, real estate, hospitality, media,
entertainment, nonprofit and govern-
ment services clients. The firm has a
strong track record supporting emerg-
ing growth companies, entrepreneurs,
business owners and investors as they
navigate the business life cycle.
The firm’s subsidiary, Tailored
Technologies, LLC, provides informa-
tion technology consulting services.
In addition, the firm’s membership
in Morison International, a leading
international association for inde-
pendent business advisers, financial
consulting and accounting firms, fa-
cilitates service delivery to clients
throughout the United States and
around the world. In addition, readers
of the New York Law Journal rank
Marks Paneth as one of the area’s top
three forensic accounting firms for the
fifth year in a row.
JOHN E.
LARKIN,
CPA/ABV
Markowitz, Fenelon
& Bank, LLP
John E. Larkin, CPA/ABV is a
partner at Markowitz, Fenelon &
Bank, LLP, which has four offices on
the East End of Long Island. Larkin
began his career with the firm as a
staff accountant in 1989 after gradu-
ating from SUNY Plattsburgh with a
Bachelor of Sciences in Accounting.
He has spent his entire career in
the Hamptons working with many of
the local businesses and families. He
has extensive experience in income
tax planning for individuals and close-
ly-held businesses, and he provides
tax-consulting services in the areas
of estate and gift tax preparation and
business valuations. Through his af-
filiation with Raymond James, Lar-
kin is able to help his clients plan for
their personal and family’s future.
Being able to navigate the complexi-
ties of financial planning, he assists
with pension plans, cash flow needs
and investments.
As the end of the year approaches,
there are a multitude of issues the
firm is already putting time and at-
tention towards, Larkin said.
“For our practice, once we get
passed the October 15th filing dead-
line, we begin to focus more on the up-
coming projection and tax season,” he
said. “We are currently finalizing our
annual firm wide 2016 tax update. We
have an outside speaker educate the
firm’s accountants on the latest tax
updates, changes and issues. We have
also started using a new write up soft-
ware, so the staff need to be trained
and files exported.”
The firm is having conversations
with its business clients about their
year-end tax planning, Larkin noted.
“On the East End of Long Island, the
construction and landscaping indus-
try have been very busy and are ex-
pected to continue into next year,” he
said. “How to reduce or defer profits
now to lower a potential tax liability,
yet still have enough cash flow to get
through the winter and spring are al-
ways interesting conversations.”
“For our individual clients, we are
also talking to them about this and next
year’s income and taxes,” Larkin ex-
plained. “What is their projected 2016
tax liability, financial needs and goals?
In addition, we are always discussing
estate and family planning with our
clients. By year end, we need to make
sure any plans are implemented by the
client and other advisors.”
“Personally, I am finishing up my
annual CPE requirements, with the
upcoming AICPA ABV conference in
November,” Larkin said. “Also, I do try
to spend a little more time with fam-
ily and friends towards year end, as I
won’t see them again until April 15th.”
Larkin is a member of the Amer-
ican Institute of Certified Public Ac-
countants (AICPA) where he holds
the AICPA certification ABV, Accred-
ited in Business Valuation. This cer-
tification qualifies him to be the part-
ner in charge of the firm’s valuation
division. He is also certified in foren-
sic services through the AICPA.
Larkin is a member of the New
York State Society of Certified Pub-
lic Accountants (NYSSCPA), and the
National Conference of CPA Practi-
tioners. He holds his Series 66 and
Series 7 and has his New York State
licenses for health and life insurance.
He is active in community organi-
zations and currently serves on the
board for Peconic Land Trust. He was
a former board member of Hamptons
State Bank and is a member of the
Southampton Rotary.
Markowitz, Fenelon & Bank, LLP
with offices in Riverhead, East Hamp-
ton, Sag Harbor and Southampton
offers a broad range of services to a
variety of businesses and industries
throughout Long Island and the Tri-
State area. The firm’s goal is to help
clients achieve success in both their
business and personal lives. The firm
offers accounting services through
Markowitz, Fenelon & Bank, LLP and
financial planning services through
Raymond James to provide the guid-
ance and counsel needed to help its cli-
ents focus on identifying and achieving
their financial goals. The credentials
and experience of its partners and staff
offer clients expertise in traditional
accounting functions and in specialized
consulting programs.
EDWARD
LEE
KPMG LLP
Edward Lee is a partner in KP-
MG’s Metro New York government,
healthcare and higher education, re-
search, and other not-for-profit prac-
tice. Based in KPMG’s Melville office,
Lee has more than 20 years of experi-
ence serving government, healthcare,
higher education and not-for-profit
organizations. He is also the resource
partner for KPMG’s Long Island of-
fice, responsible for overseeing the
staffing of audit engagements, man-
ager workloads and KPMG’s employee
performance management process.
Lee has significant experience serv-
ing government, health care, higher
education, research, and other not-for-
profit organizations. He also has exten-
sive experience in performing audits in
accordance with the Uniform Guidance
(formerly OMB Circular A-133), various
cost reports required by the New York
State Department of Health, electronic
filing of annual financial statements on
HUD REAC system, and agreed-upon
procedures reports in connection with
tax exempt bond offerings, as well as
NCAA guidelines.
“I work primarily with government
and not-for-profit clients,” Lee said.
“These organizations face increased
regulatory oversight, stagnant or di-
minishing revenues and resources,
and increasing costs. They must iden-
tify ways to increase revenues and
manage costs.”
Recent legislation requires federal
agencies to implement control activi-
ties related to fraud risk management,
including a requirement to collect and
analyze data to monitor trends and
improve controls, Lee explained. “I be-
lieve local government agencies and
not-for-profit should also make man-
aging these risks a top priority and
should be proactive in reviewing the
effectiveness of their own risk manage-
ment programs.”
“The use of meaningful data ana-
lytics can increase the effectiveness
and efficiency of these programs,” Lee
said. “Organizations must examine
how they can use data to address is-
sues and needs. I believe the bene-
fits and value of improved data and
analytics include increased efficien-
cies, less waste, and better outcomes,
which can help public sector organi-
zations carry out their mission and
ultimately improve the quality of life
of their constituents.”
In addition, Lee noted that organi-
zations continue to look at alternative
ways to reduce costs and monetize
assets through public private partner-
ships (P3). “An effective P3, can trans-
87 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM

WHO’SWHO
in Accounting
fer risks while resulting an increased
efficiencies in delivering services to
constituents,” he said.
Lee has also assisted clients in doc-
umenting their internal controls and
identifying leading practices. He has
presented to several organizations
on topics such as Enterprise Risk
Management and the Uniform Guid-
ance. Lee took a two-year hiatus from
KPMG during which time he was the
controller for Hofstra University.
He earned a bachelor’s degree in
accounting from Long Island Univer-
sity – Post Campus. Lee is a member
of the American Institute of Certi-
fied Public Accountants (AICPA) and
the New York State Society of CPAs
(NYSSCPA).
KPMG LLP, an audit, tax and ad-
visory firm, is the U.S. member firm
of KPMG International Cooperative
(KPMG International). KPMG Inter-
national’s member firms have 174,000
professionals, including more than
9,000 partners, in 155 countries. Some
or all of the services described here-
in may not be permissible for KPMG
audit clients and their affiliates.
TARGET YOUR AUDIENCE
Long Island Business News has a weekly reach
of approximately 18,750 readers, 73% of whom are
business owners, officers & high-level managers.
88 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
JOSEPH
MOLLOY,
CPA
Marcum LLP
Joseph Molloy is a director in the
tax & business services division of
Marcum LLP, with a specific focus
on the construction industry. In this
role, he oversees the preparation and
review of tax returns and assists with
tax planning for contractors.
Molloy is experienced in all areas
of tax, including projections, prepara-
tions, reviews and correspondence. He
helps clients create and maintain tax
deferral strategies, thus enhancing
their financial position. He also has
extensive experience preparing tax re-
turns for a variety of entities, includ-
ing C-Corps, S-Corps, partnerships,
individuals and trusts.
Molloy regularly advises clients on
tax information, regulation updates,
and tax reporting best practices. His
knowledge of tax incentive program
opportunities, such as energy tax cred-
its (179D) and the research & develop-
ment (R&D) credit, has resulted in sub-
stantial increased cash flow for clients.
“Communication with clients is im-
portant no matter the time of year,”
Molloy said. “However, as the year-
end approaches, it becomes even more
vital. Successful tax planning must be
proactive, and this communication is
an essential step in the process.”
