Schlam Stone & Dolan In The Media

A lawsuit brought in New York State Court by Schlam Stone & Dolan lawyers John M. Lundin and Samuel L. Butt on behalf of victims of a Ponzi scheme is gaining international press coverage.  The Complaint in the lawsuit accuses almost 40 defendants, notably Britons Anthony Heald and Gordon Spedding and American Michael L. Brown, of a variety of wrongs, including racketeering, fraud and unjust enrichment.

Schlam Stone & Dolan partner David Katz was cited by Professor Larry Ribstein for his influence on the New York Court of Appeals' decision involving the fiduciary duties owed by organizers of New York LLCs to those they solicit to invest in the LLCs.

Schlam Stone & Dolan partner Elizabeth Wolstein represents independent journalist Sergio Hernandez in a Freedom of Information Law action that seeks to shed light on the process used by New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg to select publishing executive Cathie Black as New York City Schools Chancellor.

Schlam Stone & Dolan partner David J. Katz participated in an oral argument before the New York Court of Appeals, the state's highest court.  The case is likely to redefine and clarify a significant issue in business law:  the circumstances under which a fiduciary can void, on public policy grounds, a general release executed in favor of said fiduciary.

Schlam Stone & Dolan partner Mike Battle, formerly United States Attorney for the Western District of New York, was interviewed for an All Things Considered radio news show, as part of NPR's in-depth coverage of the landmark court case, Tabbaa v. Chertoff.  Mr. Battle is considered an authority on the judicial issues that emerged from this case.

After an eight-day hearing, Schlam Stone & Dolan Partner Michael Battle, who had been appointed by the Mayor of Buffalo to preside over a removal hearing for Buffalo's Commissioner of Human Resources, issued his report and recommendation to the Mayor.  The Mayor adopted Mr. Battle's recommendation completely, and removed the Commissioner from her position.

Three Schlam Stone & Dolan victories were among the top ten New York business divorce cases of 2010, according to nybusinessdivorce.com, a respected web blog covering disputes among New York's business owners.  The cases spanned a variety of issues.  What they had in common was the potential to reshape and refine New York law as it applies to closely held companies, and do so in favor of the interests of Schlam Stone & Dolan clients.

Schlam Stone & Dolan Partner Michael Battle (former United States Attorney and Buffalo-area trial judge) has been appointed by the City of Buffalo and Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown to preside over a hearing in which the City is seeking to remove a high-level Commissioner.  The Mayor wants to remove his Commissioner of Human Resources for allegedly costing the City close to a million dollars in insurance premiums for dead people that were inadvertently listed on the City's rolls.  Mr. Battle – assisted by Schlam Stone & Dolan Associate David G. Abrams – was asked by the Mayor to act as the Hearing Officer, and to present the City with a complete factual report and recommendation of penalty.  This unusual, highly-publicized hearing lasted eight separate days, and was a regular fixture on the Buffalo evening news.

New York Business Divorce, June 28, 2010 and July 26, 2010:  Sometimes the law of New York treats an LLC like a corporation, sometimes like a partnership, and sometimes like a unique entity.  In related cases that are likely to reshape New York LLC law, Roni LLC v. Arfa and Arfa v. Zamir, Schlam Stone & Dolan partner David Katz and of-counsel Michael Marcus will be acting as appellate counsel.  These cases will be heard by the New York Court of Appeals.

Law.com, March 31, 2010:  Schlam Stone & Dolan partners Richard Dolan and Thomas Kissane successfully represented the Carlyle Group and Extell Development, which were sued by Trump for alleged fraud arising from the sale by Trump and others of property in the Penn Central rail yards.  The court admonished Mr. Trump for pursuing baseless claims.

New York Business Divorce, March 15, 2010:  In the action, plaintiffs claimed a common-law right to expel defendant Winston Chiu, represented by Schlam Stone & Dolan partner Jeffrey Eilender and associate Samuel Butt, from his position as a member of an LLC.  In March, 2010, the Second Department upheld a trial court ruling denying that plaintiffs had such a right at common law.  Commentators are describing the Second Department's ruling as representing the end of "the era of freewheeling judicial remedies" in LLC breakup cases.

New York Law Journal, January 13, 2010:  On January 12, 2010, Schlam Stone & Dolan partner Richard H. Dolan, representing the Governor, the Legislature and the State of New York, argued before the New York Court of Appeals on behalf of the defendants in three judicial pay cases.  The three cases, which are being followed around the country, each involve plaintiffs who filed suit seeking to force New York State to give pay raises to the state judiciary, and were consolidated by the Court of Appeals for a joint argument, which lasted two hours.

