Category: News on the Homepage

Software applications that provide safety communications such as incident alerts and announcements have enabled schools and organizations to effectively handle emergency situations. Recently, CMM successfully facilitated a multi-million-dollar transaction for a software company specializing in developing this vital software for schools, healthcare facilities and various organizations. Deal team Vincent Costa, Marc Saracino, and Zachary Mike structured the complex transaction as a spinoff and a merger. CMM formed a new corporation for the seller, spun off the hardware assets, and transferred all debt, equity, and options to the newly formed corporation. The existing corporation, which now only contained the purchased SaaS assets, was merged into a subsidiary of the buyer, which became the surviving entity. Consideration for the merger was paid in cash and rollover equity at closing and an earnout based on revenues for a three-year period moving forward.

Alan Sasserath, Managing Partner of Sasserath and Co., was an integral part of the team with respect to deal structure and tax advice. Paralegal Cailey McByrne’s efforts helped push the complicated deal to closing.

CMM has the experience to handle the most complex M&A transactions. Contact us today.

Campolo, Middleton, & McCormick, LLP is proud to announce that CMM Partner David Green has been recognized by Herald Community Newspapers as a 2023 Top Lawyer of Long Island in the Litigation category. David will accept his award at the gala dinner on May 17 at The Heritage Club at Bethpage. The Top Lawyers ceremony celebrates attorneys who embody excellence in their area of legal practice and demonstrate outstanding community involvement.

David represents businesses and individuals in various areas of litigation with a particular emphasis on clients in the construction and real estate development sectors. He believes that supporting New York businesses and facilitating a robust business community is essential to the growth and advancement of Long Island.

David has spent many years fighting for his clients and developing a reputation as an attorney with knowledge, skill, and talent. His experience includes complex discovery, trials, appeals, securing settlements, and alternative dispute resolution. David is unique as a litigator in that he views litigation as one of many available legal strategies to help clients navigate a complicated legal system. His experience inside and outside the courtroom allows him to craft creative and effective solutions that help his clients save critical time and resources.

David is a key member of CMM’s Westbury office, where he is based. David is a Trustee of the Sea Cliff Village Library as well as a member of the Gold Coast Business Association.

Don’t miss Personality Crisis: One Night Only from Martin Scorsese and David Tedeschi on Showtime, a portrait of musical iconoclast (and CMM client!) David Johansen. From his days leading The New York Dolls to his reinvention as lounge lizard Buster Poindexter, David Johansen is a chameleonic one of a kind performer. Featuring a live performance at Café Carlyle in New York City, where he performs as Poindexter singing the Johansen songbook, along with new and archival interviews, the film is a testament to a lost New York and a performer who remains as fresh and exciting as ever.

Watch the trailer here.

By Jamie Herzlich, Newsday

Employees shouldn’t be bound by broad confidentiality and non-disparagement provisions that muzzle their ability to speak out against a former employer as a condition for their severance payout.

That’s what the National Labor Relations Board has said in a recent ruling that limits the extent employers can use confidentiality and non-disparagement clauses in severance agreements.

Reversing two Trump-era rulings, the board determined that requiring employees to sign such broadly written clauses is in violation of federal law under the National Labor Relations Act.

But keep in mind this doesn’t mean employees can engage in slander or tell lies, says Christine Malafi, senior partner and chair of the corporate department at Campolo, Middleton & McCormick LLP in Ronkonkoma.

Unprotected is speech that is “reckless or maliciously untrue,” she says.

Also, this doesn’t stop employers from drafting narrower agreements protecting their trade secrets, Malafi says.

A March 22 memo from the NLRB’s general counsel said the ruling covers past as well as current and future severance agreements, she says.

She says while many companies still use non-disparagement clauses in severance agreements, their use is declining. And over the last couple of years “more employees are calling out non-disparagement clauses,” Malafi says.

“They say: we won’t sign it with that in it,” Malafi says.

Read the full article on Newsday’s website.

We are pleased to share that Joe Campolo, CMM Managing Partner, has been selected for the inaugural LIBN Influencers in Law special edition publication. Advising companies on everything from formation to succession planning and all phases in between, Campolo is a part of this distinguished group that has helped strengthen Long Island’s business community.

Joe Campolo has been getting things done in the business community for more than 25 years and is a recognized leader for tackling large projects and delivering results. From advising business owners and CEOs on mergers and acquisitions, business, and legal strategies to running his own business, Campolo is immersed in finding creative solutions to complex problems. His deep, inner knowledge of the business world allows him to understand the perspective of business owners as they think about growing and selling their companies.

As a top business strategist, Campolo is the go-to advisor for the who’s who of Long Island business, and he is a member of the prestigious Long Island Business Hall of Fame. Recognized as a leading authority on negotiation, Campolo enjoys an advantage in both complex transactions and litigation and is routinely retained in “bet the company” legal matters by companies large and small. He takes a holistic approach to understanding all aspects of a client’s business. Joe’s deep network of trusted advisors enables him to seamlessly provide critical services to high-net-worth clients, helping protect, manage, and grow their businesses and other most important assets.

