Category: News on the Homepage

Campolo, Middleton & McCormick’s M&A team has succeeded in closing another fast-paced sale.

CMM represented the owner of Stuart Berger Construction Corp. of Lynbrook, a professional, industrial, and specialty construction company, in the sale of the 60-year-old business to Mineola-based Cook & Krupa, a major Long Island general contracting and construction management solutions company. Senior Partner Christine Malafi spearheaded the transaction with critical support from Senior Associate Vincent Costa and Paralegal Patty Brunn.

The team had to buckle down to meet the client’s tight deadline, closing the deal just before Thanksgiving. “Thank you and your team for your diligence and hard work on this deal,” the client said post-closing. “You all did a great job.”

No matter how tight the deadline, CMM’s attorneys are up to the challenge. Learn more about how CMM helps our clients receive the most value for their business here.

Read more about this transaction in Long Island Business News.

Frederick Eisenbud, chairman of CMM’s Environmental & Land Use practice group, was appointed to co-chair the Enforcement and Compliance Subcommittee of the Environmental and Energy Committee of the New York State Bar Association. He will co-chair with fellow recognized environmental law leaders Susan Amron, General Counsel of the NYC Department of Planning, and Matthew Sinkman, Assistant Attorney General of the Environmental Protection Bureau. He continues to serve as an At Large Member of the Committee’s Executive Committee.

“We present to you the East/West Challenge Coin!”

Twenty-eighteen marked the 50^th year of Saving Aircrew Lives for East/West Industries, a cutting-edge, award-winning business that designs, develops, and manufactures escape, life support, seating, and ground support equipment for high-performance military aircraft. Based in Ronkonkoma, longtime CMM client East/West is a family-owned business that serves major customers including the Department of Defense, Boeing, Sikorsky, Northrup Grumman, and Lockheed Martin. To celebrate and commemorate five decades of dedicated service to the aerospace and defense community, EW designed and struck a medallion to memorialize this extraordinary milestone.

The one-and-a-half-inch coin is packed with meaning. On the front of the coin are the EW logo and 50-year celebration marking. The outer ring highlights EW’s mission and guiding tenet, “Saving Aircrew Lives Is Our First Concern,” along with the year EW was founded (1968) to the present. The quadrants on the back depict some of the programs in which EW is currently engaged: the CH-53, F-35, CH-47, and E2D aircraft.

The company recently presented an East/West Challenge Coin to CMM Managing Partner Joe Campolo. Teresa Ferraro, EW President, explained: “We wanted to honor Joe as a Veteran of the U.S. Marine Corps as well as for the achievements he has made within our community.”

Although there are several variations to the history behind a challenge coin, it is said that the gesture of giving a coin dates to the Roman Empire, when soldiers were given coins for exceptional achievement; in later years, the coins were presented by unit commanders in recognition of special achievement by a member of the unit. 

“Presenting me with this Challenge Coin was an extraordinary gesture by East/West,” Campolo said. “The coin embodies their commitment to ‘do what it takes, whatever it takes,’ and I’m honored that Teresa and her team found me deserving of this honor.”

In a reflection of the firm’s continuing growth, Campolo, Middleton & McCormick, LLP is pleased to welcome Amanda Sexton, CPA, as Controller. She will oversee the accounting department and is responsible for budgeting and forecasting, cash flow management, financial reporting, internal controls assessments, year-end tax planning, and managing the firm’s banking relationships. In addition, with her credentials and licenses including ABV (Accredited in Business Valuation), CFF (Certified in Financial Forensics), and CFE (Certified Fraud Examiner), Sexton adds yet another dimension to the services CMM offers its clients.

Sexton has nearly 15 years of accounting experience. Prior to joining CMM, she served as Controller for a $30MM construction contractor in Suffolk County. She began her career in public accounting, primarily in the areas of accounting and auditing, business valuation and litigation support. She has provided expert witness testimony multiple times in the Supreme Court of the State of New York, and also has several years of experience auditing grant programs funded by various federal, state and local agencies.

“Amanda will not only be a tremendous asset to CMM for our own financial growth, but will also be an incredible resource for our clients,” said Joe Campolo, CMM Managing Partner. “Her strong background in accounting, business valuation, and fraud examination will provide value to our clients in corporate, M&A, and litigation matters.”

CMM recently reported that our municipal liability team had secured the dismissal of a lawsuit filed against longtime client the Town of Riverhead. Less than a month later, we did it again.