New York Business Divorce, December 28, 2009:  A Schlam Stone & Dolan victory has been lauded as one of the top ten New York business divorce cases of 2009 by www.nybusinessdivorce.com, a respected commentator on New York law regarding disputes between business owners.  The victory occurred in Ficus Investments, Inc. v. Private Capital Management, Inc., a case in which Schlam Stone & Dolan represents the former CEO of a limited liability company that serviced hundreds of millions of dollars of distressed residential mortgages.  In a decision dated February 23, 2009, New York Supreme Court Justice Bernard J.  Fried agreed with Schlam Stone & Dolan that Section 702 of the New York Limited Liability Company Law does not permit a New York limited liability company to be dissolved by the filing of a motion in an ongoing action but instead requires a plenary action to be filed seeking dissolution of the LLC.  This is the first ruling by a New York state court to decide this issue.

J. C. Neu and Associates Web, July 20, 2009:  Schlam Stone & Dolan partner Jeffrey M. Eilender and associate Samuel L. Butt recently obtained another victory in the SDNY litigation between celebrity online blogger Perez Hilton and a rival blogger, a ruling that the rival's copyright infringement and other claims (filed in retaliation for Hilton's own suit) should be dismissed with prejudice for failure to state a claim.

The Hollywood Reporter, March 19, 2009:  Schlam Stone & Dolan partner Jeffrey M. Eilender and associate Samuel L. Butt obtained a victory for celebrity blogger Perez Hilton by defeating a motion for a preliminary injunction based on the "Hot News" doctrine by a rival blogger, whom Hilton had initially sued.

Schlam Stone & Dolan partners Jeffrey M. Eilender and Thomas A. Kissane represent James Otis, whose interests as a collector of artworks and memorabilia and as a peace activist overlapped as he gathered and subsequently offered for sale a group of items that had belonged to Mohandas Gandhi, father of today's India, in connection with the international controversy that followed the auction of those items.  The events surrounding the auction have received extensive media coverage worldwide and we await permission to include some of that coverage in this web site. 

New York Daily News, December 24, 2008:  Schlam Stone & Dolan partners Jeffrey M. Eilender and John M. Lundin represent Mario Lavandeira, better known as celebrity blogger Perez Hilton, in a trademark infringement action against the operators of a rival web site.

New York Law Journal, November 14, 2008:  Schlam Stone & Dolan partner Richard Dolan persuaded a New York State appellate court to dismiss a lawsuit seeking higher pay for state-court judges.  The Appellate Division, Third Department (which would have been covered by any pay raises) issued its decision on November 13, voting 4-1 to dismiss the suit.  Mr. Dolan also represents New York State Assembly speaker Sheldon Silver in two other cases seeking similar relief.

New York Law Journal, September 25, 2008:  Schlam Stone & Dolan partner Richard H. Dolan submitted a brief appealing the summary judgment granted to plaintiffs in the Larabee v. Governor New York judicial pay lawsuit on behalf of New York's Governor, David Patterson, and the State of New York.

New York Law Journal, September 4, 2008:  Schlam Stone & Dolan partner Richard H. Dolan represented New York Governor David Patterson and the New York State Comptroller's Office in oral argument before the Appellate Division, Third Department in Maron v. Silver, a suit brought by two state judges and a former judge seeking to force New York to raise judicial salaries

New York Law Journal, May 27, 2008:  Manhattan Supreme Court denied an effort to kick off a trial on June 2 in the case stemming from a pay dispute between New York State's judges and its legislature; Schlam Stone & Dolan partner Richard H. Dolan is counsel for New York's Governor and Assembly Speaker

New York Law Journal, April 28, 2008:  Schlam Stone & Dolan partner Richard H. Dolan has been retained as counsel for New York's Governor and Assembly Speaker in a lawsuit regarding the pay of New York State judges brought by New York's Chief Judge

Associated Press, July 18, 2007:  Audrey Roofeh, an associate at Schlam Stone & Dolan represented a former Penn Schoen & Berland employee in litigation involving political pollsters for Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton and New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, which successfully settled out of court

Corporate Secretary, June 2007:  Jeffrey M. Eilender, a partner at Schlam Stone & Dolan, was quoted in Corporate Secretary on new conditions affecting whistle-blowers whose conduct may be driven by conscience but whose legal protections stem from provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act

Corporate Secretary, May 2007:  James C. Sherwood, a partner at Schlam Stone & Dolan, was quoted in Corporate Secretary on recent changes by the Department of Justice to corporate criminal investigations

44th Street Notes, June 2005:  Here is the story of one City Bar member revealing why he left stability and employment behind for study groups, outlines and blue books

New York Daily News, September 25, 2002:  Schlam Stone & Dolan delivers a knockout in Federal jury trial

The Wall Street Journal, May 24, 2000:  Schlam Stone & Dolan wins an appellate victory in a dramatic criminal case