Before practicing law, Colleen was a decorated New York City police officer. Colleen’s selfless sense of service and innate “street smarts” influence the firm’s core values, which include loyalty to the client’s best interests, personalized attention, and instinctive problem solving.

Colleen is a well-known for her uncompromising advocacy for workplace fairness for workers. Colleen has obtained a number of successful employment related jury verdicts for her clients. Significant victories she has obtained for clients have been affirmed by the New York State Court of Appeals in the cases of Albunio v. City of New York, 16 N.Y.3d 472 (2011) and Sandiford v. City of New York, 22 N.Y. 3d 914 (2013). In her efforts to advance the rights of workers, Colleen testified before the New York City Council in December of 2015 in support of Int. 0814-2015, a proposed amendment to the City’s human rights law, requiring trial courts to correctly interpret the statute and recognize its broad and remedial purposes. This amendment was subsequently passed by the City Council, amending Administrative Code § 8-130 and affording workers the intended protections.

Colleen’s focus of practice also includes guardianship matters pursuant to Section 81 of the Mental Hygiene Law and Section 17-A of the Surrogate Court’s Procedure Act. In assisting the disabled, the elderly and their families, appointed guardians and caregivers, Colleen has developed a well-recognized reputation for her understanding of this specialized area of the law. In the Matter of Kustka, a litigated case cited as 163 Misc.2d 694 (1994), Colleen successfully represented a granddaughter challenging the financial exploitation of her grandfather. This was one of the first cases that addressed the contours of Article 81, a newly enacted statute at the time. The strategy developed by Colleen in this case has assisted many others in challenging financial exploitation of the elderly, a pervasive problem.