My approach is based on principles of clarity and collaboration, and founded on my diverse experiences.
I am a proud generalist - which is another way of saying that I am continuously curious, adaptable, and can take my experiences - both professionally and personally - and synthesize, process and apply them to different legal and business contexts. These experiences have taught me an understanding of human behavior and motives, and the importance of listening closely, approaching client issues holistically, and being clear, strong, and flexible.
I am a determined writer and thinker, strategizer, and collaborator. I want my contracts to be practical and make sense - like a good recipe or instruction manual, while knowing that many times these are a backstop in transactions and will only be read when things go badly.
History and Bio
I began practicing law as an associate at Latham & Watkins, LLP, where I initially worked on both transactional and litigation matters, before becoming primarily involved dispute resolution and risk advising. Client types included financial institutions, private equity groups and their portfolio companies, and a range of other businesses.
After leaving Latham & Watkins, I joined a boutique litigation firm in midtown Manhattan before venturing out on my own. For a period of time, I operated as a partner in a co-op styled firm, concentrating on a broad array of general counsel, entertainment, and start-up business transactions, before reopening my own practice.
I am also proud to sit on the Boards of Directors for two amazing New York based non-profit organizations that present new music - Music at the Anthology, Inc. (MATA), and Experiments in Opera, Inc. (EiO) for which I am Board President.
Prior to my legal career, I was raised New Jersey by first-generation parents from the Bronx, went to college in Boston and mostly upstate New York, before heading to the Western U.S. for about 11 years, living in Arizona (Tempe, Sedona), California (San Francisco), New Mexico (Santa Fe), Colorado (Boulder), Washington State (for a minute).
Amongst my work experience, I counseled homeless and runaway youth in San Francisco; worked in finance for Bank of America Securities in their mutual fund department, and for a small investment management firm in Boulder; owned a landscaping business and was an apprentice plumber in Boulder; cooked in numerous top restaurants in Santa Fe, NM, Sedona, AZ, Boulder, CO, and Kirkwood, CA; and worked as a manual laborer in various locations, including construction, manufacturing, and on assembly lines.
Education
New York Law School, JD,
summa cum laude
Bard College, BA,
Music Composition
I graduated summa cum laude from New York Law School. There I was an Articles Editor for the New York Law School Law Review, where I published an article on copyright issues in virtual worlds that subsequently won the 2008 National First Prize in the ASCAP Nathan Burkan Memorial Copyright Competition.
My undergraduate studies were in Music Composition at Bard College, where I composed, conducted, and performed new works of music.
Bar Admissions
New York State, Southern and Eastern Districts of New York
Bar Memberships
New York City Bar Association
New York State Bar Association (Member of Entertainment, and Small Business Committees)
Publications
Fostering Creativity in Virtual Worlds: Easing the Restrictiveness of Copyright for User-Created Content, 55 J. of the Copyright Society of the U.S.A. 469 (2008); 52 New York Law School Law Review 67 (2007)