Castle Creek Environmental Lawyers

I have received top ratings from five major lawyer peer rating services: Avvo.com (Superb); Martindale-Hubbell (AV Rating); Super Lawyers of Upstate New York (Environmental Law--six years running); Justia.com; and Best Lawyers in America (Land Use Law). I have more than 46 years of experience in helping clients resolve complex environmental, regulatory, land use, and economic development challenges. Prevailing legal fees in Upstate New York are significantly lower than those charged in New York City, Philadelphia, and other major cities.

I own and manage a LinkedIn group on Upstate NY Business: https://www.linkedincom/groups/5148843 (copy and paste in browser to join this...

Melody Westfall is an esteemed attorney and the driving force behind Westfall Law, where she serves as the CEO and Managing Partner. With an unwavering commitment to excellence and a wealth of experience in real estate, environmental law, and business development, Melody has solidified her reputation as a pre-eminent authority in the legal field, in both New York and the U.S. Virgin Islands. As a U.S. Navy Veteran, Melody embodies the tenacity and discipline that sets her apart in the legal field; her dedication to her clients, combined with her unparalleled knowledge and resolute advocacy, has propelled Westfall Law to new...

Rachel Treichler has been providing legal services to clients in the Finger Lakes and Southern Tier region since 2002. She previously practiced in New York City for 20 years. She represents clients in water law, riparian rights and mineral rights matters.

Summary: For the last twenty-two years I have been a country lawyer dealing mostly with the lives, rights, and problems of rural people. For the preceding thirty years, I had a career as a software engineer, communications engineer and high technology consultant at all levels of government in areas of energy, environment, national security, and foreign affairs.

Employment History: 1997 - Present: Attorney & Counselor at Law, The Ross Scott Law Firm, Andover, NY.

Focus on complex and first impression environmental issues, energy, technology, and Constitutional law, but also serving a broad local clientele as both counselor and litigator.

Experience at...

Michele L. Babcock is the Managing Partner of the firm. Michele joined Jacobowitz and Gubits, LLP in 2003, and became a Partner in 2011. Michele has represented local governments, municipal officials and private applicants in zoning, land use and environmental permitting and in litigation.

Ms. Babcock was admitted to the New York State Bar in March 2004, and is a member of the New York State Bar Association and the Women’s Bar of Orange and Sullivan Counties. Ms. Babcock received a Bachelors of Arts in Political Science and a concentration in Law and Justice from the State University of New York...

Mr. Cappello is a partner with the firm and his primary areas of practice have been land use and municipal law since 1988. Mr. Cappello has represented private developers in multi-phase and large-scale commercial, residential, educational and mixed-use land use applications. He has also served as attorney for planning boards and zoning boards of appeals throughout Orange and Ulster counties. John is the lead partner in Jacobowitz and Gubits’ “Green Team,” which focuses on advising a wide array of clients (municipalities, developers, manufacturers and businesses both small and large) on the opportunities available in this emerging field of law. Mr....

Mr. Jacobowitz is the founder and a senior partner of Jacobowitz and Gubits, LLP. He practices Environmental/Land Use, Real Estate, Municipal and Business Law. He has been village and town attorney for municipalities throughout the Hudson Valley. On behalf of private clients, he has helped bring to fruition numerous successful projects, including Rural Ridge subdivision, Harriman Business Park, Wind Ridge Village, Harriman Hills, Thruway Shopping Center, Walden View Apartments, and Millpond Condominium.

Mr. Jacobowitz has been a leader in the organized bar as a member of the New York State Bar Association, Municipal Law Section (member of the Executive Committee...

The Law Office of Douglas H. Zamelis is dedicated to assisting clients achieve their objectives by providing accurate, responsive, thorough and sensitive legal services. Doug Zamelis has over 25 years of experience counseling and representing corporate, governmental, and individual clients in compliance and litigation matters involving open government and our shared environment. In addition to his Juris Doctor from the Syracuse University College of Law (1989), Doug holds a B.S from Cornell University (1986) and M.S. from the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry (1989). Doug brings his extensive scientific knowledge and understanding...

