Category Archives: Obituaries

 

September 3rd, 2013

RIP: Irwin Kosover

A guest post obituary today from Lee Huttner:

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Irwin Kosover died this week at age 80. He was a fixture for many years in Kings County Supreme Court, representing defendants only.His cast of carrier clients included Empire Insurance and Eagle Insurance. He was well known for his no nonsense approach, which made some younger attorneys feel that he was a bully — only to learn over the years that he actually was helping toughen up his young adversaries.

It was well known among the “regulars” in Brooklyn that he hated motions dealing with “serious injury” threshold because he believed all lawyers should make a living. Even though he thought most cases were exaggerated, he usually “lost” the threshold motions. His “file” was a single sheet of paper.

Irwin maintained an office at 26 Court Street for many years. He refused any and all offers to buy him lunch, preferring to eat in the office. He once promised he would let me buy lunch upon his retirement. He knew that day would never come as he knew that he would work to his dying day.

Many attorneys have provided stories about Irwin. I’m sure he would be happy to know that he was respected. A common thread throughout the stories was that he was tough. Young attorneys thought he was mean and abrasive. Irwin would always smile when a young lawyer figured out that it was “shtick” from a tough old fashioned lawyer. One attorney tells how she first met Irwin as a litigant. He was tough and pushed a settlement. He did not want to see her get nothing-but not too much either.

Most of all Irwin loved his wife. When she was suffering from the cancer that eventually took her life, he would say she was his life. When she passed a piece of Irwin died as well. Hopefully they are together again. He will be missed.

 

February 14th, 2013

RIP: Robert Conason

It is a rare day for me to simply copy-and-paste the lede from another story and then link to it. I like to add my own thoughts, opinions and commentary.

But time doesn’t allow for that, and since Bob Conason was one of the giants of the personal injury bar here in New York, I will break my own rules. To his friends and family, and the partners, associates and staff at Gair, Gair, Conason, Steigman, Mackauf, Bloom & Rubinowitz, my condolences.

From today’s New York Law Journal:

Robert Conason, a highly successful personal injury attorney and partner at Gair, Gair, Conason, Steigman, Mackauf, Bloom & Rubinowitz, died early yesterday. He was 80.

Friends said Conason died from complications from leukemia at Lenox Hill Hospital in Manhattan.

Among his most notable legal triumphs were $100 million in settlements for victims of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and their families with the Victims Compensation Fund, and a $50 million settlement on behalf of relatives of business executives killed in the 1980 fire at the Stouffer’s Inn in Westchester County.

Friends and colleagues remembered Conason as much for his humility as for the outstanding success he achieved in the courtroom.

The rest of the story is here:  Obituary: Robert Conason

 

 

 

November 6th, 2012

Court of Appeals Judge Theodore Jones Dies at 68

Judge Theodore Jones. Photo courtesy of New York Court of Appeals.

New York Court of Appeals Judge Theodore Jones died suddenly last night of an apparent heart attack. He was just  68. Judge Jones ascended to New York’s high court by way of the Brooklyn courts, where he was highly regarded for his respect for both the law and lawyers.

That respect is reflected in the following introduction of Judge Jones delivered a few years ago by Evan Goldberg when the New York State Bar Association gave  him an award. The remarks are reprinted here with the permission of Goldberg.

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Our speaker this evening is well known to us all.  Judge Theodore Jones has long been a friend of the trial bar, after years of being a trial lawyer himself. He started in the Legal Aid Society, then went to private practice and began his career as a judge in the Juvenile Offender part of Kings County.  All this helped shape his judicial character, as a jurist who honestly wants to help people.

His rapid elevation, from Supreme Court, to Administrative Judge, to the Court of Appeals is a testament to the high regard his colleagues have for him.  And his TV persona, exhibited during the infamous 2005 transit strike let other people in on what was, at that time, Brooklyn’s best kept secret; that when Judge Teddy Jones got onto a case, an equitable resolution was soon to follow.

When the trial bar lost Judge Jones to the Court of Appeals, we all grieved, because we need judges like him for our trials, but we took collective solace in the knowledge that he would be safeguarding the rule of law in a Court deserving of his inspired participation.  Whether he’s penning a scholarly opinion or driving for the green on the golf course, he always devotes his impressive skill with full effort, skill and passion.

