New York Lawyers

Education Law

1400 Old Country Road, 211N, Salisbury, NY 11590

Area of Practice: Education Law & Special Education JACOB S. FELDMAN received his Juris Doctor from Brooklyn Law School in 1976 and his B.A. (cum laude) from Brooklyn College, in 1972. He is admitted to practice law in the State Courts of New York, the United States Supreme Court, the Second Circuit and the Federal Circuit Courts of Appeals, the Court of Federal Claims, and the Southern and Eastern District Courts of New York. From September, 1977 until December 1987, he was an associate senior counsel in the office of the General Counsel to the New York State United Teachers, where he handled school-related litigation involving constitutional and education law rights, seniority disputes, tenure rights and tenure areas in federal and state courts. Since 1987 he has represented public school districts as general counsel. He has handled the defense of public school districts in major federal and state litigation involving civil rights, age, race, disability and sexual discrimination matters, sexual harassment complaints, special education matters, complaints alleging First, Fifth and Fourteenth Amendment violations as related to the collection of school district taxes, and appeals to the Appellate Division, First and Second Departments, the New York State Court of Appeals and to the Second Circuit Court of Appeals. He has handled the successful defense of dozens of impartial hearings and appeals to the SRO on behalf of school districts. He has represented clients in arbitrations administered by the American Arbitration Association, and administrative proceedings before PERB, the State Division of Human Rights and the EEOC. He is a member of the Labor and Employment Law Sections of the New York State Bar Association; and the former Chairperson of the Education Law Committee of the Nassau County Bar Association. Mr. Feldman is a frequent speaker and participant in various special education law programs, speaking on topics including “Developing a Bulletproof IEP,” student discipline, preparation for and defense of impartial hearings and Section 504, conducted by the Nassau County Bar Association, the Nassau-Suffolk Academies of Law, NYSSBA, the Long Island Association of School Personnel Administrators, the LIASEA, the Council of New York Special Education Administrators, Lorman Education Services, PESI, St. John’s University, and many of our school district clients. He is the author of "Americans With Disabilities Act: Employer Obligations," Journal of Individual Employment Rights, Vol.2, #2 (1993) and “Discipline of Tenured Employees Pursuant to Education Law §3020-a, Journal of Collective Negotiations in the Public Sector, Vol.28, #2 (1999). He is the author of the “Read All About It” column, a monthly compilation of special education cases appearing in the “Attorney’s Corner” of the Centris Group’s Directors’ Website. He received LIASEA’s 2010 Award of Distinction for his special education work on behalf of school districts. He has been recognized annas a “Legal Leader - New York Area’s Top Rated Lawyers” annually since 2013 in the fields of education and labor law.

Personal Injury Law

410 E Jericho Tpke, Mineola, NY 11501

Jacquelin Finz is the Intake Managing Attorney for prospective negligence clients at Finz & Finz, P.C. Ms. Finz plays a pivotal role in the development, evaluation and analysis of legal theories required to successfully prosecute cases on behalf of the firm’s clients. In addition to her role as the Intake Managing Attorney, Ms. Finz has amassed millions of dollars in settlements across a wide spectrum of complex personal injury cases, including premises liability, nursing home neglect, motor vehicle accidents, general negligence and products liability, among others. While Ms. Finz provides comfort and confidence to the firm’s clients, she is a tenacious adversary of defense counsel and insurance representatives, always fighting hard on behalf of those who have suffered personal tragedy. Ms. Finz utilizes her tenacity and understanding of client needs to secure maximum compensation for the clients whom she represents.

Civil Litigation

615, 11 Broadway, New York, NY 10004, USA

Ms. Bell is a well-known securities attorney with a uniquely diverse background from experience representing a wide range of clients in securities and commercial arbitration, litigation and, regulatory matters, from investors to industry professionals. She has successfully recovered tens of millions of dollars in securities related settlements and awards for her clients. As an aggressive litigator, her unique background enables her to see both sides of the dispute and anticipate the opposition. In her nearly thirty years of experience, Ms. Malecki has handled thousands of investor, intra-industry and employment matters, arbitrations, litigation proceedings and appeals, contested governmental, regulatory, and self-regulatory investigations and hearings, as well as mediations, settlements, Acceptance, Waiver and Consent Orders (“AWC”s) and whistleblower complaints. She has also represented investor and industry witnesses and cooperators before various governmental, regulatory and self-regulatory bodies in hearings and settlements.Ms. Malecki was also the Vice President on the Board of Directors of the PIABA Foundation, an investor educational non-profit group with a mission to educate investors and provide the public with information about abuses in the financial services industry and the securities dispute resolution process.

General Practice Law

4 Manhattanville Rd, Suite 202, Purchase, NY 10577

James Ughetta is the Leader of the firm’s Product Liability Practice Team. His practice emphasizes litigation and preventive counseling in the field of product liability. He also handles governmental regulatory compliance including recalls, appeals, insurance-related matters, contract disputes, drafting of and guidance pertaining to vendor and business agreements, and asset and stock purchase agreements, and provides guidance on corporate matters. Mr. Ughetta has extensive trial experience representing companies in high exposure cases on a local and national level. His clients have ranged from Fortune 500 companies to newly created and well-established privately held companies. A representative sampling of products defended in litigation include helmets, motorcycles, ski equipment, seat belts, tires, fitness equipment, UTVs, agricultural equipment, outdoor power equipment, consumer and commercial products, industrial equipment, medical devices and electrical cords/cables. He has tried cases throughout the United States and has appeared pro hac vice in litigation pending in most states including Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Washington, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.

Criminal Defense Law

80 3rd St, Garden City, NY 11530, USA