“When the leaves begin to fall, it
is time to start scheduling year-end
planning meetings with clients to dis-
cuss how the business performed, re-
view changes in tax law, and assess
possible tax incentives that may pres-
ent opportunities to the taxpayer,” he
noted. “From my perspective, it is im-
portant to know if anything different
occurred this year compared to prior
years, such as gains or losses that
could significantly affect taxable in-
come. Armed with this information, I
can assess the viability of tax savings
and tax deferral strategies, along with
tax projections. These projections help
the taxpayer understand the savings
opportunities, and to budget for pay-
ments due; before January first for
tax deductions or for payments due in
March and April.”
“Communication with clients is im-
portant all year,” Molloy explained.
“This additional focus at year-end en-
sures proactive tax planning.”
Molloy provides training and men-
toring seminars to clients and staff,
libn.com
Contact our advertising
department to discuss options for
your business at 631.737.1700
as well as presents tax updates to
sureties, banks, and other financial
creditors. He has written tax-related
articles on issues affecting construc-
tion companies.
He earned a bachelor’s degree in
accounting from Queens College and
is a member of the American Institute
of Certified Public Accountants, the
New York State Society of Certified
Public Accountants and the Construc-
tion Financial Management Associa-
tion, NYC chapter; and is on the advi-
sory board of Contractors for Kids.
Marcum LLP is one of the largest
independent public accounting and
advisory services firms in the United
States. Headquartered in New York
City, Marcum LLP offers the resources
of 1,500 professionals, including more
than 200 partners, in offices in major
business markets throughout the U.S.,
Grand Cayman and China. Marcum
is a member of the Marcum Group,
an organization providing a compre-
hensive range of professional services
spanning accounting and advisory,
technology solutions, wealth manage-
ment, and executive and professional
recruiting. The Marcum Group com-
panies include Marcum LLP, Marcum
Technology LLC, Marcum Search LLC,
Marcum Staffing LLC, Marcum Finan-
cial Services LLC, and Marcum Bern-
stein & Pinchuk LLP.

WHO’SWHO
in Accounting
FELIX
RUSSO
BDO
Felix Russo is a partner in BDO’s
private client services division where
he is responsible for providing compre-
hensive tax compliance and consulting
services for high net worth individuals
and family offices. Russo also provides
tax services for clients in a wide range
of industries, with a focus on real es-
tate ownership and development.
He joined BDO in July as a result of
an expansion with his predecessor firm,
Charles A. Barragato & Co. LLP, where
he’s practiced for the past 11 years. In
addition to client service, Russo spends
a significant amount of time on internal
functions revolving around the develop-
ment of the firm’s professionals, quality
control and recruiting.
In this election year, one of BDO’s
core focuses is on the direction the
country will be heading, Russo said.
“With our economic climate poised
for a dramatic change from both a tax
and regulatory perspective, it’s import-
ant that we’re prepared to face these
challenges head on with ideas and
solutions that are adaptable to the eco-
nomic policies that are set in place,” he
said. “We’re expecting the unexpected,
and we don’t have the luxury of cap-
ping our attention at the federal level
– we also need to be mindful of what’s
happening at the international, state
and local levels, as well.”
“The accounting and legal commu-
nities are also very concerned about
cybersecurity – whether it’s the next
corporate hacking scandal or another
IRS phone scam, the security of data,
both at the corporate and personal
level is under constant threat and we
have a duty, as trusted professionals,
to help our clients manage that risk,”
Russo noted.
Russo is very active in profession-
al organizations, most recently hav-
ing served as president of the Suffolk
Chapter of the New York State Society
of CPAs where he was acknowledged
for his efforts in boosting membership.
BDO, with local offices in Haup-
pauge and New York City, provides
assurance, tax, financial advisory and
consulting services to a wide range
of publicly traded and privately held
companies. The firm offers a sophisti-
cated array of services and the global
capabilities as one of the world’s larg-
est accounting and consulting net-
works, combined with the personal
attention of experienced professionals.
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89 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
Sena said. “There could also be radical
changes in the tax code depending who
FRANK CHRIS
gets elected and how businesses need
to plan for that for 2017 and beyond.”
SCALA SENA, CPA
“There is a lot of uncertainty until
Castellano,
Demasco, Sena &
the outcome of the election and how
that outcome will effect my clients’
Korenberg & Co.,
Jahelka LLP bottom line,” Sena noted.
CPAs, P.C.
Prior to launching his career as
a certified public accountant, Sena
worked in a supervisory capacity for
Frank Scala, CPA is a partner at Chris Sena, CPA is a partner at U.S. Trust Company.
Castellano, Korenberg & Co., CPAs Demasco, Sena & Jahelka LLP (DS- A strong proponent of giving back
in Hicksville. Scala is also in charge JCPA), an accounting, tax and adviso- to his community, Sena serves as cap-
of the firm’s Litigation Support Ser- ry services firm in Massapequa. With tain for the Bayport Volunteer Fire
vices Division where he specializes 25 years of accounting experience, Department, proudly upholding a
in forensic accounting, contractor Sena provides conscientious account- family tradition as both his father and
claims and shareholder dispute res- ing and tax advisory services to chari- uncle were firefighters.
olution. ties, private foundations, schools, and DSJCPA is a full service account-
Scala specializes in financial, tax for-profit businesses in a variety of ing firm with a staff of highly trained
and consulting services for clientele industries including hospitality. and dedicated accounting and book-
in the construction industry and in He joined the firm in 1990 and was keeping professionals. The firm pro-
other various industries including named a partner in 2002. He finds vides a wide range of accounting and
transportation, manufacturing, real satisfaction in helping individuals and tax expertise to individuals, busi-
estate, not-for–profit, import/export organizations conquer complex situ- nesses, not-for-profit organizations,
and wholesale distribution. Scala’s ations and admires the efforts of the schools and other agencies.
expertise goes further than the tra- people he works alongside at DSJCPA The firm, established in 1972, has
ditional areas of accounting as he and the remarkable results the firm been built on the highest standards
is a strategic planner and trusted achieves on behalf of its clientele. of knowledge in the fields of business
business advisor for his clients. He There are many issues Sena is management, financial planning and
has an outstanding reputation and keeping his eye on as this election taxes pertaining to estates, trusts
maintains extensive relationships season comes to a close. and businesses, as well as individu-
within the surety and banking com- “In any election year there are a als. From its offices in Massapequa,
munities while taking an active role lot of unknowns as to how the stock New York, the firm services clients
in his clients’ bonding and financ- market will react and how healthcare, throughout Long Island, the five bor-
ing programs. including Obamacare will effect busi- oughs of New York City, Westchester
Castellano, Korenberg & Co. is ness expenses and personal decisions,” County, Connecticut and New Jersey.
focused on delivering quality and
timely consulting, financial state-
ment and tax services to its clients,
as well as the banking and surety
industries, Scala said.
“In the ever changing world of
accounting principles, codifications,
procedures and the tax code, and
with technology seemingly trying
to outpace us, we are always faced
with the challenge of ‘keeping up’ so
that we don’t become stagnant,” he
said. “In addition, the moderniza-
tion of the workplace and the new
Millennial outlook on work life ver-
sus home life is something we strive
to meld into our way of doing busi-
ness while still remaining a grow-
ing, profitable firm and continuing
to increase our value to our clients.”
Scala is a member of many pro-
fessional organizations including
the American Institute of Certified
Public Accountants, Construction
Financial Management Association,
Long Island Contractors Associa-
tion, Subcontractors Trade Associ-
ation and the Contractors for Kids.
Castellano, Korenberg & Co. is
a full-service accounting firm pro-
viding audit, accounting, tax, and
consulting services to privately held
businesses, their executives, and
high net worth individuals through-
out the New York Metropolitan
area.  We specialize in serving cli-
ents who operate in the construc-
tion, manufacturing, distribution,
and real estate industries.  Since
our founding in 1991,  Castellano,
Korenberg & Co.  has helped our
clients achieve success by provid-
ing technical expertise, customized
business solutions, and personal-
ized attention to help them navi-
gate through today’s challenges and
plan for the future.