For me, personally, Judge Jones has always been available to lend his ear and offer advice.  His inclusive, fathering approach is innate.  He regularly attends the lawyer golf outings and he’s so good.  How good is he?  He’s so good, we don’t even have to pretend to lose.  Um, not that we do that.   Judge Jones is also quite the marksman, a skill he undoubtedly honed when he was a Brooklyn Court Street lawyer.  His service as a captain in Viet Nam may also have helped.

Just two days ago, our association’s Diversity Committee gave Judge Jones a lifetime achievement award for his longstanding efforts to advance minorities in our profession.  Whether he’s working with high school students, seasoned veterans, or anything in between, Judge Jones is everyone’s BFF.  I was truly honored on behalf of our association, when Judge Jones agreed to be our speaker.  Ladies and gentlemen, I present Associate Judge of the NYS Court of Appeals, the Honorable Theodore T. Jones, Jr.
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Update: From the New York Law Journal, a sampling of opinions from Judge Jones.

 

 

January 28th, 2011

Michael McAllister, Top New York Mediator, Has Passed On (Updated)

It’s with great sadness that I’m reporting the death late yesterday at the age of 59 of one of New York’s top mediators, Michael McAllister. Anyone that has tried civil cases in New York over the last two decades  knows who he is, and has most likely appeared before him at some point.

McAllister was the Neutral Evaluation Attorney in charge of the New York County Supreme Court Mediation/Neutral Program at its inception in 1994. This state didn’t have any official mediators before that, and this program was turned into a model to be used in other counties.

He was personally responsible for having settled thousands of cases, both through his role as official court mediator, and subsequently from March 2005 onward with the private mediation company JAMS. That included numerous million and multi-million dollar disputes including labor law, medical malpractice, toxic torts, municipal liability, and thousands upon thousands of slip/fall and auto cases.

He was a trusted and respected neutral, widely liked by both plaintiffs and defendants, on both a personal as well as professional level, and amazingly effective at what he did. He appeared just days ago as part of the faculty of a continuing legal education class, The Art of Negotiating and Mediation.

The letter below regarding McAllister appeared on October 1, 1998, in the New York Law Journal. How often does praise appear in print for someone who works out of the spotlight?  It is republished here in full, with the permission of its author, Matt Kreinces:

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Letter To The Editor: PRAISE FOR MEDIATOR

In the course of my short career I have had the opportunity to work for some of the best negligence/medical malpractice trial lawyers in this state, including Richard Godosky, Anthony Gentile, Raymond Furey, Joseph Awad, Joseph Miklos, Ivan Schneider and Harvey Weitz. While having worked for these individuals I have had the opportunity to appear before and meet some of the most distinguished jurists including Chief Judge Judith Kaye.

All of these are recognized by the profession and the public on a daily basis. However, one individual who I have come to know who seems to go completely unrecognized is Michael McAllister. Mr. McAllister, a court mediator in State Supreme Court, New York County, is currently settling cases that no one else can settle, clearing dockets that no one else can clear and maintaining a level of professionalism I can only hope to obtain during my career as a lawyer.

Within the past five years I have had the opportunity to appear before Mr. McAllister on a number of occasions and have come to know him personally. One instance that stands out concerned the death of a woman after childbirth. The woman gave birth to her third child, developed complications, was allegedly saved immediately after the birth, but died a few days later due to a redevelopment of complications. I was working on this matter as a plaintiff’s attorney. Prior to a note of issue being filed, Mr. McAllister came upon the case and called it in for a conference.

There were four defense attorneys as well as my boss and myself. The initial conference was an amazing tribute to Mr. McAllister’s ability to recognize the strengths and weaknesses on both sides of this complicated medical malpractice action. After a number of conferences, and long before this matter ever would have reached a trial, Mr. McAllister was able to effectuate a substantial seven-figure settlement. Given the defendants and carriers involved, this was not an easy task.