Charles T. Bazydlo has since 1995 concentrated his legal practice in the areas of environmental law, land use / land development and municipal law. His work has included the representation of both large and small industrial, commercial and residential clients in front of various local, State and Federal regulatory permitting agencies. Mr. Bazydlo has represented several municipal public agencies and school districts including serving as the Attorney to Town Boards and Attorney to the Zoning Board of Appeals for the communities in Orange County, New York. In addition he advised as Special Counsel for development...

Practical, pragmatic advice and representation offered to clients to resolve real world complex problems.
Thoughtful dispute resolution and mediation services offered to litigants and their counsel.
Cost-effective strategies.
Depth of experience.
Individual focus.

The art of representing people.

Hunter J. Shkolnik concentrates his area of practice to the trial of significant personal injury cases primarily in the area of drug, automobile, heavy truck and aviation related product liability actions.
He leads the discovery and trial teams of various mass tort pharmaceutical and medical device litigations for the firm. He is also active in managing national litigation and plaintiff litigation groups including the American Association of Justice’s Actos Litigation Group.
He is currently serving as a chairman, leader or court appointed representative on Plaintiff Steering Committees in various drug and other mass torts. Additionally Mr. Shkolnik has also held officer positions...

Jacob is a Partner with The Zoghlin Group and Chairs the firm’s Zoning & Land Use Law and Cannabis Law practice group. His practice focuses on environmental, zoning, land use, cannabis, energy, & municipal law. He counsels individuals, businesses, & municipalities, and helps them resolve their issues by advocating, educating, advising, & litigating on their behalf. In his municipal practice, Jacob provides special counsel services to municipal boards, and advises clients on a wide range of procedural and legal issues. His practice also focuses on ensuring government entities comply with the law, and has included litigation related to New York’s Administrative...

Steven M. Silverberg is a founder of the firm and Of Counsel to Silverberg Zalantis LLC. He has extensive experience in representing developers and municipalities in land use, zoning and environmental law matters including litigation and appeals in the New York State and Federal Courts. Starting his career as an assistant district attorney and then working as a town attorney, providing counsel in such diverse areas as contracts, construction, telecommunications and employment law, prepared him for the services he has provided to businesses, municipalities and individuals. In addition to his experience with the approval process for residential and commercial developments...

Christie Tomm Addona is a Partner at Silverberg Zalantis LLC. She has extensive experience working on Litigation and Appeals, Land Use Applications, and Municipal matters. She represents clients on Article 78 Proceedings, defending and challenging administrative decisions. Additionally, Christie also counsels on Employment Law and Commercial Litigation issues.

Christie has prior experience in several Civil Litigation firms. She has worked from the beginning of lawsuits through trials and appeals for Insurance Defense, Tort, Maritime, Contract and Employment Law cases. Christie has represented a vast array of clients including individuals, large corporations, and non-profit corporations.

In 2005, Christie received...

Patrick J. Lanciotti works in the environmental litigation and toxic tort department of Napoli Shkolnik, where his practice focuses primarily on environmental class actions and mass tort litigations. Mr. Lanciotti currently represents individuals injured by the Flint Water Crisis, In re: Flint Water Litigation, one of the largest contaminated water litigations in the country. Other cases include representing individuals and municipalities injured as a result of exposure to Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in the following matters: Westhampton, New York, Hoosick Falls, New York, Colorado Springs, Colorado, and Yaphank, New York. Finally, Mr. Lanciotti represents thousands of children with...

Land Use and Zoning, Environmental and Municipal Law Real Estate Litigation Commercial Litigation Civil Rights (Property Rights) Litigation

Paul J. Napoli is a nationally renowned personal injury, medical malpractice, and mass tort litigation attorney with more than 25 years’ experience in the field. He aggressively defends the rights of his clients in courtrooms throughout the country, fighting to ensure they get the maximum amount of compensation they deserve. Trusted by those he represents and respected by his colleagues in the legal field, he has a well-earned reputation for integrity and honesty, and a dedication to ensuring justice is served. With his well-documented track record in achieving the most successful outcomes in legal cases, Mr. Napoli rates a...