 90 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM

in Melville. Chinitz has been a part

WHO’s WHO
of Long Island’s commercial and in-
dustrial real estate community since
MARIO 1987. He has completed more than
1,000 commercial real estate transac-
ASARO tions while serving with some of Long
Island’s largest real estate brokerage
Industry One Realty
houses, including Grubb & Ellis and
Island Realty.
in Real Estate & Development Chinitz’s 30 years of commercial
real estate experience in addition to
Mario Asaro is president of Indus- 10 years in business management
has enabled him to craft a firm that
Long Island’s real estate landscape is active and try One Realty in Melville. A gradu-
provides the most professional ser-
ate of St John’s University, in 2009
growing, according to many of the region’s real Asaro took the helm of the 30-year-old vice for Park Place Realty Group cli-
ents. His clients include Nestle, Allied
estate companies, development organizations Industry One Realty and tripled the
Signal Aerospace, Northrop Grum-
size of the firm when he moved the
and real estate law firms/attorneys. In this Who’s company from Farmingdale to a large man, FDIC, Ryder Transportation
Class A office in Melville. Systems, Honeywell Corp., Mestek,
Who in Real Estate & Development section, top Industry One Realty Corp is a full Inc., Chemed Corp., RXR and Suffolk
County Water Authority.
industry leaders explain how they plan to carry service commercial real estate firm,
Park Place Realty Group has seen
which specializes in office, industrial,
this enthusiasm into 2017. retail, investment and special use prop- increased activity and recovery in
erties, as well as property management. commercial real estate markets on
As the year ends, Asaro is focusing Long Island during the last several
years and expects it will continue into
on creating inventory opportunities
the final months of 2016, Chinitz said.
in the market by working harder to
“The combination of low interest
find property owners who are willing
rates, redevelopment in the boroughs
to sell for the many buyers who call
and New York City and the desire
on Asaro and the Industry One team.
INDEXINDEXINDEX “Another focus, he said, “is expanding
of Boomers and Millennials who’ve
taken on roles in family-run compa-
the Melville office even more, as well
nies to seek shorter commutes, along
focusing on opening other offices in
with better schools for their children,
the next few years in Florida, New
90 MARIO ASARO Industry One Realty continue to drive the commercial real
York City and New Jersey to start.”
estate market on Long Island,” he
90 DAVID CHINITZ Park Place Realty Group, LLC Asaro holds the distinguished
said. “Industrial property values con-
SIOR designation whose select mem-
91 ANN CONROY Douglas Elliman Real Estate tinue to climb to record highs and
bers adhere to strict ethical standards
vacancy rates remain at record lows.
and educational requirements. He
91 NEIL B. GARFINKEL Abrams Garfinkel Margolis Bergson, LLP The office market has seen improve-
also sits on the board of CIBS (Com-
ment but as our residential infra-
91 BERNARD P. KENNEDY Bond, Schoeneck & King PLLC mercial Industrial Broker’s Society)
structure finally begins a transition,
and was the first recipient of their
92 MARK LAFFEY Laffey Real Estate there is a continuing need to provide
Rising Star Award in 2005.
affordable housing options for our
92 RICHARD B. MALTZ, CAI Maltz Auctions Asaro grew up working in his fa-
Millennial labor pool so that Long Is-
ther’s restaurant from the age of
land becomes more attractive for com-
92 JOE MOSHÉ Charles Rutenberg Realty, Inc. 12 on weekends and summers then
panies to relocate and expand here.”
at the age of 21 he opened his own
93 BRUCE NELSON NAI Long Island/ NAI Global An alumnus of Albany State Uni-
restaurant he ran for 9 years and
versity, Chinitz was elected to the
93 DEIDRE O’CONNELL Daniel Gale Sotheby’s International Realty, Inc. then sold, in 2002, to pursue Com-
board of directors of the Commercial
mercial Real Estate. He credits his
93 PHIL OKUN Realty Connect USA Industrial Brokers Society (CIBS) in
experience in the restaurant/hospital-
2003 and currently serves as presi-
ity industry for grooming him to work
94 PHILIP SHWOM, SIOR, CCIM Schacker Realty dent of the board.
long, hard days, dealing with daily
Park Place Realty Group, LLC is
94 MICHAEL SILVER Newmark Grubb Knight Frank challenges, while remaining friendly
a full service commercial real estate
to everyone.
94 DREW STEIGLER Advantage Title firm specializing in the Long Island
That experience and background
office, industrial, retail, and invest-
95 HOWARD M. STEIN Certilman Balin Adler & Hyman, LLP
helps him strive in the real estate in-
ment markets. Its client list ranges
dustry, he noted.
from professional firms, international
95 KAREN STROM Schroder & Strom, LLP Industry One Realty specializes in
corporations, and non-profit organi-
all areas of commercial, industrial,
95 MICHAEL VENTRE Windsor Commercial Real Estate zations to small business owners, en-
office and retail real estate. The com-
trepreneurs, and real estate investors.
pany has more than 2,000 listings in
The company recognizes that ev-
the Long Island area for rent, lease,
er-changing market conditions require
or buy. The company has millions of
an individually charted plan for every
square feet of listed space including
client. As an advisor, Park Place Re-
corporate office space, retail front
alty Group provide its clients with the
space, and warehouse space. With its
information they need to make con-
award-winning reputation, Industry
fident decisions about their business
One Realty helps small to large busi-
and their property. The company’s
nesses continue to grow.
continued contact with architects, at-
torneys, contractors, financial insti-
tutions, town officials, builders and
our experience with zoning ordinances,
DAVID environmental laws, contract and lease
negotiations, owner/tenant representa-
CHINITZ tion services, space planning and facil-
ity management will ensure a timely
Park Place Realty
and satisfactory transaction.
Group, LLC

Contact our advertising

department to discuss options
David Chinitz is president and for your business at 631.737.1700
CEO of Park Place Realty Group, LLC

WHO’SWHO
in Real Estate & Development
ANN
CONROY
Douglas Elliman
Real Estate
Ann Conroy is president of the
Long Island Division of Douglas Elli-
man Real Estate in Huntington Sta-
tion. Conroy has more than 35 years
experience in the residential real es-
tate business and is known for her
passion for the industry, her love of
the agents, her respect for the con-
sumers, and her pride in the Douglas
Elliman Brand.
Conroy started out as an agent
with Merrill Lynch Realty in 1981 in
Sayville. She was intrigued with the
real estate business from day one and
she became a top producer each year
before entering management.
Her skills were quickly recognized
by Douglas Elliman and Conroy was
promoted to regional manager, then
senior vice president of Suffolk Coun-
ty, before taking on the responsibil-
ities of president of the Long Island
Division of Douglas Elliman.
As president of the Long Island Di-
vision of Douglas Elliman, with its di-
verse markets, Conroy works diligently
each and every day with her senior man-
agement team and managers to study
trends and execute strategies to keep all
Long Island offices, ahead of the curve,
competitive, and “the place to be.”
Douglas Elliman Long Island pre-
pares for each new year on October 1st,
Conroy said.
“We assess and analyze each of
our diverse markets, where our busi-
ness is coming from, see what we
were really good at, where we need
to grow, where we need to focus more,
and develop an activity and goal ori-
ented business plan for each office,”
she said. “With a company our size
and its diversity, there are many mov-
ing parts and we do not broad stroke
anything or take anything for grant-
ed. I believe that is how we are able to
compete successfully in each market
that we service. Our market share,
and the components of revenue, what
drives our top line revenue as well as
profits, is dissected. We build a plan
around our strengths, identify our soft
spots, and decide on an action plan.”
“The foundation of the real estate
business has always been to attract
and retain the best management and
agent talent and develop each in-
dividual who is associated with us
by giving them the best education
and training,” Conroy explained.
“Tracking where business is trending,
being intuitive about the geo-political
environment that may cause a fluc-
tuation in those trends or a change
in business, always having an option
plan for things out of our control, like
the predicted rising interest rates, ap-
preciation in pricing, low inventory, or
even a super storm, keeps us focused
not only on today but where we will
be tomorrow.”
“For 2017, we will continue to as-
sess the strengths of each market we
91 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
are currently in, and where we should
take the brand,” Conroy said. “We
have identified new opportunities in
new markets. Our decision to grow
into new areas and expand is never
based on ego but on the market en-
vironment and identifying the best
talent to successfully implement this
expansion. Expanding into those mar-
kets where our customers and clients,
live, work, play and invest is the basis
of our growth.”
Conroy graduated from Brooklyn
College of the City of New York, ma-
joring in Psychology. Her first po-
sition was in the corporate human
resources department of a Fortune
500 company, rising to a management
position in three short years. She en-
tered the real estate business after
taking a short break to raise her chil-
dren. She attributes her success to
her family discussions around the din-
ner table. Her interest in the real es-
tate business can be directly attribut-
ed to her parent’s passion for buy-
ing and selling houses, as she tagged
along learning to love the business
from a very early age.
Established in 1911, Douglas Elli-
man Real Estate is among the largest
brokerages in the New York Metropol-
itan area and nationwide. With more
than 6,000 agents, the company oper-
ates approximately 81 offices in Man-
hattan, Brooklyn, Queens, New Jersey,
Long Island, the Hamptons & North
Fork, Westchester, Greenwich, South
Florida, Colorado and Beverly Hills.
Douglas Elliman has a strategic glob-
al alliance with London-based Knight
Frank Residential for business in the
worldwide luxury markets spanning
59 countries and six continents.
NEIL B.
