On May 20, 2013, Cynthia S. Arato was appointed to the Board of Directors of Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts. Established in 1969, Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts is the pioneer in arts-related legal aid and educational programs about the legal and business issues that affect artist and arts organizations. VLA serves the arts community … Read more
On April 25, 2013, Shapiro, Arato & Isserles LLP filed an amicus brief in the New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division on behalf of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and a coalition of business organizations in support of the legal challenge to New York City’s controversial Portion Cap Rule. On September 13, 2012, the New … Read more
On March 21, 2013, the Supreme Court, Appellate Division, First Department reversed an order directing the firm’s pro bono client to appear and testify at an out-of-state criminal trial. After obtaining a stay of enforcement of the order pending appeal, the firm then won reversal of the order and dismissal of the proceeding in a … Read more
On January 31, 2013, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit vacated a district court judgment dismissing the claim of our pro bono client, Julio Isley Smith, and remanded the case to the district court for further proceedings. Mr. Smith’s claim is that prison officials at Great Meadow Correctional Facility transferred him … Read more
On November 29, 2012, United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit reversed the conviction of two tax lawyers and former partners of Ernst & Young (“E&Y”), including our client, Richard Shapiro. Mr. Shapiro had been convicted in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York on charges of conspiracy … Read more
On February 9, 2012, Shapiro, Arato & Isserles LLP obtained a ruling on a question of first impression under the United States Copyright Act from the United States District Court for the Central District of California in favor of Cash Money Records, Inc. Cash Money was one of several defendants named in Rick Cunningham v. … Read more
On February 1, 2012, Shapiro, Arato & Isserles LLP filed an amicus brief in the United States Supreme Court on behalf of the Center on the Administration of Criminal Law at New York University School of Law that argues for the elimination of the unjust and discredited mandatory minimum sentences facing defendants in federal crack … Read more
On September 9, 2011, in a unanimous ruling, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit vacated the conviction of a former partner of a major international law firm who was accused of having participated in fraud perpetrated by officers of a firm client. Shapiro, Arato & Isserles LLP filed an amicus brief … Read more
On March 22, 2011, the Honorable Denny Chin issued a landmark ruling and rejected a $125 million class action settlement that would have allowed Google to create the world’s largest digital book library. A group of authors and publishers sued Google in 2005, alleging that the company was infringing their copyrights on a massive scale … Read more
In January 12, 2011, the members of the New York Council of Defense Lawyers (“NYCDL”) elected partner Alexandra A.E. Shapiro to a two-year term as Secretary-Treasurer of the organization. The NYCDL is a not-for-profit professional association with a membership of about 200 lawyers whose principal area of practice is the defense of criminal cases, particularly … Read more