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alumni/ae page |
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March 2002 Among his numerous accomplishments and responsibilities, Mark has spent the past year serving on a Special Committee that developed the New York State Bar Association position on the reintroduction of cameras in the courtroom. The Association adopted the Committee’s views and now supports the right of public access to legal proceedings in New York. Undaunted by controversy, Mark has advocated the rights of the public. Throughout his post-BFS evolution from Law Clerk for a Federal Judge to a founding partner at a major New York City law firm specializing in business litigation (Solomon, Zauderer, Ellenhorn, Frischer & Sharp), Mark has never relinquished his BFS ties or the values he attained here. Even while Mark has championed the causes of public access to information, constitutional law and practice legislation, he is dedicated to spending one-quarter of his time on uncompensated projects at the Bar. “BFS was perhaps the single most important influence in my childhood. I started in the 3rd grade. More than I realized at the time, BFS shaped my personal values. It provided a supportive environment in which you were accepted for who you were. My recollection is that all of the students that surrounded me were of good will and highly-principled.” Mark’s passion to educate is reflected by his service as a Trustee of the Federal Bar Council, where he oversees all of its continuing legal education programs for lawyers and law clerks to Federal Judges in the Second Circuit. He serves as a member of the Litigation Advisory Committee of the Practicing Law Institute—a non-profit organization that provides continuing education to lawyers. He writes and lectures frequently on trial practice issues and provides commentary on legal issues in print media and on television. Mark credits BFS with providing the foundation for the language skills he so eloquently utilizes today. “The background provided in language skills was outstanding. My 7th and 8th grade teacher, Paul Mendelsohn, had us diagram sentences every day after lunch. This gave me an understanding of the English language that has lasted a lifetime. I also enjoyed Latin and appreciate why we were asked to decline nouns and conjugate verbs.” Mark has been interviewed by such newspapers as The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Financial Times and the New York Law Journal. He has appeared on CNBC-TV, Fox News and on radio. For more than 30 years, Mark has been entrenched in numerous high-profile judicial proceedings. In 1991, he represented the Chief Judge of the State of New York and the Judicial Branch of the State Government, as designated lead trial counsel in their constitutional law suit against the governor and New York State Legislature, which sought additional funding for the Judicial system. He represented former Secretary of Commerce, Ron Brown (a defendant together with major television networks), in a law suit against him in his capacity as former Chair of the Democratic National Committee, brought by the former Presidential Candidate Eugene McCarthy, who claimed he was wrongfully excluded from the 1992 presidential primary debates in New York. Beyond the courtroom, Mark serves on numerous committees that help shape the legislative face of our judicial system, including the Advisory Committee on Civil Practice to New York State’s Chief Administrative Judge. This committee writes legislation governing the procedural rules for civil practice in New York. He has also served as a member of Chief Judge Judith S. Kaye’s Committee on Commercial Courts that assisted in the establishment of the Commercial Division of the New York State Supreme Court. He is a member of the Bar of many federal courts, including the United States Supreme Court. Mark is also a past chair of the 1900 member Commercial and Federal Litigation Section of the New York State Bar Association and served as a member of the Trustee Board of Advisors of Union College. Mark is just as passionate about life outside the courtroom. A consummate outdoorsman, you may find him on his motor yacht, Different Drummer, cruising up and down Long Island Sound, making stops at Block Island and Martha’s Vineyard. You may find him on the slopes, racing downhill with his 13 year-old son, Daniel, and his wife Joan, a former NY City School teacher. You may find him beneath the waves, scuba diving with advanced open water certification. Always the athlete, Mark recalls playing basketball against the alumni in December, 1960. He also recalls beating them, 54-50. |
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