In this latest success story, the plaintiff sought damages for injuries allegedly sustained from a slip and fall on plywood covering a hole in a sidewalk in the Town of Riverhead. In addition to the Town, the named defendants included the corporate owner of the building the sidewalk was in front of, the New York State Department of Transportation (which owned the sidewalk), and the contracting company performing sidewalk work at the time of the accident.

Following testimony and written discovery conducted by CMM’s Scott Middleton, CMM moved for summary judgment – essentially, a request that the court dismiss the case against the Town because the undisputed facts relieve the Town of all liability. In the motion, Middleton, joined by David Green, argued that the Town of Riverhead did not own the sidewalk, was not responsible for any ongoing construction at the location, did not have written notice of the allegedly defective condition, did not create the condition, and did not owe the plaintiff a duty.

The court granted our motion, finding that CMM provided sufficient evidence to demonstrate the Town of Riverhead’s absence of liability in the case. The court found that we had shown that the Town played no role in the placement of cones or other devices at the scene and did not own the location of the plaintiff’s fall. Further, according to the court, the plaintiff provided no evidence that the Town had created the dangerous condition, owed a duty to ensure safety at the location, or had removed any safety devices. Thus, the Town could not be held responsible for the fall in any way.

The granting of the motion is a major victory for the Town of Riverhead, which is now completely out of the case. Visit our Municipal Liability page to learn more about our success representing municipal clients.

CMM’s M&A team closed a $12 million sale this week of a Boston-based scaffolding contractor to a multinational conglomerate of scaffolding contractors.

CMM represented the owners of the scaffolding business, a husband and wife team who sought to sell their contracting company and begin their next chapter. The transaction had its share of challenges, including a 10-day cooling off period that allowed each side to reset expectations – and which resulted in a $2 million purchase price increase for our client. CMM’s ability to help our clients navigate the legal, business, and emotional complexities of the transaction ensured that the deal reached the finish line and that our clients met their goals.

“We appreciate all the hand-holding, guidance, legal expertise, and patience,” our client reported. “Thank you! We are excited to move forward with this new venture.”

CMM’s Don Rassiger and Vincent Costa spearheaded the transaction.

CMM is adept at closing sophisticated mergers and acquisitions transactions as economically and efficiently as possible, blending legal guidance with business know-how to get deals done. Learn more about our ability to deliver value to clients here.

By Bernadette Starzee

East/West Industries in Ronkonkoma makes aircraft seats and safety equipment for the aerospace and defense industry. Founded in 1968 by Dom and Mary Spinosa, the company is now led by their daughter, Teresa Ferraro.

“My parents never pushed me to join the family business, and I originally went into banking. But they asked me to help out one day because they were having a special event with two VIPs,” said Ferraro, speaking at HIA-LI’s recent “Get in the Head of the CEO” event.

She showed up not knowing what to expect. It turned out the two VIPs were a military pilot and copilot who had to eject from their aircraft.

“Our equipment saved their lives, and they wanted to shake the hands of every single employee,” said Ferraro, who was inspired by this event to join the family business.

Ferraro was one of the CEO event’s five panelists, who were chosen because their companies won 2019 Business Achievement Awards from HIA-LI, which looks at a number of factors, from revenue and profitability to employee engagement to community involvement and vision for the future, and performs interviews and in some cases site visits with finalists before choosing the winners.

“We decided to hold this panel discussion because you told us you wanted to get up and close and personal and understand the Business Achievement Awards winners better,” Terri Alessi-Miceli, president and CEO of HIA-LI, told the CEO event attendees, many of them affiliated with the 1,300 businesses represented by the trade group.

East/West Industries received the Business Achievement Award in the small business category (for companies with 100 or fewer employees). The company expanded in 2017 to a facility that was 50 percent larger than its previous offices and is in the midst of a three-year plan to expand its workforce by 40 percent, including a program to aggressively recruit veterans.

The award winner in the large business category was Ronkonkoma-based SUNation Solar Systems, which has installed more than 4,000 solar electric systems on Long Island since its inception in 2003. SUNation’s CEO and Co- Founder Scott Maskin was on the panel, as was Bobbianne Ng, chief financial officer for Dominican Village Independent and Assisted Living Communities in Amityville, which was awarded the nonprofit award. The panel also included Felicia Telep, director of operations and marketing for Pure Mammography, a two-year-old provider of screening mammography in a spa-like atmosphere at the Smith Haven Mall in Lake Grove, which HIA-LI named rookie of the year. Deborah Schiff, executive vice president of ambulatory strategy and business development for Northwell Health, rounded out the panel.

The New Hyde Park-based healthcare system, which is New York State’s largest private employer, was presented with a special leadership award at HIA-LI’s Business Achievement Awards.