GARFINKEL
Abrams Garfinkel
Margolis Bergson,
LLP
Neil B. Garfinkel is managing
partner of Abrams Garfinkel Margo-
lis Bergson, LLP (AGMB), a full-ser-
vice law firm, which has offices in
New York and California. Garfinkel
also serves as the partner-in-charge
of the firm’s real estate and bank-
ing practice groups. Prior to forming
the predecessor to Abrams Garfinkel
Margolis Bergson, LLP, he was an
associate in the real estate depart-
ment of the law firm of Proskauer
Rose Goetz & Mendelsohn.
Garfinkel’s legal experience is di-
verse and his practice focuses on all
aspects of commercial and residential
real estate, banking and lending law.
His clients include national and in-
ternational banks, mortgage bankers,
mortgage brokers, real estate brokers,
real estate developers, condominium
associations, cooperative corporations,
landlords, tenants, title companies
and purchasers and sellers of residen-
tial and commercial real estate.
He serves as broker counsel to
the Real Estate Board of New York
(REBNY), New York City’s leading
real estate trade association. In ad-
dition to counseling REBNY and its
members on the vast array of laws
and regulations that affect the real
estate brokerage community, he hosts
the REBNY Legal Line, a daily legal
hotline provided exclusively for mem-
bers of REBNY.
Through his affiliation and partici-
pation with REBNY and the Long Is-
land Board of Realtors, he has become
acutely aware of the many issues that
face real estate brokers on a daily
basis. Accordingly, he counsels his
clients on fair housing matters, com-
mission disputes, licensing and dis-
closure requirements, agency issues,
employment and wage laws, strategic
alliances and affiliated business re-
lationships and disciplinary actions
instituted by governmental entities.
Garfinkel is a member of the New
York State Association of Realtors
and the National Association of Real-
tors. He also serves as counsel to the
Empire State Mortgage Bankers As-
sociation and counsels his mortgage
banking and mortgage broker clients
on all aspects of their businesses.
“A significant portion of AGMB’s
practice involves representing lenders
in residential mortgage closings, as
well as advising lenders on regulato-
ry and compliance issues,” Garfinkel
said. “Low interest rates, significant
activity in the housing market and
continual changes in the regulatory
landscape is driving AGMB’s focus for
the 4th quarter of 2016”
“In particular, we have signed a
lease for a new office in Melville and
we anticipate taking occupancy prior
to January 1, 2017,” he explained.
“We have hired a number of new em-
ployees to work in our closing depart-
ment in Manhattan and we are be-
ginning to consider applications for
employment in our Melville office.
AGMB also anticipates completing
its SOC 2 (Type 1) Audit by December
31, 2016. The audit is being conducted
by a national accounting firm head-
quartered on Long Island.”
Garfinkel is a Diamond Member of
the New York Association of Mortgage
Brokers and is a member of the Com-
munity Mortgage Bankers Forum, the
Mortgage Bankers Association of New
York and the National Association of
Mortgage Brokers. Garfinkel enjoys
teaching and speaking about a variety
of real estate, title and lending top-
ics. He is certified by the New York
Department of State as an instructor
of real estate courses, and frequently
teaches at REBNY. He has appeared
on various television shows, includ-
ing the local news at CBS, CNBC,
Bloomberg News and NY1 News. He
has appeared on nationally syndicat-
ed radio shows, has been published
in the REBNY Reporter and the Real-
tor, is a contributing editor to a train-
ing manual for the real estate bro-
ker community, and has been quoted
in The New York Times, Wall Street
Journal, Newsday, Reuters, AP, Dow
Jones, Forbes.com, Bankrate.com and
CNN.com. A member of the New York
State Bar Association, Garfinkel is a
graduate of Cornell Law School, He
received his Bachelor of Arts degree
from the State University of New
York at Albany, where he graduated
summa cum laude and was elected to
Phi Beta Kappa.
Abrams Garfinkel Margolis Berg-
son, LLP is a full-service law that
counsels a vast array of clients and a
variety of businesses, including bank-
ing institutions, real estate brokers,
start-up and middle market compa-
nies, real estate developers, cooper-
atives and condominiums, trade or-
ganizations, entertainment compa-
nies, performing artists, insurance
companies, personal services firms,
hedge funds, wholesalers, distribu-
tors, transportation companies and
product manufacturers. Abrams Garf-
inkel Margolis Bergson, LLP has loca-
tions in New York City; Los Angeles,
California and Great Neck, New York.
BERNARD P.
KENNEDY
Bond, Schoeneck &
King PLLC
Bernard P. Kennedy is co-managing
member in the Garden City office of
Bond, Schoeneck & King PLLC (Bond).
Kennedy advises clients on various
matters including business transac-
tions, contracts, real estate and litiga-
tion. He is a trusted legal advisor who
understands how to translate com-
plex legal issues into practical busi-
ness terms and fashion common sense
solutions to everyday business prob-
lems. Kennedy is known for bringing
a solution-oriented focus to the task
of helping clients find answers to com-
plex issues expeditiously, cost effec-
tively and completely.
For the past 20 years, Kennedy has
provided general counsel services to
King Kullen Grocery Co., Inc., a Long
Island-based company with two subsid-
iaries, 39 retail locations and over 3,000
employees. Serving as outside general
counsel to King Kullen, he has been re-
sponsible on a day-to-day basis for cor-
porate transactions, real estate, leasing
and litigation, as well as coordinating
legal services in areas such as ERISA,
intellectual property, risk management
and employment matters.
Kennedy has assisted in the firm’s
positive development in 2016 and
is working toward its growth in the
new year.
“Bond is among the largest law
firms in all of the major upstate New
York markets,” Kennedy said. “When
I joined the firm two years ago, it was
in part with the stated intention of
helping the firm identify an appro-
priate merger partner on Long Island
with whom Bond would be a good fit
culturally and add strength in critical
practice areas such as corporate, lit-
igation and real estate. This merger
would enable us to serve our clients
with reasonably priced legal services
covering a wider range of practice
areas and industries that we can de-
liver anywhere in the state.”
“Growth for the sake of growth
alone never works,” he noted. “But
growth through the right combination
of people who are truly dedicated to

WHO’SWHO
in Real Estate & Development
excellence in the practice of law and
care about one another’s futures is a
sure formula for success. My person-
al focus is to identify a firm who we
believe would share our values both
as people and professionals and with
whom we can build a successful enter-
prise based upon shared goals. We are
actively pursuing a mid-sized firm at
this time.”
In 1989, Kennedy was founding
partner of Kennedy and Gillen, a bou-
tique business law and litigation firm
in Garden City. In addition to King
Kullen, his firm has represented such
clients as Hofstra University, Kimco
Realty, Westbury Realty Ventures,
the Rembold Company and numerous
other corporations and institutions,
large and small.
Kennedy is experienced in com-
mercial leasing, particularly shop-
ping center leasing, and represents
both landlords and tenants in leasing
transactions throughout the metropol-
itan area. He also represents a grow-
ing list of independent supermarket
operators throughout New York City
in leasing and litigation matters.
He earned a juris doctor from Ford-
ham University School of Law and
bachelor’s degree from New York Uni-
versity. Kennedy is admitted to prac-
tice in New York, the U.S. District
Court for the Eastern District of New
York, and the U.S. District Court for
the Southern District of New York.
He has held various roles in civic
and pro bono matters, including serv-
ing on the board of the Family and
Children’s Association and its execu-
tive committee and governance com-
mittee; serving as board chair of the
Family and Children’s Association;
serving on the Board of South Shore
Communities Hospital; serving on the
Board of St. Joseph’s College; serving
as chair of the New York State Bar
Association Committee on Volunteer
Lawyers providing pro bono legal ser-
vices to residents of drug and alcohol
rehabilitation facilities; and serving
on the New York State Trial Law-
yers advocacy committee providing
pro bono legal services to victims of
the 9-11 disaster. Kennedy is also a
member the board of the Point Look-
out Civic Association and a member of
the Class of 2012 of Energeia.
Bond, Schoeneck & King PLLC is a
law firm with 270 lawyers represent-
ing companies, public and private in-
stitutions and individuals in a broad
range of practice areas. Bond has nine
offices in New York State and offic-
es in Naples, Florida and Overland
Park, Kansas.
MARK
LAFFEY
Laffey Real Estate
Mark Laffey is a principal owner
of Laffey Real Estate. With a vast
understanding of the residential real
estate business, Laffey’s knowledge
and integrity have been instrumental
92 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
in the evolution and subsequent suc-
cess of the firm. He is an advocate of
independent thought, always encour-
aging the management team to ‘think
outside the box’ pushing the limits of
creativity and ingenuity to produce
stellar results. It is because of Mark’s
progressive business sense that the
firm is recognized as a foremost lead-
ing residential real estate.
