The Law Offices of Daniel Felber
99 Wall Street
New York, New York 10005

Email: daniel@felberlaw.com
Phone: 212.425.4250
Mobile: 917.848.7778
Fax: 212.422.4605

Since 1983, Daniel Felber has honed his skills as a zealous advocate for his clients in several areas of law, but always with an emphasis on litigation and trial practice. Beginning with his auspicious admission into the ‘Order of the Barristers’ in law school, and continuing through scores of trials in State and Federal court, Mr. Felber has proven his singular dedication to his clients and a proficiency in courtroom advocacy that has made the difference between success and defeat for numerous individuals and entities.

Among his notable achievements, Mr. Felber has handled several landmark cases which have had a sustaining influence on the law in New York, including: one of the first AIDS discrimination case in New York (later the subject of major motion picture); the trial of Islamic fundamentalists who conspired to bomb New York City landmarks; the trial that exposed wide-spread corruption in the New York City Department of Buildings; and the trial that set the legal standard for theft of trade secrets in the international travel industry.

Just recently, in June 2010, Mr. Felber served as lead trial attorney for a fashion designer and clothing manufacturer whose designs and garments were lost as a result of flooding. Mr. Felber successfully presented and argued the case before a jury in Manhattan and achieved a $1.7 million award on behalf of his client for lost designs and profits (a result which stands as one of the more significant awards in New York State for this type of claim).

In addition to his vibrant legal practice, Mr. Felber frequently teaches as an Adjunct Professor in the field of law and trial advocacy, having taught at the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, Pace University School of Law, and John Jay College. He serves as a faculty member of the National Institute of Trial Advocacy and has lectured and appeared as a panelist at symposia around the country, as well as on Court TV, NY 1 and other local news networks.

Education
Binghamton University (B.A., summa cum laude, 1978);
Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, Yeshiva University (J.D., cum laude, 1982);
Cardozo Law Review, 1980-1982.

Jurisdictions Admitted to Practice
State of New York, 1983
U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, 1984
U.S. District Court, Eastern District of New York, 1984
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, 2002
U.S. Supreme Court, 1994

The Law Offices of Daniel Felber, Esq.
99 Wall Street
New York, New York 10005

Email: benjamin@felberlaw.com
Phone: 212.425.4250
mobile: 347.526.2460
Fax: 212.422.4605

Benjamin Leftin acts as senior litigation counsel to the firm. A 2006 graduate from Brooklyn Law School, Mr. Leftin’s relatively brief legal career belies his abilities as a forceful and effective advocate, both in and out of the courtroom.

Within just a handful of years, Mr. Leftin has gained noteworthy and invaluable litigation experience representing a wide array of civil plaintiffs and criminal defendants, including participating in the representation of capital defendants in South Carolina and a high profile alleged mafia boss in the Southern District of New York. During his tenure as a public defender in Bronx County, Mr. Leftin successfully represented hundreds of New York City residents against the full force and resources of the government, negotiated a multitude of favorable pleas, and achieved full acquittals in over a dozen trials.

With a solid foundation in criminal defense, Mr. Leftin turned his attention to civil litigation as a senior attorney at a boutique plaintiff’s employment-law practice. In that capacity, Mr. Leftin engaged in employment and severance contract negotiation, FINRA arbitration, mediation, and the litigation of contractual disputes, non-competition agreements, defamation claims, and retaliatory firings.

In addition to his well-demonstrated oral advocacy, Mr. Leftin has proven himself to be an insightful and persuasive legal author in both motions and appeals, having learned from and practiced with some of New York’s premier appellate attorneys.

Education
University of Pittsburgh (B.A., 2002)
Brooklyn Law School (J.D., Edward V. Sparer Fellow, 2006)

Admissions
New York State, 2007

Founder and managing partner of Balsam & Goldfield, Mr. Balsam has a formidable legal background. He began his legal career in the litigation department of Breed, Abbott & Morgan, a large, international law firm, where for three years he represented Fortune 500 companies including advertising agencies, trade associations, various national and multinational chemical manufacturers and many international corporations, in a variety of state and federal matters, including massive, multi-defendant litigation.

In 1987, with a desire to experience more personal client contact than was possible in a large law firm, Mr. Balsam formed what is now Balsam & Goldfield where his practice includes all aspects of trust and estates, estate planning, entertainment law, as well as commercial and real estate transactions. Other areas of Mr. Balsam's practice include counseling and negotiation in the areas of contracts, copyright, libel, rights of privacy and publicity, commercial and residential real estate, the formation of partnerships, corporations, charitable foundations and limited liability companies. He also has vast experience in international business relations on behalf of a variety of independent business enterprises and entrepreneurs.

Mr. Balsam graduated from The Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law in the top five percent of his class. He graduated summa cum laude and was elected Notes and Comments Editor of the Cardozo Law Review.

Mr. Balsam is admitted to practice in the State of New York and the United States District Courts for the Southern and Eastern District of New York.

Edward Lopez, a partner at the law firm of Balsam & Goldfield. For nearly thirty years, first as a Senior Trial Attorney with The Legal Aid Society, Criminal Defense Division, and later as a lawyer in private practice, Mr. Lopez has acquired substantial and diverse trial experience. Over these many years he has tried many cases to verdict. He specializes in all areas of criminal and civil litigation as well as commercial and real estate transactions.

Mr. Lopez graduated from New York Law School in 1981 and is admitted to practice in New York State and in the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York.

Rosann Maestri has been a paralegal for thirty years, specializing in the area of Trusts and Estates and general litigation. She has been associated with a number of law firms, including Herzfeld & Rubin, Schwartz Klink & Schreiber, Hawkins Delafield & Wood, Morrison Cohen Singer & Weinstein, Greenfield Stein & Senior, and currently Balsam & Goldfield.

Ms. Maestri has extensive experience in the preparation and filing of documents for probate, administrative proceedings, ancillary administration and litigation. She has assisted in the preparation of Wills, Trusts, Health Care Proxies, Living Wills, and Powers of Attorney. She also has extensive experience performing due diligence, with particular emphasis in next of kin searches, and has considerable knowledge of the administration of estates, including the collection and distribution of assets. She also oversees the timely filing of personal, estate and fiduciary tax returns.