Ferraro reminisced about how when she first joined East/West Industries 36 years ago, she wasn’t welcomed with open arms by everyone.

“Engineering, manufacturing and the military are very male-dominated industries, and, oh yeah, I was the boss’s daughter,” she said.

Her father served as her mentor, teaching her that to be successful, she needed to engage with people and listen to them.

By being a good listener, Ferraro said she was able to gain the respect of the team as she took on increasing responsibility.

“It’s not about Teresa Ferraro, it’s about the entire East/West family,” she said. “I often think back to the pilots who wanted to thank not just the president or the engineer, but every employee. Every single member of the East/West team is important.”

Schiff, too, spoke about the importance of listening.

In her role at Northwell Health, Schiff is focused on building an ambulatory network to manage the healthcare of the region.

“Every day is a new opportunity to keep my mouth shut and listen to the needs of customers and employees,” she said.

The importance of serving both customers and employees was an important part of the discussion.

“There is a common theme among the panelists,” observed Joe Campolo, managing partner of Ronkonkoma-based law firm Campolo, Middleton & McCormick, who served as moderator for the discussion. “Nobody is talking about ‘I’ or ‘me.’ Everyone here is talking about how what we do is part of a much broader mission. Successful organizations realize that as long as they are doing right by their customers, everything else will follow.”

During meetings at Dominican Village, “for any idea that we discuss, we discuss the impact it will have on our mission,” Ng said. “We want our residents to feel that this is their home, and for them to get the care they need and get to do what they enjoy.”

Ng spoke about the importance of employee satisfaction to customer service.

“If employees are happier, the residents are going to be happier,” she said. “We’re all there to serve our residents, whether we’re the dishwasher or we work in billing or marketing. If our CEO is running late for a meeting, and he’s stopped by a housekeeper, he will sit with that person to address whatever it is they need to discuss. We make sure our employees feel part of the family, and make sure each person knows their function is not just their job title, and that there is room for growth.”

Part of Maskin’s role at SUNation Solar is to serve as “chief fun officer” and to make sure every employee feels fulfilled and thrives at work.

“Our company has personality, and our team buys into the personality and our mission to do right by our customers,” Maskin said, adding that this has helped the company’s business become 65 percent referral-driven.

“Of every 100 customers, 65 come from referrals, so our cost of lead acquisition is very low,” he said.

Pure Mammography has a kiosk in the Smith Haven Mall, where the company educates people about mammography and breast health. The company, which Telep said has plans to expand to eight additional locations in 2020, seeks to make mammograms hassle-free, convenient and relaxing so that more women will choose to get them done. The mammography suite is serene and has a spa-like feeling, with TV screens with beach and mountain views, a coffee and tea bar and caring staff, Telep said.

“We want customers to feel like guests, not patients,” Telep said.

Read more here.

CMM is proud to announce that Partner Jeffrey Basso has been recognized with a Leadership in Law Award.

The Leadership in Law Awards recognize individuals whose leadership has had a positive impact on the legal profession and the Long Island community. Basso will receive his award at a ceremony on November 21, 2019 at Crest Hollow Country Club.

Basso will be honored in the Partner category in recognition of his leadership in handling client matters, managing CMM’s litigation department, and mentoring other attorneys at the firm.

An aggressive litigator, Basso has vast experience prosecuting and defending matters on behalf of business owners, corporations, corporate officers, shareholders, and investors in a variety of commercial litigation matters. He is also experienced in representing clients in business divorce matters, including the negotiation of creative strategies to divide assets, and has earned a professional certificate from the prestigious National Institute for Trial Advocacy (NITA) for trial skills. Basso also manages CMM’s busy litigation department, appropriately staffing matters in the most efficient way possible while also directing litigation strategy.

A leader early in his career, Basso received the Leadership in Law Award in the Associate category in 2015 in recognition of his work ethic and the example he sets for others at the firm. Many attorneys at CMM, across all practice areas, seek him out as a mentor for his ability to offer guidance while also pushing them to grow as lawyers.

CMM Managing Partner Joe Campolo was inducted into the Long Island Business Hall of Fame on November 7, 2019. This prestigious awards program honors the most influential leaders in the business community. Induction into the Hall of Fame is a high honor reserved for Long Island leaders who demonstrate a commitment to excellence. Below are the remarks Joe delivered at the induction ceremony. Read the full press release here.