Laffey has been in every role with-
in the company working his way up
the corporate ladder. From the age of
18, he learned by performing every
role within the firm, including rental
agent, sales associate, branch man-
ager and broker owner. His hands-on
involvement has benefitted as Laffey
has stepped into a variety of roles
and responsibilities including vacat-
ed positions as a result of structured
management changes, adopting new
alliances with wholly owned affiliates
and implementing business enhance-
ment practices from technology and
acquisitions to agent growth strate-
gies and finance.
His focus has always been on
the company’s growth and financial
health. Today, the real estate company
continues to experience strong market
share in its primary areas and even
in broader geographic locations as a
result of the talent and acquisitions of
independent local brokers in Nassau,
Queens and Suffolk Counties. Laffey
and his partner have expanded the
corporate footprint and maximized the
Laffey Real Estate name to remain
leaders in residential real estate ser-
vices on Long Island and Queens.  since 1998, Maltz has handled the
Laffey Real Estate is approach-
ing the New Year with cautious opti-
mism, Laffey said.
“Having successfully executed a
complete corporate rebranding, we
are poised to enter 2017 with signifi-
cant momentum,” he said. “In general
market terms, interest rates are still
at record lows. Home prices are ris-
ing but not to the detriment of closed
transactions, though you’d think the
opposite would occur. As a measure
of home purchasing power the afford-
ability index is rising, a positive indi-
cator of higher purchasing power by
the consumer.”
“So, what do we do to maximize
momentum?,” Laffey asked. “First
and foremost, we are in the first
phase of developing a custom CRM
system to capture more leads, incu-
bate the pipeline and increase market
share. Technology, such that it is, has
matured to the degree that systems
are more compatible and interactive.
To be at the top of our game, we had
to address the vertical software and
hardware compatibility issues. The
new customized web-based CRM will
be able to achieve the single-sign on
goals, allow sales managers to mon-
itor and mentor the agents and, of
equal importance, provide a ROI cal-
culator on all transactional activity,
operational expenses and marketing
initiatives.”
Laffey Real Estate is one of the
largest privately held independent
family-owned residential real estate
firms on Long Island with a network of
over 400 agents in 13 offices through-
out Nassau, Western Suffolk and
Queens counties. Headquartered in
Greenvale, New York, Laffey Real Es-
tate is consistently ranked in the top
10 percent of the brokers locally and as
a Top 500 Broker in the U.S. based on
the 2015 Real Trends reports.
The company’s global partnership
with Leading Real Estate Compa-
nies of the World and Luxury Port-
folio extends its reach to more than
50 countries worldwide. The firm is a
full-service provider offering expertise
in sales, rentals, relocation, mortgage,
developments and title insurance to
the marketplace. The cutting-edge
technology supporting field agents,
premium brand identity and indus-
try-leading tools embody best in class
standards.
RICHARD B.
MALTZ, CAI
Maltz Auctions
Richard B. Maltz, CAI is president
of Maltz Auctions, a full service auc-
tion firm in Central Islip. With annu-
al real estate auction proceeds regu-
larly exceeding $70 million, Maltz is
recognized as a leader in the auction
method of marketing with a brand as-
sociated with professionalism, integri-
ty and success.
President of Maltz Auctions
sale of numerous luxury residential
estates and unique commercial as-
sets. Most recently, he sold a par-
tially built hotel in Manhattan and
an operating hotel in Long Beach for
$30,750,000 and $27,400,000, respec-
tively. He additionally oversaw the
sale of a $10,400,000 million residen-
tial estate on Long Island’s East End
and an $8,200,000 luxurious Man-
hattan condo on behalf of the U.S.
Bankruptcy Court in conjunction with
the U.S. Marshal Service. His firm
further solidified itself as the preem-
inent firm with the $19,000,000 sale
of the Woodcrest Golf Club on Long
Island’s North Shore. He is credit-
ed with orchestrating residential and
commercial auction events with sin-
gle-day portfolio auction proceeds of
more than $30,000,000.
Currently, Maltz leads a staff of
team members with the diversified
knowledge and experience to sell vir-
tually any class of real estate.
“As year-end approaches, we con-
tinue to be focused on upcoming
multi-property auction events, which
include a Manhattan brownstone
and luxury apartment, an 11 unit
multi-family building in the Bronx
and multiple single and multi-family
properties throughout Long Island,
Queens and Brooklyn, to name a few,”
Maltz said.
The upcoming months will be about
tradition and tribute, Maltz said.
Our team will spend the holidays
focused on family, as well as honoring
the memory of my father, David, who
passed away last December,” he noted.
“He would have been very proud to see
his tradition of an increase in annual
real estate sales for the 14th consecu-
tive year. 2016 was especially amazing
with well over $100 million in real es-
tate sales alone.”
Maltz earned a bachelor’s degree
from Indiana University’s Kelley
School of Business with a dual major
in business management and entre-
preneurship. He earned a master’s
degree in real estate from New York
University’s School of Real Estate. He
is also a graduate of Reppert School of
Auctioneering.
Over the past 35 years, Maltz Auc-
tions has conducted thousands of auc-
tions and generated over $2 billion in
sales on behalf of such clients as the
U.S. Bankruptcy Courts and financial
institutions throughout the country,
the U.S. Department of Justice, the
Securities and Exchange Commis-
sion, the Internal Revenue Service,
N.Y. State Department of Taxation
& Finance, court appointed receiv-
ers, estate executors and public ad-
ministrators, as well as law firms,
private individuals and corporations,
nationwide. Maltz Auctions is court
approved to act in the capacity of auc-
tioneers, real estate brokers and re-
ceivers. The 35-year-old firm is na-
tionally recognized as a trusted name
in excellence and achievement.
JOE MOSHÉ
Charles Rutenberg
Realty, Inc.
A licensed real estate broker, Joe
Moshé is owner of Charles Rutenberg
Realty, Inc., which has branch offices
in Plainview, Huntington, Oceanside,
Hauppauge, Sayville, Queens, Bronx
and White Plains Moshé founded
the company in 2006, and today the
company is celebrating its 10th anni-
versary with 1,000 agents and eight
branch offices.
Moshé’s is credited for his keen
ability to create programs and pro-
cesses that meet the needs of today’s
real estate agents and the market
they service. Moshé and his wife Pam
founded the agency on the premise
that an agent should be paid in full
for the work that they do; therefore,
their agents are paid 100 percent
commissions for residential transac-
tions. His innovative business model
gives the professionals associated to
him tremendous latitude to work out
creative solutions in putting together
real estate transactions.
Moshé also provides his agents
with cutting-edge technology, allow-
ing them to conduct business with
prospective buyers, sellers and other
industry partners from any location.
In addition, Charles Rutenberg Realty
focuses on strengthening the abili-
ties of the agents through extensive
ongoing education and training on a
weekly basis.
He has also created a one-stop-shop
brokerage that includes all the ser-
vices buyers need under one umbrella
utilizing a Concierge Program. For

WHO’SWHO
in Real Estate & Development
specialized transactions, Moshé also
established a Commercial Division,
a Short Sale Division, and a Buyer’s
Agency specialty that all cater to spe-
cific needs.
Moshé and his team are focused
on company growth and community
awareness as 2017 approaches.
“Our mission this coming year
is to grow our agency by adding to
our roster of talented agents and to
help more sellers and buyers meet
their housing goals,” he said. “In ad-
dition, of utmost importance to us is
to create an impact in our local com-
munities for those in need. We are
working closely with organizations,
like Community Housing Innovations
and rockCANroll, to meet this objec-
tive. We want to help our neighbors
to have a roof over their head and a
meal on their table.”
“In order to ensure that our plans
for the upcoming year come to frui-
tion, our strategy is quite simple: We
will recruit creative, hardworking real
estate agents and make sure they are
trained to provide top-notch service to
the market we service,” Moshé said.
“We will concentrate on making the
first-time homebuyer experience pos-
itive and stress-free. We will provide
educational seminars, targeted liter-
ature and create relationships with
agents who are specifically trained to
work with individuals who are new to
the homebuying process. And final-
ly, we will continue to work with our
non-profit partners to ensure that the
underserved know that Charles Ruten-
berg Realty is doing all that it can to
make a difference in their lives.”
Charles Rutenberg Realty, founded
in 2006, is one of the nation’s fast-
est-growing, most progressive real es-
tate agencies, with over 1,000 associ-
ated real estate professionals. Charles
Rutenberg Realty, Inc. specializes in
residential and commercial trans-
actions in Suffolk, Nassau, Queens,
Brooklyn, Bronx, Westchester, Put-
nam, Rockland and Orange Counties.
