The Best Lawyers In America 2022

Phillips Lytle Among Highest Ranked Law Firms in Buffalo with Four Top Listed Practice Areas in The Best Lawyers in America^© 2022

Fifty-two attorneys from five Phillips Lytle offices, including 38 from its Buffalo office, are ranked on the prestigious 2022 list

Fourteen Phillips Lytle Attorneys Named to Best Lawyers Ones to Watch List

Buffalo, N.Y. – Phillips Lytle LLP is pleased to announce 52 of the firm’s attorneys have been ranked in The Best Lawyers In America^© 2022. Phillips Lytle also received the following Top Listed City Awards:

• Banking and Finance Law in Rochester: Four attorneys
• commercial litigation in Buffalo: 11 attorneys
• Product Liability Litigation – Defendants in Buffalo: Five attorneys
• Real Estate Law in Buffalo: Five attorneys

The following Phillips Lytle attorneys are cited as “Lawyer of the Year”:

• David L. Cook, Rochester, NY (Litigation – Environmental)
• Victoria L. Grady, Rochester, NY (Banking and Finance Law)
• Gary F. Kotaska, Buffalo, NY (Employee Benefits (ERISA) Law)
• Kevin M. Hogan, Buffalo, NY  (Litigation – Environmental)
• William D. Christ, Buffalo, NY (Mass Tort Litigation/Class Actions – Defendants)

The 38 attorneys from the Buffalo office in the 2022 Best Lawyers in America^© include:

• Sharon Prise Azurin (Corporate Law)
• Holly A. Beecher (Trusts and Estates)
• Edward S. Bloomberg (Commercial Litigation)
• Glenn J. Bobeck (Corporate Law)
• William J. Brennan (Commercial Litigation)
• William J. Brown (Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law; Litigation – Bankruptcy)
• Craig R. Bucki (Litigation – Municipal)
• William D. Christ (Mass Tort Litigation / Class Action – Defendants; Personal Injury Litigation – Defendants; Product Liability Litigation – Defendants)
• James J. Contino (Real Estate Law)
• Douglas W. Dimitroff (Real Estate Law)
• James D. Donathen (Employment Law – Management; Labor Law – Management; Litigation – Labor and Employment)
• Deborah A. Doxey (Banking and Finance Law)
• Kevin J. English (Commercial Litigation)
• Robert E. Glanville (Environmental Law; Product Liability Litigation – Defendants)
• James R. Grasso (Employment Law – Management; Labor Law – Management)
• Tamar P. Halpern (Commercial Litigation; Product Liability Litigation – Defendants)
• Kevin M. Hogan (Environmental Law; Litigation – Environmental)
• Paul F. Jones (Commercial Litigation; Product Liability Litigation – Defendants)
• William P. Keefer (Health Care Law)
• David H. Kernan (Employee Benefits (ERISA) Law)
• Gary F. Kotaska (Corporate Law; Employee Benefits (ERISA) Law)
• Kenneth A. Manning (Bet-the-Company Litigation; Commercial Litigation; Litigation – Labor and Employment; Litigation – Municipal; Litigation and Controversy – Tax; Personal Injury Litigation – Defendants)
• Lisa McDougall (Health Care Law)
• David J. McNamara (Commercial Litigation; Litigation – Banking and Finance)
• Sean C. McPhee (Commercial Litigation)
• Angela Zwirecki Miller (Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law)
• David J. Murray (Corporate Law)
• John A. Pappano (Real Estate Law)
• Michael B. Powers (Personal Injury Litigation – Defendants)
• John G. Schmidt Jr. (Commercial Litigation)
• Ronald S. Shubert (Litigation – Real Estate; Real Estate Law)
• Lisa L. Smith (Product Liability Litigation – Defendants)
• James W. Smyton (Corporate Law)
• Adam S. Walters (Real Estate Law)
• James W. Whitcomb (Commercial Litigation; Personal Injury Litigation – Defendants)
• Sharon L. Wick (Litigation – Trusts and Estates; Trusts and Estates)
• Alan M. Wishnoff (Personal Injury Litigation – Defendants)
• Preston L. Zarlock (Commercial Litigation)

The nine lawyers from the Rochester, NY office included on the list are:

• Richard M. Beers, Jr. (Banking and Finance Law; Real Estate Law)
• Thomas R. Burns (Corporate Law)
• David L. Cook (Commercial Litigation; Environmental Law; Litigation – Environmental; Litigation – Real Estate)
• Victoria L. Grady (Banking and Finance Law)
• Ryan A. Lown (Real Estate Law)
• Albert M. Mercury (Corporate Law)
• Linda T. Prestegaard (Employment Law – Individuals; Employment Law – Management)
• Raymond L. Ruff (Banking and Finance Law)
• Robert F. Zogas (Banking and Finance Law; Corporate Law)

Albany Partner Richard E. Honen (Commercial Litigation; Corporate Law; Venture Capital Law); Chautauqua Partner Gregory L. Peterson (Real Estate Law); and New York City Partners Kenneth R. Crystal (Real Estate Law), Eric M. Kraus (Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions – Defendants), and Milan K. Tyler (Public Finance Law) are also included on the list.

The following attorneys were named to the “Ones to Watch” List:

• Erin C. Borek, Buffalo, NY (Commercial Litigation)
• Elizabeth Bove, Buffalo, NY (Commercial Litigation; Litigation – Labor & Employment)
• Joanna J. Chen, Buffalo, NY (Commercial Litigation; Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions – Defendants)
• Erin E. Connare, Buffalo, NY (Commercial Litigation; Product Liability Litigation – Defendants)
• Jeffrey D. Coren, Buffalo, NY (Commercial Litigation)
• Andrew P. Devine, Buffalo, NY (Commercial Litigation; Litigation – Banking and Finance; Litigation – Real Estate)
• Catherine N. Eisenhut, Buffalo, NY (Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law)
• Patrick T. Fitzgerald, Buffalo, NY (Environmental Law; Real Estate Law)
• Kimberly R. Nason, Buffalo, NY (Environmental Law)
• Jacob S. Sonner, Buffalo, NY (Commercial Litigation; Product Liability Litigation – Defendants)
• Heather H. Kidera, New York, NY (Commercial Litigation)
• Anthony M. Carello, Rochester, NY (Real Estate Law)
• Jillian M. Dunbar, Rochester, NY (Banking and Finance Law)
• Alson James McKenna, Rochester, NY (Banking and Finance Law)

Since it was first published in 1983, Best Lawyers^® has become universally regarded as the definitive guide to legal excellence. Best Lawyers lists are compiled based on an exhaustive peer-review evaluation. Almost 94,000 industry leading lawyers are eligible to vote (from around the world), and Best Lawyers has received over 11 million evaluations on the legal abilities of other lawyers based on their specific practice areas around the world. For the 2022 Edition of The Best Lawyers in America©, 10.8 million evaluations were analyzed, which resulted in more than 66,000 leading lawyers in 147 practice areas being included in the new edition. Lawyers are not required or allowed to pay a fee to be listed; therefore, inclusion in Best Lawyers is considered a singular honor. Corporate Counsel magazine has called Best Lawyers “the most respected referral list of attorneys in practice.”

Phillips Lytle LLP is a preeminent law firm that is recognized nationally for its legal excellence. With offices across New York State and in Chicago, IL; Washington, D.C.; and Canada, our attorneys serve a multinational client base, including Fortune 1000 companies, global and regional financial institutions, not-for-profit organizations, middle-market companies, startups, entrepreneurs and individuals on important matters affecting their businesses and personal wealth. For more information, visit phillipslytle.com.

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