Zuckerman Spaeder LLP is pleased to announce that Paul Shechtman is joining the firm as a partner in its New York office. Among New York’s most respected and sought-after litigators, Mr. Shechtman comes to Zuckerman Spaeder with more than 30 years of experience drawn from private practice and government service, which included serving as the Director of Criminal Justice under New York Gov. George E. Pataki. He has been recognized for his appellate and white collar work, and he will continue to build those practices at Zuckerman Spaeder. Mr. Shechtman’s arrival follows last month’s announcement that Steven M. Cohen, who was most recently Secretary to New York Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, joined the firm to lead the expansion and development of its New York office.
“There are few lawyers who have Paul’s intellectual talents and wealth of experience. Bringing Paul on board is a major step in the ongoing development of an office of premier lawyers in New York who will complement the firm’s nationally recognized strengths,” said Mr. Cohen.
Zuckerman Spaeder chairman Graeme W. Bush added, “Paul’s arrival at the firm is another important milestone in our growth in the New York market. He will help build our already strong white collar practice, and his stature as an appellate lawyer will make him a major addition to our group of accomplished appellate lawyers.”
Mr. Shechtman represents individuals, corporations, and municipal agencies in a wide range of federal and state criminal and regulatory investigations. He has tried numerous cases and frequently appears before federal and state appellate courts. An active member of the New York legal community, Mr. Shechtman serves on a number of professional committees, such as the Federal Judicial Conference Advisory Committee on Rules of Evidence, New York State Permanent Sentencing Review Commission, and the New York State Bar Association Task Force on Government Ethics. He was previously appointed by Gov. Pataki to serve as the chair of the New York State Ethics Commission, of the New York State Commission on Lobbying, and of the Governor’s Judicial Screening Committee for the Court of Claims. In 2005, Gov. Pataki appointed Mr. Shechtman as an advisor to the Office of the Medicaid Inspector General to help overhaul the state agencies that pursue Medicaid fraud. In addition, he has taught criminal procedure and evidence at Columbia Law School for more than 20 years and has received numerous awards for outstanding teaching. Mr. Shechtman has been recognized in numerous industry rankings, such as Chambers USA, The Best Lawyers in America, International Who’s Who of Business Lawyers, and Super Lawyers.
Before entering private practice, he served as the director of criminal justice under Gov. Pataki; spent six years as counsel to the district attorney of New York County; and served two stints as an assistant U.S. attorney in the Southern District of New York, first as chief of appeals and subsequently as chief of the criminal division. After law school, Mr. Shechtman served as law clerk to the Honorable Louis H. Pollak, U.S. District Judge for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, and to the Honorable Warren E. Burger, Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. Before attending Harvard Law School, Mr. Shechtman attended Oxford University as a Rhodes Scholar.
“Joining Zuckerman Spaeder gives me the opportunity to serve more national clients,” said Mr. Shechtman. “The firm embraces the values that have been important to me over the course of my career. I look forward to working with Steve Cohen and a team of skilled attorneys who provide high-quality representation in the most complex cases.”
Founded in 1975, Zuckerman Spaeder is a national litigation boutique that represents individual and institutional clients in high-stakes civil and commercial cases. Zuckerman Spaeder counts among its ranks many of the nation’s leading lawyers, who include former federal prosecutors and public defenders, as well as attorneys who have served in congressional offices and federal agencies.
The firm opened its New York office in 2004, and has since been involved in many of New York City’s high-profile cases, including partner William W. Taylor III’s defense of former IMF director Dominique Strauss-Kahn in his recently dismissed criminal case and ongoing civil case, and former NYSE Compensation Committee Chairman Kenneth Langone in the highly publicized litigation over Dick Grasso’s compensation (the Appellate Division of the New York State Supreme Court dismissed all claims against Langone).
