Category: News on the Homepage

CMM congratulates our clients and friends at Markowitz, Fenelon & Bank, LLP (MFB), the accounting firm recognized for its personal approach to clients on Long Island’s East End, as the firm joins New York accounting and advisory firm Friedman LLP as of January 1, 2020. CMM’s Joe Campolo, with assistance from Senior Associate Vincent Costa, represented MFB during the negotiation process.

From offices in Riverhead and Bridgehampton, MFB has provided tax, audit, accounting, and advisory services to high-net-worth individuals, family offices, closely held businesses, and nonprofit and government entities for over 60 years. With this union, top-40 accounting and advisory firm Friedman will operate 13 locations with a roster of partners and staff of approximately 600. The integration of MFB’s expertise will strengthen Friedman’s core capabilities across practice areas and expand the firm’s presence on Long Island. Inside Public Accounting recently recognized Friedman among the top ten fastest growing accounting firms in the U.S. based on organic growth.

“By joining Friedman, we will be able to offer a broader and more sophisticated range of services, including dedicated practice groups with specialized expertise in areas like international tax, cybersecurity and digital currency, among others,” said MFB Partner Tom Terry.

CMM has become the premier choice for partners of professional service firms exploring upstream mergers, spinoffs, and new opportunities, handling such matters with the utmost confidentiality and professionalism. Learn more here.

CMM is thrilled to announce that we have been named one of the 2019 Best Law Firms by Dan’s Papers, the iconic mainstay publication of Long Island’s East End for more than 50 years. Each year Dan’s Papers organizes its “Best of the Best” competition, nominating prestigious businesses that are well known in the community. The votes are anonymous and driven solely by the honest opinions of the business community. As a prior honoree, CMM is grateful to have received this recognition once again. Thank you to the East End business community for the opportunity to serve you.

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.