With a reputation for investing in the local business community, Campolo has grown his network through his work with organizations such as Stony Brook University, HIA-LI, Tesla Science Center, and the Long Island MacArthur Airport Advisory Board. In these positions, Joe advocates for business owners and collaborates with the business community to lead high-profile and complex economic initiatives. Notably, Campolo spearheaded the projects that revealed the extraordinary economic impact of the Long Island Innovation Park at Hauppauge and now leads a task force to revitalize and grow this economic anchor. He was also instrumental in securing a new airline at Long Island MacArthur Airport, bringing unprecedented growth opportunities for the regional economy and tourism.

Campolo is also deeply involved in philanthropy, starting his own nonprofit, CMM Cares. Built on the belief that bringing the business community together can make a difference in the lives of individuals and families, CMM Cares supports our Long Island neighbors facing unexpected challenges. Campolo also serves on the boards of the Guide Dog Foundation for the Blind and America’s VetDogs, and has served on many others throughout his career.

Campolo served honorably in the United States Marine Corps. He is a member of St. George’s Golf & Country Club in Stony Brook, and is an executive producer of “Tribute,” an award-winning short film. He graduated from Stony Brook University and Fordham University School of Law.

View the full LIBN Influencers in Law book here.

Securing the dismissal of a lawsuit against your client is always a win. But when the client doesn’t have insurance coverage for the type of loss and would have been on the hook for paying any damages in the suit, that win is especially gratifying.

An employee of a Nassau County public authority allegedly sustained injuries from a slip and fall at work after the office cleaning company had mopped the floor. She brought a personal injury action against the cleaning company, which in turn brought the public authority (CMM’s client) into the suit.

The CMM team, including Scott Middleton, Richard DeMaio, and Meagan Nolan, moved for summary judgment (essentially, asking the court to find that there are no facts in dispute and to dismiss the case against our client). Leaving nothing to chance, we pursued dismissal based on three arguments:

1. the plaintiff did not suffer a “grave injury” (under the Labor Law, an employee’s injuries must meet the specific definition of “grave injury” for the employer to be found liable);
2. there was no proof of a written contract between our client and the cleaning company, so their pursuit of contractual indemnification and contribution could not stand; and
3. the cleaning company’s claims for common law indemnification and contribution also could not stand since the plaintiff did not suffer a “grave injury.”

Ultimately, all three arguments persuaded the court to find in our favor. The court agreed with our analysis that the medical experts’ submissions as well as the plaintiff’s own deposition testimony established that she did not sustain a “grave injury.” The Court also agreed that there was no proof of a contract between the public authority and the cleaning company. Based on CMM’s arguments, the court granted our motion for summary judgment – an especially important win for our client.

Learn more about our successful handling of municipal litigation here.

Town of Islip – Long Island MacArthur Airport today officially dedicated its $8.4 million, 12,000 SF Ground Transportation Center (GTC) following the completion of a Terminal Walkway, the final component of the project. Additionally, the airport announced $26 million in improvements to the Main Terminal Building, along with Mechanical Engineering and Plumbing (MEP) upgrades. While this construction work is funded by separate grants, the projects will take place simultaneously for efficiency, and to keep operations running smoothly for customers. The project is expected to take approximately one year to complete.

“We all know these have been challenging times for airlines with crew shortages, rising fuel prices, and economic uncertainty. Despite this, we know the business community’s strong desire for more flights and commitment to Long Island MacArthur Airport,” said Joe Campolo, Airport Advisory Board Member, HIA-LI Past Board Chairperson and Managing Partner at Campolo, Middleton & McCormick, LLP. “Airports across the country are competing more and more for air service and grants. These new projects and significant funding help us make a strong case to airlines to bring their aviation assets to our community,” he added.

Read the full press release here.

By Jamie Herzlich, Newsday

Working moms in New York have the right to expanded accommodations for expressing breast milk at their places of employment under recent legislation.

The law, which takes effect June 7, requires all employers to provide a designated location for nursing employees to pump breast milk that includes such amenities as seating, a working space, and nearby access to running water. They also must develop and implement a written policy regarding employee rights when breastfeeding in the workplace. 

Smaller employers should start thinking creatively on how they can make accommodations or rethink space to comply, experts say.

“I think certain small businesses may be able to claim an undue hardship as to some of the law’s requirements, but the burden will be on the employer to show the undue hardship,” says Christine Malafi, senior partner and chair of the corporate department at Campolo, Middleton & McCormick, LLP in Ronkonkoma.

If there is a complaint, a resolution will be up to the Department of Labor on a case-by-case basis on the very specific facts involved in each situation, she says.

Some employers in certain circumstances may have to work out a reasonable accommodation such as providing a nursing pod, but if employees work outside, they may not have access to running water with a pod, Malafi says.

But bottom line is all employers have to “start thinking of a space with electricity and privacy where women can go to express breast milk,” says Malafi.

This is backed up by a recent amendment to the Fair Labor Standards Act, called the PUMP Act (Providing Urgent Maternal Protections), which on the federal level requires employers to provide a place to express breast milk that’s private from view and free from intrusion for all employees, Malafi says.

Read the full article on Newsday’s website.