Mr. McAllister does his job on a daily basis with the utmost of courtesy and respect for the lawyers who enter his courtroom, even when that respect and courtesy is not reciprocated. I am writing to thank Mr. McAllister for giving those of us who are still early in our careers an opportunity to see what being a lawyer is all about, as well as something to strive for down the road.

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He is survived by his wife and four children. A funeral announcement has not yet been made, but is expected later today when JAMS will put out a statement.

Update: The wake for Mike will be held at Beaugard Funeral Home in River Edge:, 869 Kinderkamack Road, River Edge, NJ 07661; 201-262-5050.

The wake is tomorrow (Saturday, 1/29) from 7pm-9pm and Sunday from 2pm-4pm and 7pm-9pm.  The mass is on Monday (1/31) at 11:30am at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church, 305 Elm St., Oradell, NJ 07649

There will be a celebration from 1pm-5pm at on Monday at Maggianos in the Riverside Mall in Hackensack, NJ.  The arrangements are open to friends, family and clients.  (of note, Mike will be cremated)

The family has set up The McAllister Education Fund for Vanessa and Brian, in lieu of flowers. Donations should be mailed to the funeral home (The Fund’s EIN is 27-4684686).

 

February 1st, 2010

R.I.P. Jane Jarvis, Shea’s Queen of Melody (And a Lesson For Lawyers)

Jane Jarvis, the long-time organist for the New York Mets at Shea Stadium, died last week at age 94. Shea Stadium’s Queen of Melody inspired fans over the course of 15 years, and her playing, oddly enough, held lessons for lawyers. Stay with me here. I have a point this time.

Those of my age that grew up spending times watching the Mets at Shea remember her playing for the fans, and the fans responding, and Jarvis tinkling the ivories back at us. It was like an exuberant conversation during her 1964-1979 tenure as she kept us entertained between innings and during other breaks. Anyone who spent time at the now-gone ball yard remembers Jarvis doing Meet the Mets on the Thomas organ.

Ultimately she was replaced by over-amplified canned music (and a thousand other distractions of the modern ball park). But canned music, of course, can’t respond to the fans. Her playing was personal. She could see and hear what was going on, and speed up, slow down and modify on the fly. Live music is like that.

So where does the law come in to this? Lawyers often used canned materials too. We borrow briefs and memos from others for use.

But here is the important part: Too many lawyers, it seems, borrow the brief and don’t actually read it. They don’t make it personal to the actual facts of the case. The writing doesn’t crackle with originality and pertinence, because oft times it is neither.

I once read a brief that was filled with “this honorable court” and “respectfully” this and “respectfully” that, and behind all the obsequious writing was garbage. I always figured that if one wanted to be respectful to the court, one would tailor the brief to the actual facts and points that needed to be made. The writer would make it easy on the eyes instead of forcing the judge (or clerk) to go burrowing through the darn thing trying to figure out what the actual point is.

Other briefs I’ve seen over the years have clearly been filled with cut-and-paste from other briefs, or straight out of WestLaw. It’s pure laziness and the message that the judge no doubt receives is, “If the lawyer didn’t care, why should I?”

There isn’t anything intrinsically wrong with a form book, of course. If you are doing something for the first time it’s good to see how someone else did it. The mistakes are in believing that this the only way to do it, or that the form shouldn’t be changed at all. The mistake is in ignoring your audience.

Jarvis used sheet music to get her songs down when learning them. But then she adapted each song, just as the lawyer must adapt each and every argument (if, that is, you actually want to communicate a point to the judge)

Jarvis was a virtuoso when it came to the organ and the crowd. And that was because she didn’t sit back and rely on the forms she started with.

A 2008 article in the Daily News described Jarvis’s experience this way:

When it comes to music and the Mets, Jarvis once wrote the book. “I made all the decisions,” she says. She had a song for when the Mets trotted to their positions, and a song for when they smacked a homer, and then there was the Mexican Hat Dance to get things going when the home team really needed it during the seventh-inning stretch. An entire generation of Met fans came to identify the team’s championship run in 1969 with her lilting keyboard work. 

Rest in peace.

(P.S. Pitchers and catchers report in 17 days. I think Jarvis would want me to mention that)

Updated: