Category: News on the Homepage

Successfully completing the sale of a company can be challenging and emotional in any circumstance, and particularly so when the shareholders have been business partners for over four decades. CMM recently closed the multimillion-dollar sale of a Long Island-based manufacturing company that has supplied its products to other manufacturers and businesses across the globe since the early 1980s, helping the shareholders navigate a host of legal, business, and personal considerations.

The sale was to a private equity group with aligned business interests. As part of the deal, it was important to our client that the buyer retain the company’s 30-person strong workforce, including its Chief Operating Officer, who has worked her way up in the company for over a decade. The arrangement also included a lease back of the property where the business has operated for decades. CMM’s Christine Malafi negotiated the deal, with critical support from Marc Saracino and Zachary Mike. Several issues which arose after the deal was underway threatened the closing, but CMM pushed through the challenges and delays to bring the deal to closure. Alan Sasserath, Managing Partner of Sasserath and Co., was an integral part of the team with respect to deal structure and tax advice. 

The client was elated with CMM’s efforts, sharing that our team was “an absolute pleasure to work with.” We look forward to assisting the client over the next several years as they wind-down on business and learn to be landlords to the buyer. 

This transaction showcased CMM’s depth of knowledge in the M&A seller-side and manufacturing space. Learn more about how CMM helps our clients receive the most value for their business.

Campolo, Middleton & McCormick, LLP is pleased to announce that Senior Partner Christine Malafi has been named Chairperson of the Judicial Screening Committee of the Suffolk County Bar Association. The Committee is tasked with investigating the background, experience, and other qualifications of candidates seeking to run for judicial office in Suffolk County to ensure that potential nominees are qualified to serve on the bench.

Malafi will chair the Committee this year in addition to her work chairing the Corporate department at CMM. Her practice focuses on mergers and acquisitions, corporate governance, and routine and complex transactions. She routinely represents buyers and sellers in multimillion-dollar transactions and serves in a general counsel role for many of the firm’s corporate clients. In addition to her legal work, Malafi serves on the Executive Board of Directors of Family Service League as the Vice-Chair of Governance & Nominating.

All members of the Judicial Screening Committee are appointed by the President of the SCBA, subject to the approval of the Board of Directors. Committee members are attorneys who have achieved distinction and experience in the practice of law. Malafi’s role on the Committee demonstrates her outstanding service to the public as well as her continued pledge to faithfully serve the Suffolk County legal community.

Selling an accounting practice can be a challenging and complex process, as a NYC-based accounting firm recently learned when they started the sale process. Once they retained CMM, Senior Partner Christine Malafi rigorously negotiated the deal, which involved the sale of our client’s business assets and set forth a process for transfer of clients, files, and employees to the purchasing practice.

Our client was motivated to finalize the sale by year-end, setting a demanding timeline for our legal team. CMM met the challenge head-on, managing the agreements for lease terms, the transfer of sensitive data, and transitioning the employees in a timely manner.

The client was thrilled with the deal and CMM’s dedication, sharing: “Thank you for all your hard work and for your persistence over the last few months. You accelerated the process substantially, were very insightful, and were a pleasure to work with!”

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.

Cranes and rigging play pivotal roles in construction, manufacturing, and various industries that involve moving materials. CMM did the heavy lifting in this multimillion-dollar M&A deal for our client, the owners of a crane and rigging business located in the New York metro area.

CMM attorneys have unique experience in the crane and rigging M&A space, as this was another successful seller-side deal with the same buyer, a subsidiary of a large private equity firm looking to expand its operations by acquiring synergistic crane and rigging businesses along the East Coast. Our efforts to close the transaction involved addressing Department of Transportation issues, multi-property lease concerns, and navigating multi-jurisdictional requirements.

The deal team included CMM’s Vincent Costa, Marc Saracino, and Zachary Mike. This transaction showcased CMM’s depth of experience and ability to get deals done. For more information on our mergers and acquisitions services, please contact us.

Depending on which side you’re on, a jury verdict after only 45 minutes of deliberation can be either a disaster or a decisive victory. In CMM Senior Partner Scott Middleton’s recent trial representing the Town of Smithtown, it was the latter – with a twist!

