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When a New York City business discovered that one of its shareholders was diverting millions of dollars in business capital for himself and competing entities and was also stealing the company’s confidential and proprietary data, CMM was there to help.

Our client is an alternative finance company that helps small businesses obtain financing to grow their businesses and the local economy. When they learned that one of their own was exploiting the firm’s resources for his own purposes, they called on CMM for advice and legal assistance.

CMM’s Jeffrey Basso and Richard DeMaio successfully moved by order to show cause and obtained a temporary restraining order prohibiting the shareholder and any company he may be working for from soliciting any of our client’s customers, business leads, or referral sources – a huge win for our client while the court considers the underlying motion. CMM also defeated the shareholder’s own request for a temporary restraining order, which sought to have a receiver appointed and force our client to essentially close down the business.

Our client is thrilled with the result and reported how much CMM’s preparation impressed them.

Learn more about our commercial litigation work.

Jeffrey Basso is a Partner based in our Ronkonkoma office.

CMM: You graduated from the University of Delaware before heading to St. John’s University School of Law. Why did you decide to become a lawyer?

JB: I majored in Criminal Justice at Delaware because the topic always interested me growing up, but when I graduated from college, I really was not interested in pursuing any careers that would typically be offered to someone with a Criminal Justice major.  So, I decided to take a year off after I graduated and got a job working at a law firm on Long Island doing a lot of writing.  I found that I enjoyed writing in a legal setting and making arguments on behalf of clients and, ultimately, that’s what led me to pursue a career as a lawyer.

CMM: You were born and raised on Long Island and never left (except for college)! You’ve crisscrossed Suffolk and Nassau at different points in your life and now live in Commack. Tell us your Long Island story.

JB: Long Island has always been a huge part of my life.  My mom lived on Long Island her entire life.  My dad came to New York from Italy when he was around 18 years old and, when they got married, they bought a house in Suffolk County that my family grew up in.  My parents still live there over 40 years later.  Having grown up in eastern Suffolk County, then living in Long Beach for several years after college to now raising my family in Commack, I have gotten to experience so much of what Long Island has to offer such as the thriving business community, highly regarded schools, great beaches, wineries and local breweries, renowned restaurants, proximity to New York City and on and on.  If there was only a way to reduce property taxes and make the traffic disappear every time I try to get on or off the island, that would be perfect. 

CMM: You came to CMM in 2012 after working at other firms. What attracted you to CMM?

JB: I worked at a couple smaller law firms on Long Island to begin my career, and I really could not envision a future with them. I still remember when I first interviewed with CMM and had the opportunity to meet with Joe Campolo, Pat McCormick and other attorneys at the firm, you could tell this place was different and that it was an up and coming firm with a different philosophy and vision compared to most firms.  I wanted to be a part of it.  I saw CMM as an opportunity to really launch my career and become a permanent fixture for me and, over the past seven years, that has truly been the case. 

CMM: CMM has grown exponentially since you came on board. What has it been like being part of that growth?

JB: When I first started, CMM had about 11 attorneys, and we were cramped in a small office bursting at the seams.  In the seven years since I started, we have tripled in size and now have a much bigger main headquarters in Ronkonkoma and two additional offices in Bridgehampton and Westbury.  It has been amazing to watch it and be a part of it.  The message and philosophy of the firm has really resonated on Long Island with the business community and has been a huge part of why the firm continues to grow and develop great, long-term relationships with clients all over the island. 

CMM: What practice areas do you focus on?

JB: My primary focus is on commercial litigation and employment litigation.  The types of cases I handle range from complex shareholder/partnership disputes typically referred to as “business divorces” to business mergers or acquisitions that go bad to employment matters involving employees breaching restrictive covenants, misappropriating trade secrets, stealing business clients, etc., to wage and discrimination matters to basic contract and commercial real estate disputes.  The matters I handle really run the gamut of the types of disputes business owners are faced with daily.   

CMM: If you couldn’t be a lawyer, what would you be doing?

JB: The one career I seriously considered pursuing before I went to law school was working for the FBI in some capacity, possibly as a profiler.  I was always fascinated with the FBI and being involved in criminal investigations which is what led to my criminal justice major in college, but I ultimately elected to go the attorney route instead.

CMM: What is the most valuable thing a lawyer can do for his or her clients?

JB: Listen to what the client wants to accomplish on any given matter.  For me handling litigation matters, it is important to understand why a client is in the position he/she/it is in and what that client is looking to gain.  It could be that the client wants to just use litigation as leverage to force a settlement, or the client is desperate because he or she is being forced out of the company, or the client wants to send a message to other employees, or any number of other reasons.  Knowing what a client is trying to accomplish from the outset allows the attorney to plan accordingly and better advise the client.  Too often, attorneys don’t listen and instead follow a path that the client never wanted or intended.    

CMM: How do you spend your weekends?

JB: My time on weekends is precious because there is such little time to unwind during the week.  I have two little daughters so most of my weekend time is spent with them as my wife and I try to keep them entertained.  It’s exhausting, but I love the time I get to spend with them.  Once it gets warm out, I love going to the beach and hanging out by my outdoor fire pit with friends and family.  If stuck inside, I’m a huge sports fan and often battle with the kids over watching the Jets/Mets or Disney princess movies.