First and foremost, I want to congratulate all my fellow inductees. Quite frankly, I was very surprised to be included with this group and was certain that a mistake had been made. Once I confirmed that it was not a mistake, that triggered a lot of internal struggle as to what would be my message tonight as I received this award. I of course thank my entire team at CMM, and my dear friend and co-inductee Terri Alessi-Miceli, collectively a remarkable group of professionals who inspire me every day to be my best. I would also be remiss if I didn’t thank my wife, Alyson – as difficult as I may seem at times to the folks in the business community, that is nothing compared to how difficult I probably seem to her – yet she remains my rock and inspiration and makes sure that my world is full of love and laughter.

Since notice of this award was made public, the biggest question I’ve received is “What was the criteria that was used to select the inductees?” Great question to which there doesn’t seem to be any objective answer. I don’t have the largest law firm on Long Island – that distinction goes to my co-inductee Bill Savino. I also don’t lead an organization with a large balance sheet – that distinction would go to my friends and co-inductees Jim and Bob Coughlan from Tritec. And I am clearly not the best-looking male executive on Long Island – I defer that distinction to my good friend and co-inductee Rich Humann. Having removed these categories from consideration, I desperately searched for what could possibly have been the reasons for my inclusion here tonight. And what I came up with are the following four factors that have shaped my business career.

• A burning desire to grow – 

Since leaving home at 17 to enlist in the Marine Corps, my entire life became consumed with a burning desire to grow. Prior to joining the Marines, I found myself in a world where I just didn’t seem to fit in – it was a world of reckless youth where I was surrounded by people who felt doing just enough was good enough and who looked for ways to cheat the system. Burning deep inside of me during this time, however, was the feeling that I simply didn’t belong and because I was so young and immature, I interpreted those feelings as if something was wrong with me for wanting more. Thus, I knew I needed to make a drastic change and decided to join the Marine Corps, a decision that was crucial to me finding myself and marked the beginning of my journey to this podium tonight. As a Marine I was, for the first time, surrounded by high chargers all looking to excel which brought me comfort.  It made me realize that I was not weird for wanting to spend my life pushing the limits of my God-given talents to see how far I could go. This desire now permeates every facet of my life and dictates everything I do – from who I spend time with to what I watch and read.  If I don’t feel that any of these activities are helping me grow, then I consider them a waste of my time.  This may sound harsh to some, but it simply is the product of me accepting who and what I am.

• The courage to be authentic –

For anyone who knows me, they will tell you that I am someone who strives to be fully transparent and authentic. This isn’t a shtick of mine like some performer – it’s how I am able to stay fully immersed and focused on maximizing my growth and development.  It would be impossible for me to see a clear path forward unless I am receiving genuine feedback from others, and it’s impossible to receive genuine feedback from others unless what you present to them is genuine.  But doing so isn’t easy – it’s actually scary and takes a fair amount of courage to put yourself out there and be fully exposed to others who may be hiding behind the walls of deception.  But what I have found is the more discipline I have in remaining authentic, the better the outcome, because no matter where I wind up, I never lose myself along the way.

• Having boundless energy to persevere – 

Perseverance has been a cornerstone of my career, as I have been blessed with an extremely strong work ethic that was instilled in me by my grandmother and my father. This ability to get up every day and, notwithstanding the circumstances, continue to advance the ball down the field takes an enormous amount of focus and energy. Maintaining this discipline is even more difficult because we live in the most prosperous country in the world – thus one could just do “enough” and still do well. However, the ability to persevere through boredom and adversity until one achieves their goals is what turns good business leaders into great ones.

Understanding that some balance is needed, the formula is work hard/play hard, and I do take opportunities to shut down and recharge my energies. And while I certainly have a lot of fun during those down times, I never lose sight of the fact that they are temporary fuel stations that provide me the energy I need to continue down my path.

• A promise to always do my best –

I have made a promise to myself that I will always do my best and, if I fall short, I will not make excuses but instead always strive to do better. This commitment is critical because, as humans, mistakes and failures are inevitable. And unless I am confident that I’ve done my best, such failures will lead me down a dark road of self-doubt and self-loathing. Knowing that I have done my best, however, gives me closure and shifts my internal dialogue from one of inadequacy to one of acceptance that the particular opportunity I was seeking wasn’t right for me or didn’t come at the right time. As a business leader, the most important thing to instill in my team members is an expectation that everybody will do their best and an understanding that it sometimes simply won’t work out. This builds the confidence that is necessary for business people to be able to grow and to take risks.

In closing, I would like again to congratulate all of my fellow inductees. I am proud to be sharing this spotlight with all of you tonight and look forward to us all working together to continue to make Long Island the greatest place on earth.