We help nuclear weapons and uranium workers with their Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act (EEOICPA) and Radiation Exposure Compensation Act (RECA) claims. These are two federal programs that pay compensation to nuclear weapons workers and uranium miners, millers, transporters as well as on-site participants (who were on-site for a test of a nuclear weapon either at the Nevada Test Site (NTS) or in the South Pacific and Downwinders (who lived downwind of the Nevada Test Site during the nuclear weapons testing that took place in the 1940s- 1960s. We also assist parents and their children with certain birth injury...

I am a Litigation Attorney that concentrates my practice on Insurance Coverage, Toxic Torts, Environmental, Product Liability & Commercial Litigation. In particular, I represent landlords, small businesses such as manufacturers, distributors, retailers, waste haulers and dry cleaners, and I defend insured businesses for insurance companies. For more than two decades I have defended litigation claims involving lead paint, mold, asbestos, benzene, ink, and other toxic tort and environmental claims as well as related insurance coverage disputes and disputes between insurance companies. I routinely litigate commercial and contractual claims as well as shareholder and partnership disputes for small businesses and I...

Mesothelioma lawyer Robert I. Komitor is a partner at Levy Phillips & Konigsberg, LLP, and serves as lead trial lawyer specializing in products liability, negligence, and personal injury cases involving mesothelioma, hazardous wastes, and pollution. Bob was named one of the nation's Best Lawyers, in the area of mass torts, in Gregory W. Smith and Steven W. Naifeh's The Best Lawyers in America 2005-2012 (Woodward/White). Bob has consistently won some of the highest damage awards in the nation. For three consecutive years, he made The National Law Journal's list of lawyers winning the highest verdicts. He was trial lawyer on the "New...

I am a graduate of Wesleyan University and the Boston University School of Law. During my career as an attorney, prior to my current solo practive, I have worked as a government regulatory trial attorney for the State Public Service Commission, an in house counsel for a Fortune 100 corporation, and as a partner or counsel for a several Albany and Syracuse based medium sized law firms. I am committed to helping people and small businesses with their legal problems at a reasonable, fixed "no surprises" rate not based on the common "hourly billing" model. I am...

The Diederich Law Office focuses on helping victims of illegality and bias in employment and civil rights cases, particularly wrongful termination and job discrimination cases, and negotiating severance packages. Cases include wrongful discrimination based upon age, gender / sex, national origin, race, pregnancy or disability. I also served as a "citizen soldier" (US Army reservist), with tours of duty in the combat zones of Iraq (2004-05) and Afghanistan (2012), as an Army lawyer. I retired in the rank of lieutenant colonel. We handle cases from Long Island, through New York City and into the Hudson...

Tyson-Lord Gray is an Attorney in New York City. His practice area is Environmental Law. Tyson-Lord strives to protect individuals and communities through his work enforcing environmental laws and policies.

Tyson-Lord has held previous positions at Richman Law Group and was a Pro-Bono Scholar at The Legal Aid Society. There, he worked in the Civil Practice Division focusing on Housing Law Practice and the Homeless Rights Project.

Tyson-Lord received his J.D. from Pace Law School and his Ph.D. from Vanderbilt University. He also holds a S.T.M. from Boston University and a M.Div. from Morehouse School of Religion.

Tyson-Lord is currently admitted to practice...

The Denver Law Firm LLC is led by experienced trial attorney William Denver. Mr. Denver started his career as a clerk to NJ Appellate Division Chief Judge Hermann Michels. Mr. Denver then spent three years trying felony cases as an Assistant District Attorney for the Manhattan DA’s office before moving to Robertson, Freilich Bruno & Cohen and undertaking insurance recovery work on behalf of policyholders. Mr. Denver was later elected as a partner in the insurance recovery group of two AmLaw 100 firms in New York City before forming The Denver Law Firm in 2014.
Over...

As both a business owner and resident of Warwick, NY, Elizabeth knows the ins and outs of life in Orange County and the greater Hudson Valley. Concentrating in the areas of real estate, land use, municipal and landlord-tenant law, Elizabeth works with her clients to provide a high level of personalized legal representation allowing her clients to achieve their goals in the most direct and efficient way possible.