Among the 1,900 independent real
estate offices represented by Multi-
ple Listing Services (MLS), Charles
Rutenberg Realty, Inc. has attained
among the highest market share for
transactions closed, available invento-
ry and listings taken for the last five
years. The National Association of
REALTORS® has recognized Charles
Rutenberg Realty, Inc. as one of the
Top Five Real Estate Firms in New
York and The Top 75 Real Estate
Firms in the country.
BRUCE
NELSON
NAI Long Island/
NAI Global
Bruce Nelson is senior director at
NAI Long Island in Melville. Nelson
has closed real estate sales for corpo-
rate, institutional and entrepreneur-
ial investors and occupiers totaling in
excess of $800 million, having placed
over 6.5 million square feet in Long
93 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
Island, Westchester, New York City
and New Jersey.
As an investment sales specialist,
Nelson is focused on devising and exe-
cuting strategic plans.
“Owners, investors, buyers and
sellers’ criteria continually change
along with the real estate market,”
he said. “So staying abreast of these
changes and where we are in the real
estate cyclical allows me to properly
advise those clients on near-term and
long-term objectives.”
“The NAI platform consists of prov-
en real estate professionals serving
all aspects of commercial real estate
with one goal in mind-providing best
of class service to our clients,” he said.
“NAI Global allows us to serve clients
locally, nationally or internationally,
and with individually owned offices,
you know that your client will have
the best representation possible.”
“NAI Long Island office has spe-
cialists in landlord representation
and tenant representation, as well as
investment sales experts, in-house
accountants, and property manage-
ment staff,” Nelson said. “These pro-
fessionals have extensive knowledge
in all product types and markets. It is
an essential benefit to providing best
possible practices.”
“Today, real estate professionals and
their clients are seeking answers to a
multitude of questions including, ‘who
will be the next president?;’ ‘when will
the Fed raise interest rates and what
will its impact be on real estate?;’ and
‘are we in a bubble and is there a re-
cession in the near term?,’” Nelson ex-
plained. “As a 30-plus year real estate
professional, one thing is for sure, the
real estate market is ever changing.”
Nelson is a licensed salesperson and
a licensed real estate appraiser (MAI
designation and New York State Certi-
fied). He has testified as an expert wit-
ness in legal matters before the New
York State Supreme Court and Dis-
trict Court. He has also been retained
by various courts to sell real estate in
contested matters. These transactions
were tailored to approved disposition
procedures dictated by the court’s and
have included auction sales and modi-
fied auction sales.
Nelson has also exclusively repre-
sented leasing agencies for select land-
lords totaling 750,000 square feet and
tenants totaling in excess of 150,000
square feet.
Nelson earned a bachelor’s degree
in economics from Hofstra University.
He is licensed real estate salesperson
in New York State; and a licensed real
estate appraiser in New York State.
NAI Long Island is a full service
commercial real estate firm serving
Nassau, Suffolk, and Queens coun-
ties since 1980. Its staff has in-depth
market knowledge, experience, and
the ability to negotiate successful cli-
ent-specific transactions. The compa-
ny’s expertise is enhanced by state-of-
the art systems, and a comprehensive
database to provide market and prop-
erty information. NAI Long Island is
a member of NAI Global, the premier
network of commercial real estate
firms spanning the globe.
NAI Global provides a full range of
corporate real estate services, includ-
ing brokerage and leasing, property
and facilities management, real es-
tate investment and capital market
services, due diligence, global supply
chain and logistics consulting and re-
lated advisory services. NAI Global
Member firms, leaders in their local
markets, are actively managed to
work in unison and provide clients
with exceptional solutions to their
commercial real estate needs. Found-
ed in 1978, today NAI Global has
more than 375 offices strategically
located throughout North America,
Latin America, Europe and Asia Pa-
cific, with over 6,700 local market pro-
fessionals, managing over 380 million
square feet of property.
DEIDRE
O’CONNELL
Daniel Gale
Sotheby’s
International
Realty, Inc.
Deidre O’Connell is an associate
real estate broker/general sales man-
ager at Daniel Gale Sotheby’s Inter-
national Realty, Inc. in Manhasset.
A consistent top producer, O’Connell
has created a reputation of exception-
al customer service. Her outstanding
leadership led to her appointment as
a member of Daniel Gale Sotheby’s In-
ternational Realty’s executive team as
the general sales manager for the com-
pany with regional responsibilities for
western Nassau County and Queens.
A true professional, O’Connell em-
braces the challenges of the industry.
“As most in the industry know, real
estate sales is an extremely demand-
ing and at times difficult business,”
O’Connell said. “Agents experience re-
jection and adversity daily. They also
must keep ahead of industry trends
and continue to learn all the new tech-
nologies and tools of the business.
Daniel Gale Sotheby’s International
Realty, Inc. understands these chal-
lenges and for our agents officially de-
clared 2016 ‘The Year of the Agent.’”
“We believe in giving our agents all the
tools, support and training they need
to be successful,” O’Connell noted. “As
part of this initiative, we rolled out our
new company website and in addition
to this beautiful, powerful tool, each of
our 850 agents were given a free per-
sonal website. This is huge financial
savings for our agents, as well as an-
other opportunity to easily broaden the
reach of their business.”
Tools are great and necessary but
without training they are useless,
O’Connell explained.
“Daniel Gale agents are offered
training in everything and that is why
our agents adopt to industry tools so
well,” she said. “Finally, as we end
the year, our Daniel Gale manage-
ment team is going through a three-
day coaching program to fine tune their
agent development skills, so they can
be even more prepared to support, train
and embrace their agents in 2017.”
O’Connell launched her real estate
career in 1991 following a career in
public and employee communications
for a major insurance company. She
founded her own business, Deirdre
O’Connell Realty, Inc. in 2003 with an
office in Manhasset. She expanded her
operation to the North Fork in 2005
with the opening of an office in Cut-
chogue. O’Connell set herself apart in
real estate through her real estate ex-
pertise, professionalism and attention
to personal service. Daniel Gale Sothe-
by’s International Realty acquired her
successful business in 2007.
Founded in 1922, Daniel Gale So-
theby’s International Realty consis-
tently leads the nation in achieving
one of the highest average sales prices
in the country. Daniel Gale Sotheby’s
is a $2.5 billion organization with 850
sales associates in 27 offices span-
ning Long Island and Queens. Ser-
vices include a relocation division, an
award-winning marketing & technol-
ogy department, a development mar-
keting group, commercial and rental
divisions; and Ambassador Abstract
title company.
The Sotheby’s International Re-
alty ® affiliate for Long Island and
Queens since 1976, Daniel Gale So-
theby’s has gained national and in-
ternational recognition, including top
honors worldwide. In addition to its
place on the Regents Board of “Who’s
Who in Luxury Real Estate,” Daniel
Gale Sotheby’s International Realty is
active in Real Trends, The Asian Real
Estate Association and The Realty
Alliance, which comprises some of the
real estate industry’s most influential
companies with participation “by invi-
tation only.”
PHIL OKUN
Realty Connect USA
Phil Okun is a founder and partner
at Realty Connect USA, a full-service
real estate brokerage and advisory
firm headquartered in Long Island.
Okun oversees all commercial real
estate operations for the company,
which specializes in the purchase,
sale, rental, and marketing of residen-
tial and commercial properties.
Okun has many years of experience
in the industry. He was co-founder
of Merrill Lynch Realty’s commercial
real estate division in the 1980s. The
bulk of his career was spent work-
ing with Vincent Polimeni, starting
as vice president of Polimeni Realty,
Inc., which was the brokerage division
of Polimeni Enterprises, Inc. While
there, he hired and trained over 300
sales agents to sell and lease commer-
cial real estate. As president of Sky-
line Management Corp., a Polimeni
affiliate, he directed property man-
agement for over 3,000,000 square
feet of office and retail property. Fi-
nally, as president of Polimeni Inter-
national, Okun was heavily involved
in development of shopping centers
and apartments in Poland.
Realty Connect USA is reinventing
commercial real estate, Okun said.
“Historically, commercial real es-

WHO’SWHO
in Real Estate & Development
tate transactions have been handled
in two ways, either through a com-
mercial real estate brokerage com-
pany or a commercial division of a
residential real estate company,” he
said. “Commercial brokerage com-
panies have the knowledge on how
to get those transactions completed,
but only comprise a small percent-
age of the overall real estate agent
population. Those listings may not
get the exposure necessary to get the
deal done. Further, many commercial
brokerage companies do not share
their inventory as is typically done
on MLS with residential and com-
mercial listings.”
“When transactions are handled by
a commercial division of a residential
real estate company, they usually do
not get the attention and support as
the primary business of the company
is listing and selling homes and the
commercial transactions are treated
like ‘also rans,’” Okun noted. “Most
residential companies do not have ex-
pert commercial real estate trainers
or support staff to assist in getting the
property properly listed and then sold
or leased.”
“At Realty Connect USA we take
an approach which is unheard of in
the industry,” Okun noted. “Not only
are all of our agents allowed to per-
form all types of real estate transac-
tions, we support those efforts with
extensive training and hands on
assistance in the field while paying
them 90 percent commission on all
commercial transactions. I personally
attend listing presentations, buyer
meetings, and negotiation sessions to
support the agent and insure the con-
sumer gets the best possible service.
In this manner listings get full expo-
sure to all 650 agents in our company
and full exposure on MLS, with over
20,000 realtor members.”
“We also utilize New York State
MLS and international exposure
through numerous web sites including
Juwai in China, where many com-
mercial real estate buyers are from,
while sharing our inventory with the
commercial real estate companies in
our market place, as well,” Okun ex-
plained. “This creates far greater ex-
posure than can be generated by most
commercial real estate companies as
they do not typically use the services
mentioned above. At Realty Connect
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94 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
USA, we give our agents the best tools
available to insure a positive experi-
ence for their clients and customers.”
Okun is a founder and board mem-
ber of Hanover Community Bank in
Garden City Park. He is also the au-
thor of “Make Money on Main Street,”
which is designed to instruct residen-
tial real estate agents how to list and
sell commercial property.
Founded in 2009, Realty Connect
USA is among the fastest growing real
estate companies on Long Island, with
over 650 licensed agents in 13 offices in
Nassau, Suffolk and Queens counties.
Realty Connect USA offers com-
prehensive state-of-the-art real es-
tate solutions for buyers, sellers,
investors, and developers. The firm
consists of a closely integrated team
of accomplished professionals with
extensive experience in every aspect
of the sale, rental, and purchase of
single-family homes, condominiums,
and cooperatives.
PHILIP
SHWOM,
SIOR, CCIM
Schacker Realty
Philip Shwom, SIOR, CCIM joined
Schacker Realty in Melville as a
trainee after he graduated college and
in 1998 became CEO and managing
partner of Schacker Real Estate Corp.
Shwom is recognized as one of the
leading commercial brokers on Long
Island. Both the Commercial Indus-
trial Brokers Society and the Long
Island Development Corp have named
him Long Island Broker of the Year.
In 2014, Shwom was the only Long
Island broker to be named by CoStar
in its annual Power Broker Awards
in both the office and industrial cate-
gories. He also received a 2015 Costar
Power Broker Award.  tions throughout the United States.
In a significant real estate trans-
action in modern Long Island history,
Shwom acted as the exclusive agent
representing Heartland Development
in its acquisition of a 460-acre New
York State-owned property where
libn.com
Heartland Town Square, the largest
planned mixed use smart growth de-
velopment in lower New York State,
will be developed.
Shwom earned a bachelor’s degree
in economics, with honors, from Emory
University. He also attended New
York University where he complet-
ed required graduate course work in
earning CCIM designation.
Since 1962, companies and property
owners have turned to Schacker Real-
ty to fulfill their Long Island industri-
al and commercial real estate needs.
The company’s objective is to earn its
clients’ trust by exceeding their expec-
tations, and in doing so, build a long
term and treasured relationship.
Schacker’s expertise is in the in-
dustrial, office and retail sectors of
the market. Over the past five de-
cades, Schacker has completed more
than 100 million square feet of com-
mercial property transactions, repre-
senting a diverse client base of buy-
ers, sellers, landlords and tenants.
This extensive client base includes
many Fortune 500 corporations and
countless family-owned businesses
that form the backbone of Long Is-
land’s economy. Schacker has built
its reputation by handling its client’s
business the same way it would the
business of its own friends and family.
Schacker’s advanced technological
capabilities better serves its clients by
saving them time and providing more
complete and faster access to informa-
tion, as well as contacts they require
to make decisions and transact busi-
ness. The company is continuously
updating its systems and databases
to enhance the way its agents and
clients evaluate and complete real es-
tate transactions.
MICHAEL
SILVER
Newmark Grubb
Knight Frank
Michael Silver is a director at New-
mark Grubb Knight Frank in Mel-
ville. Silver provides strategic and
advisory real estate services focus-
ing on leasing and sales transactions
for mid-size and large corporations
on Long Island. His main priority is
to develop innovative strategies that
serve his clients’ business needs, re-
duce occupancy costs and increase
profits. He has represented companies
in a wide array of industries includ-
ing law firms, financial institutions
and technology companies throughout
Long Island.  active in finding solutions to ensure
Whether a company is looking to re-
locate or renew their lease, expand or
dispose of space, or buy or sell property,
Silver believes a high level of service is
critical in providing value for clients.   meant ‘all hands on deck’ as our cli-
As companies plan for their real
estate, Silver has noticed a recent
trend in the industry includes chang-
es in design for office space. “Many
companies are now looking to gener-
ate a more open, collaborative envi-
ronment for their employees, which
includes less private offices and more
open workspaces and team rooms to
foster open communication and cre-
ativity,” he said.
Silver has 17 years of experience
in the industry. Prior to joining New-
mark Grubb Knight Frank, Silver
worked at Studley for five years, and
was very active in the midtown and
downtown Manhattan market, repre-
senting tenants in a variety of indus-
tries. He earned a bachelor’s degree
in urban studies, specializing in real
estate management, from the Univer-
sity of Maryland.
Newmark Grubb Knight Frank
(NGKF) is one of the world’s leading
commercial real estate advisory firms.
Together with London-based part-
ner Knight Frank and independent-
ly-owned offices, NGKF’s 12,800 pro-
fessionals operate from more than
370 offices in established and emerg-
ing property markets on six conti-
nents.  NGKF is a part of BGC Part-
ners, Inc., a leading global brokerage
company servicing the financial and
real estate markets.
DREW
STEIGLER
Advantage Title
Drew Steigler is executive vice
president and chief underwriting
counsel at Advantage Title in Mel-
ville, the flagship of the Advantage
Group of affiliated companies. Stei-
gler is responsible for handling com-
plex commercial and residential real
estate transactions across the New
York metro area and the nation.
Steigler was previously with an-
other leading national title company
where he served as senior underwrit-
ing counsel responsible for transac-
Many of these involved the resolu-
tion of defaulted commercial mortgage
backed securities. Steigler has also
served in lead underwriting counsel
roles for a $7.4 billion acquisition of
a major retailer with an insured lia-
bility of approximately $1.2 billion;
New York City trophy properties with
$1 billion liabilities; the refinance
of a 33-property portfolio, including
quarries, across PA, NJ, DE and MD
that involved complex underwriting
of mineral rights issues; and construc-
tion financing for military base hous-
ing on five U.S. Air Force bases.
As the year comes to an end, Ad-
vantage Title will continue to be pro-
that its clients transactions close in
an expeditious and seamless manner,
Steigler said.
“Historically, our 4 th quarter has
ents often want to complete any open
deals that can feasibly close by the
end of the year,” he said. “Therefore,
our greatest focus will be to continue
to provide the best service and re-
sources needed to accomplish closing
as many of the region’s most signifi-

WHO’SWHO
in Real Estate & Development
cant projects as possible. “
“Our in-house team of counsel are
relied upon by developers and attorneys
due to our extensive commercial trans-
action knowledge and our ability to
navigate the local landscape,” Steigler
noted. “It is worthwhile to note that
many of our local clients have expanded
their footprint beyond Long Island to
acquire, finance or dispose of properties
in other regions or states. As a result,
we have experienced a great deal of
growth in both the New York City and
the national market.” “Nevertheless,
the majority of our clients are bullish
on Long Island’s prospects in the near
term,” he said. “As a result, we expect a
strong finish to 2016.”
Steigler graduated from the Hofst-
ra University School of Law
Advantage Title, the flagship com-
pany of the Advantage Group, is an
industry leader in the metropolitan
area providing commercial and res-
idential title insurance and related
services to attorneys, developers, in-
vestors, lenders and REITs in New
York and across the United States.
Advantage President and CEO Joseph
M. Willen founded the company in
1987 with a mission to meet and ex-
ceed the demands of clients for their
most critical real estate transactions.
The company has long standing rela-
tionships with the nation’s largest un-
derwriters to ensure security and flex-
ibility, and has been ranked a New
York Law Journal Best Title Agency.
95 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
HOWARD M.
STEIN
Certilman Balin
Adler & Hyman,
LLP
Howard M. Stein is managing part-
ner of the Real Estate Practice Group
at Certilman Balin Adler & Hyman,
LLP where he concentrates on mat-
ters related to real property acqui-
sitions, development, sales, leasing,
real estate finance and loan work-
outs. Stein represents a wide range
of clients from closely held businesses
to public companies in structuring
complicated transactions for retail,
industrial, office, hotel and residential
developments.