The case concerned an accident that occurred on a Town-owned dock located at Kings Park Bluff Park. The plaintiff was walking down a gangway towards a floating dock when they slipped and fell on the transition plate, resulting in injuries. The plaintiff alleged that the gangway and transition plate were at a too-steep and therefore unsafe angle, that the transition plate was slippery due to allegedly improper application of non-skid surface and poor maintenance, and that the handrails were inadequate.

After careful consideration of the evidence and arguments presented during the trial, the jury reached a verdict after only 45 minutes of deliberation. The jury determined that although the Town was negligent, any negligence was not a “substantial factor” in causing the accident. Consequently, a defendant’s verdict was delivered, marking the end of a successful trial for Middleton and CMM and more importantly, the client.

CMM has a proven track record in defending Suffolk and Nassau County towns and villages. Visit our Municipal Liability page to read about more successful cases.

Campolo, Middleton & McCormick, LLP is pleased to announce Senior Partner Christine Malafi has been selected by Long Island Business News as an honoree of the 2023 Leadership in Law Awards. This award recognizes dedicated individuals whose leadership, both in the legal profession and in the community, has had a positive impact on Long Island. Recipients of these awards demonstrate outstanding achievements, involvement in their profession and support of the community. Malafi accepted her award at the Leadership in Law Awards Gala at the Crest Hollow Country Club on November 16.

Malafi chairs the Corporate Department at CMM, which Forbes has recognized as a Top Corporate Law Firm in America. She has led the CMM legal team in closing countless M&A deals worth billions of dollars. She has vast experience advising on both buy-side and sell-side M&A transactions in a variety of industries, including technology, manufacturing, education, healthcare, and professional service sectors. Malafi is particularly adept at working closely and strategically with clients’ other professional advisors, including accountants, bankers, and M&A advisors, as well as forging those critical relationships for clients based on the deep network of relationships she has cultivated over years in the business.

Malafi has the unique perspective of being a corporate lawyer who spent the first half of her career as a litigator with extensive experience in municipal, insurance coverage, and fraud issues. She brings her deep understanding of litigation and the court system to all aspects of her corporate work and uses this experience to help protect clients from a variety of critical angles.

Campolo, Middleton & McCormick, LLP is pleased to announce Partner Vincent Costa has been selected by Long Island Business News to receive a 2023 Leadership in Law Award. This award recognizes dedicated individuals whose leadership, both in the legal profession and in the community, has had a positive impact on Long Island. Recipients of these awards demonstrate outstanding achievements, involvement in their profession and support of the community. Costa accepted his award at the Leadership in Law Awards Gala at the Crest Hollow Country Club on November 16.

Costa manages the firm’s Corporate department, with a particular focus on complex M&A transactions. Working with large corporations and high-net-worth individuals, he has closed countless M&A deals worth billions of dollars. Costa has also successfully negotiated and led the CMM team on a variety of complex corporate matters including business divorces, buy-side and sell-side mergers and acquisitions (asset and stock purchases and sales), and financings. Serving as the liaison among all the advisors and professional service providers involved in a deal, Costa has an eye for seeing how all the puzzle pieces fit together. By working and collaborating with clients’ teams of financial advisors, accountants, and M&A advisors, Costa ensures a smooth and transparent transaction for the benefit of the client.

Campolo, Middleton & McCormick, LLP, a premier law firm with offices across Long Island, is pleased to welcome Joseph Townsend, Esq., to the firm as an Associate. Previously, he was a Summer Associate at the firm in 2022.

Townsend is a member of the Litigation team at CMM. His practice focuses primarily on complex commercial litigation, as well as construction, municipal, and personal injury matters. Joe also works closely with the firm’s Corporate Department, assisting with labor and employment investigations, shareholder disputes, and transactional matters.

While a student at the Maurice A. Deane School of Law at Hofstra University, Joe was a member of Hofstra Law Review, where he served on the Managing Board as the Managing Editor of Articles for Volume 51. He also held several prestigious internships and externships, including an externship with the Honorable James M. Wicks in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York.

“Joe’s research and writing have already played a role in creative litigation strategies for our clients,” said David Green, CMM Partner. “We’re excited for Joe as he embarks on his legal career and are very happy to have him on board.”