Geoffrey Johnson has been an AV-rated (Martindale-Hubbell) attorney for over 30 years and currently specializes in commercial and construction litigation. He is a member of the New York and New Jersey bars and has been admitted to practice before the United District Courts for the Eastern and Southern Districts of New York, District of New Jersey, and Second and Eleventh Circuit Courts of Appeal. Mr. Johnson has been retained by clients facing a wide variety of legal issues, including construction law and related litigation, commercial law and related litigation, surety disputes, bid protests, liens, property and liability insurance...

Jerome (Jerry) Block is a partner at Levy Phillips & Konigsberg, LLP (also known as LPK) and specializes in representing people diagnosed with mesothelioma, a cancer caused by asbestos exposure. Jerry is proud of LPK's commitment to families affected by mesothelioma which extends beyond the courtroom. LPK is a top "Diamond Level" supporter of the Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation (MARF), a non-profit seeking a cure for mesothelioma and better treatments to improve the lives of those living with this disease. LPK is also a Silver Sponsor for the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization (ADAO). In addition to securing favorable settlements for clients...

I work to give individual attention to each client. I take the time to understand all of the dimensions of the client's issue or concern; as an attorney in solo practice I have the flexibility to do that. At the same time, I am in a law suite that provides access and consultation with attorneys in many areas of law.

I have lived in New York City since 1976 so I have wide and deep understanding of the City, its business, environment and people.

My extracurricular activities include bread-baking, reading history, travel and keeping up with my wife's theater company.

Attorney focusing on FINRA Securities Arbitration, Consumer Protection and Professional Liability in Buffalo and Rochester, New York.

Mesothelioma lawyer Audrey Perlman Raphael is a partner at Levy Phillips & Konigsberg, LLP. Audrey was recently included in the 2012 edition of The Best Lawyers in America in the practice area of Mass Tort Litigation. Since joining Levy Phillips & Konigsberg in 1990, she has specialized in asbestos litigation and every year achieves numerous multimillion-dollar settlements against manufacturers and suppliers of dangerous asbestos products. Audrey led the way discovering that many different types of equipment and products contain asbestos. For example, Audrey was one of the first attorneys to conduct depositions of mesothelioma and lung cancer victims who were exposed to...

Allen Frankel graduated from Benjamin N. Cardozo Law School in 1993. Soon after he passed the bar exams of New York and New Jersey. He has practiced in the fields of environmental law and real estate, business transactional work, civil litigation, criminal defense, asset forfeiture, nuisance abatement, and family law, among others. Mr. Frankel established the Law Offices of Allen Frankel. In 30 years of practice, he has successfully represented clients throughout Manhattan, Queens, Brooklyn, Bronx, Staten Island, Nassau County, Suffolk County, Westchester County, Rockland County and New Jersey in matters related to environmental and real...

Bridget is here to make your job easier: she is knowledgeable about the law; she helps clients reach consensus about their objectives; and fiercely advocates for her clients. Bridget O'Toole represents municipalities, community groups, individuals and businesses in a range of matters related to municipal law, renewable energy project siting, land use, zoning, and environmental litigation. She is admitted in New York State as well as the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, U.S. District Court for the Western District of New York, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York, and...

Located on the Circle in the Village of Chatham, Columbia County, we have practiced law across upstate New York for over forty-five years, with a particular emphasis on matters in Columbia and its surrounding counties. Our firm is focused primarily on helping clients with the following legal matters: -Real Estate Law including Residential, Commercial & Lenders -Estate Planning and Administration -Elder Law and Medicaid Planning -Municipal Law -School Law -Environmental Law -Business Transactions, including Acquisitions -Limited Liability Companies and Corporations As a small law firm we are able to be personally aware of all aspects of a client's file when he or she calls to discuss it. Our...

Robert P. Firriolo holds a Juris Doctor degree from Brooklyn Law School, where he was a Dean's Merit Scholar and a member of the Moot Court Honor Society. Rob also hold a Bachelor of Science in Engineering degree from the Cooper Union School of Engineering in New York City. Before practicing law, he performed project management and construction oversight for the New York City Departments of Environmental Protection and Transportation. Rob has been recognized by his peers as "AV Preeminent™" Peer Review Rated, issued by Martindale-Hubbell. AV Preeminent® is the highest peer rating standard. This rating signifies that a large number...