In what could be the largest price
paid for a land sale on Long Island,
Stein handled the sale of the Melville
“pumpkin farm” to Canon USA for its
North American headquarters, play-
ing a major role in resolving a legal
dispute that kept the Fortune 500
Company on Long Island. Recently,
Stein has represented both Renais-
sance Downtowns and Tritec Real Es-
tate in various transit oriented proj-
ects in Ronkonkoma, Hempstead Vil-
lage, Huntington Station and Linden-
hurst. In 2015, he also represented
Publishers Clearing House in its move
to 170,000 square feet in Jericho.
Stein continues to see increased
activity in the commercial real es-
tate sector.
“Certilman Balin is experiencing
substantial growth in our commer-
cial real estate transactions, which
I attribute to the enormous opportu-
nities created by transit oriented de-
velopments,” Stein said. “After many
years of planning and delays due pre-
dominantly to NIMBYism (Not in My
Backyard) and legal challenges, these
projects are now coming to fruition.”
“They are not only stimulating real
estate deals, but also creating vibrant
sustainable communities,” Stein noted.
“We will grow our practice accordingly
to meet our clients’ needs, as a result
of this positive real estate trend.”
An adjunct professor at Touro Law
Center and chairman of its board of
governors, Stein lectures extensively
on issues relating to real estate law.
He was named to the Inaugural Class
of Touro Law Center Builder’s Soci-
ety in 2011. That year, he was also
appointed by the Suffolk County Ex-
ecutive to serve on the Suffolk County
Judicial Facilities Agency.
Stein is a supporter of Big Brothers
Big Sisters of Long Island and is a
member of its President’s Counsel and
was the recipient of its Presidential
Award in 2000. In 2007, he received
The Harry Chapin Humanitarian
Award from Long Island Cares, Inc.
Stein is also a board member of the
Association for a Better Long Island
and the Institute of Real Estate at
Hofstra. In 2013, he was presented
with an award by Commercial and
Industrial Brokers Society of Long
Island and named “Associate Member
of the Year.” Stein has also been re-
cently appointed to serve on the board
of directors of Vision Long Island, an
advocate of “Smart Growth.” He was
named to the Metro New York Super
Lawyers list each year from 2012
through 2016.
Stein is a graduate of the Univer-
sity of Rochester and earned his law
degree from Case Western Reserve
University. He is admitted to prac-
tice in the State of New York and the
U.S. District Court, Eastern District
of New York and has achieved the
highest rating by Martindale Hubbell.
He is also a member of the Nassau
County Bar Association.
Certilman Balin Adler & Hyman,
LLP, with offices in East Meadow and
Hauppauge, is one of Long Island’s
largest full-service law firms. Its 15
practice areas include: real estate, real
property tax certiorari and condem-
nation, cooperative and condominium,
land use, environmental law, corpo-
rate/securities, litigation, commercial
lending, labor relations/employment
law, bankruptcy and debtor/creditor
rights, nonprofit/tax exempt and reli-
gious organizations, trusts and estates,

WHO’SWHO
in Real Estate & Development
elder law, telecommunications law,
and criminal law.
KAREN
STROM
Schroder & Strom,
LLP
Karen Strom founded the Mine-
ola-based law firm of Schroder &
Strom, LLP in 2000. Strom’s entire
legal profession has been in tax as-
sessment litigation since her admis-
sion to the Bar. She has litigated tax
appeals in all of the major counties,
cities, and towns in New York State
– up to and including the New York
State Court of Appeals.
As another year draws to an end,
Schroder & Strom, LLP continues to
assist both commercial and residen-
tial property owners in unwinding the
complex issue of real estate taxation
on Long Island, Strom said.
“While taxes have been long pre-
sumed a ‘fixed expense’ by many busi-
nesses, in fact, the answer is never
that simple,” Strom explained. “New
York is considered a ‘judicial state,’
which means that there is a presump-
tion of validity that attaches to your
assessed value (the basis of your tax
bill). The taxing jurisdiction is pre-
sumed to have correctly valued your
property. You must overcome this pre-
sumption before eligibility for tax re-
lief. Hiring counsel is the first step in
analyzing whether you are, in fact,
paying too much as a result of over-
assessment — as a threshold to going
to court. We carefully analyze all rele-
vant financial documents before mov-
ing forward to prove our case.”
“With over 10,000 active cases
96 I LONG ISLAND BUSINESS NEWS I Who’s Who 2016 I LIBN.COM
statewide (inclusive of New York
City), the 10-attorney team at Schrod-
er & Strom is well positioned through
the state and familiar with various
nuances of the more than 1,000 taxing
jurisdictions in New York,” she said.
“Since school tax bills throughout
Nassau County were recently issued,
we are currently educating our com-
mercial clients on the new ‘Disputed
Assessment Fund’ (DAF) enacted by
Nassau County, as well as the newly
implemented STAR program for resi-
dential owners.”
Prior to finding the firm, Strom was
a partner in a Garden City law firm
specializing in real property tax review
proceedings and condemnation law.
She earned a juris doctor from Hofst-
ra University School of Law and is a
member of the New York Bar, as well
as the Connecticut and New Jersey
Bars. She is also admitted to practice
before the U.S. District Court for the
District of New Jersey and Eastern
District of New York.
Strom has written and lectured
extensively through the state on the
topic of real property taxes, as well as
on the issue of contaminated proper-
ties in valuation proceedings.
She has always been heavily in-
volved in community and charitable
organizations. Strom has held the po-
sition of board member on the Ameri-
can Heart Association, and was a two-
term treasurer of WEDLI (Women
Economic Developers of Long Island).
She is a founding member of Pet
Peeves of Long Island, Inc., and was
co-chair of the Suffolk County Animal
Law Committee, as well as, chairper-
son of the Women, Golf & Business
Committee of the Long Island Classic
Champions Tour.
She is a member of the Town of
Oyster Bay Landmarks Preservation
Commission and has been a member
of the Institute of Property Taxation
since 1993. Strom has also been chair-
person of the Property Tax Commit-
tee for the American Bar Association
(ABA) Real Property Tax Section since
1995 and an editor of the ABA Proper-
ty Tax Deskbook, as well as the annual
author of the New York chapter.
Schroder & Strom, LLP is a leading
tax certiorari law firm on Long Island
with 10 attorneys devoted exclusively to
property valuation proceedings. Schro-
der & Strom, LLP has also been listed
as one of the top 100 New York State
women-owned firms. The firm rep-
resents New York’s commercial proper-
ty owners from the eastern tip of Long
Island to the Canadian border. In ad-
dition, its residential practice handles
all levels of condominiums, co-op and
homeowner association tax appeals, as
well as single-family homes.
MICHAEL
VENTRE
Windsor
Commercial
Real Estate
Michael Ventre is managing prin-
cipal at Windsor Commercial Real Es-
tate in Westbury. He is a licensed New
York broker who founded Windsor
Commercial Real Estate Inc. in 2006.
Ventre specializes in many aspects
of commercial real estate including
investment sales, landlord and tenant
representation, strategic planning,
and asset management. His respon-
sive and comprehensive approach to-
wards servicing clients’ needs and de-
mands has been rewarded with multi-
ple assignments from his clients on a
local and regional level.
He began his career in the 1990s
with Newmark of Long Island, LLC.,
a nationally recognized commercial
real estate company, where he suc-
cessfully represented major corpora-
tions and private companies in the
acquisition and disposition of office,
industrial and retail property.
Ventre is a member of the Garden
City Chamber of Commerce and the
Long Island Commercial, Industrial
Brokers Society, Garden City
Kiwanis Club, and volunteers to
find a cure for prostate cancer at the
annual ‘Cruzin 4 a Cure’ Car Show -
a not for profit organization.
Windsor Commercial Real Es-
tate is dedicated to serving the New
York-Metro and Long Island commer-
cial real estate market. The company
works closely with landlords and ten-
ants to ensure their needs and expec-
tations are met.
Windsor Commercial Real Estate
has long term relationships with
many leading financial institutions to
help with any financing needs. Suc-
cessful leasings have been attributed
to its professional in-depth knowledge
of the local market, dedication to its
profession, and a loyal commitment
to clients. The company is credited for
its policy of accessibility and timely
responsiveness.
Among its range of personalized
services, Windsor Commercial Real
Estate completes a comprehensive
market study, analyzing the office, in-
dustrial, or retail property, in order to
competitively position it in the mar-
ketplace. The information generated
by this study enables the company to
design a creative marketing program
targeted specifically towards the prop-
erty being represented. Windsor then
assembles a leasing and management
team to effectively implement the mar-
keting program.
Windsor Commercial Real Estate
also provides client consultation ser-
vices for the office, industrial, and
retail industry including relocation,
re-negotiation, acquisition, disposition,
and tenant representation services.