Experience

• Trial practice
• Appellate practice
• Broad evidence rule
• Arson cases
• Insurance fraud cases
• Appraisal under fire insurance policies
• Mortgagee claims
• Buffalo housing court defense
• Insurance department complaints
• Commercial & contract disputes
• Litigation involving contested foreclosure cases

Affiliations

• Erie County Bar Association
• National Italian American Bar Association
• Buffalo Claims Association
• Utica Claims Association

Education

• Duquesne University, B.A., summa cum laude, 1997
• George Washington University, MPA., 1997
• State University of New York at Buffalo Law School, J.D., 2002

Admissions

• New York
• Federal District Courts for the Western, Eastern, Northern, and Southern Districts of New York
• 2nd Circuit
• United States District Courts and Bankruptcy Courts for the Western, Northern, and Southern Districts of New York

Awards

• Eugene P. Beard Award for Leadership in Ethics, Duquesne University

Lectures/ Presentations

• 5.9.2012 -  Effectively using the Residence - Premises Defense
• 9.22.2011 – Employment Law (CE)
• 7.21.2011 – Effective Strategies for Defeating Motions to Compel Appraisal (CE)
• 11.4.2011 – Property Claims
• 11.2.2011 – Property Claims
• 7.21.2010 - Property Examiners 101: A Smorgasbord of Property Topics to Fill Your Plate
• 5.6.2010 - Get Your Ducks in a Row: Taking, Recording, & Using Witness Statements
• 4.29.2010 - Bad Faith Claims in New York
• 9.17.2009 - Arson Claims and NFPA 921
• 3.18.2008 - Mandatory Mediation Program in WNY (CLE)
• 3.13.2008 - Discovery & Depositions in First-Party Cases
• 6.17.2008 - Mortgagee Claims: A Refresher Course
• 5.15.2007 - The Art of Legal Marketing (CLE)
• 5.9.2007 - Appraisal: The How, When, and Why of the Appraisal Process Under Insurance Policies in NYS
• 5.8.2007 - Demystifying Contracts
• 5.30.2006 - Federal Court Practice (CLE)
• 4.26.2005 - Protecting Public at Mortgagee's Expense : Overview of State of Affairs in Buffalo, NY
• 10.12.2005 - Bad Faith Claims in NY

Representative Cases

• HSBC Bank, USA v. Valentin
• Cooper v. New York Central Mutual Fire Ins. Co.
• TOPOR v. Erie Insurance Co.
• HSBC Bank USA, N.A. v. Betts
• Makuch v. New York Central Mutual Fire Ins. Co.
• AAA Drain Cleaning v. Erie Insurance Co.