CMM: How can Long Island keep young people living and working here, as well as attract others such as yourself, who may otherwise look to NYC or other cities for career opportunities?

JB: You can see that certain areas of Long Island, like Patchogue and Farmingdale as two examples, get it and are working to keep young people on Long Island by revitalizing downtowns and offering housing that is convenient walking distance to everything.  That certainly entices young people and gives them the opportunity to stay (although losing Amazon didn’t help), but the problem remains that everything is still so expensive on Long Island.  Friends of mine that live out of state pay a fraction of what we pay on Long Island for taxes and other cost of living items, and salaries for most people, especially the younger workforce, are not commensurate with those added Long Island costs.  Until that changes, I think many young people are going to continue to look elsewhere for employment.  CMM is proud to take a leadership role in this area by working closely with HIA-LI and the business community to attract and retain top talent. 

An effort spearheaded by veteran service organizations and Suffolk County Legislator Kara Hahn (D-Setauket) is nearing its fundraising goal to give nation’s newest veterans the respect they’ve earned.

The effort, dubbed Operation Remember, which looks to update four existing war memorials located in Port Jefferson, Setauket and Stony Brook to commemorate the sacrifices made by the latest generations of America’s service members, has been decisive thanks to the support of the community, according to a press release from Hahn’s office. To date, $14,400 of the estimated $25,000 has been received by the Veterans Memorial Fund established through a partnership between the American Legion and Veterans of Foreign Wars posts located in Setauket, Stony Brook and Port Jefferson Station, the Long Island State Veterans Home at Stony Brook University and Hahn. Organizers are asking for a final push in donations to complete the mission of expanding these sites to honor those who served during the Cold War, the Gulf wars and the Global War on Terror by this Memorial Day.

“Support for this effort has been incredible,” Hahn said. “In only a few months we have raised more than half of what is needed to make this lasting tribute to the sacrifices of our local heroes a reality. Our goal is to have work completed by Memorial Day, a day on which we pause to remember and reflect upon the lives of those who have given theirs in order for us to freely live ours. Raising the remaining $10,600 needed in the next few weeks will ensure the work will be complete in time for this solemn day.”

Among those who have already answered the call are Purple Heart sponsors Realty Three LLC/Ridgeway Plaza LLC and Bruce Acker. Ardolino Group Realty Connect USA and Friends of Kara Hahn became Meritorious Service Medal sponsors, while Burner Law Group, P.C. earned the Commendation Medal and Moose Lodge 1379 of Port Jefferson donated at the Recognition Ribbon level. Campolo, Middleton & McCormick, LLP also committed to a $500 sponsorship.

“Our community is very patriotic,” said Carlton “Hub” Edwards, commander of Post 1766 in Setauket. “I am certain the community will step up to help fund this Veterans Memorial Project to honor those who made the ultimate sacrifice and have yet to be fully acknowledged.”

Last fall, memorial coalition members joined together to ensure veterans of our nation’s more recent wars would receive the recognition they have earned on those foreign battlefronts back here on the homefront. The partnership, through its Veterans Memorial Fund, hopes to update the memorials to include new plaques and monument stones to be inscribed with the names of wars since Vietnam at memorials located in Stony Brook Village, on the Setauket Village Green, at the Setauket Veterans Memorial Park and along the Port Jefferson harbor front.

“This project is in recognition of all veterans who served in all wars,” said Bill Wolf, commander, American Legion Wilson Ritch Post 432 in Port Jefferson.

“For those who served and gave so much, we Americans can only say ‘thank you,’” said Jack Gozdziewski, member of American Legion Post 432 and VFW Post 3054. “Through our local veterans memorials our communities show our love of country and respect to those who gave all. America’s freedom can never be taken for granted, veterans can never be forgotten.”

“The memorial is important lest we forget the sacrifices made and what we fought for,” said Tim Still, commander of Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 3054 in East Setauket.

Those wishing to donate, can make checks payable to and mail to Veterans Memorial Fund, P.O. Box 986, Port Jefferson Station, NY 11776.

Once the fundraising goal has been met, organizers will contract with a local stonemason to update the monuments with individual designs for each of the four memorials.

“Installation cannot take place until our fundraising is complete, and the monuments are paid for in full,” Hahn said. “We’d like to meet our fundraising goals soon, with the hopes of having the monuments installed and completed for Memorial Day.”

Read more here.

LI native and former Nutrisystem CEO says ‘stay nimble’

The career of Port Jefferson native and Stony Brook University alumna Dawn Zier has zig-zagged from electrical engineer to senior executive to chief executive at Nutrisystem Inc., where she spearheaded a turnaround, leading to the company’s acquisition.

Zier cites her twisting career path that led to unexpected opportunities as a lesson in staying nimble and open to new roles.

“I encourage people not to be wedded [to getting] from point A to B,” she said at a forum at the Charles B. Wang Theater at Stony Brook University. “If you’re in a job you don’t like, leave it. It’s important to know not only what you want to do, but what you don’t want to do.”

Zier spoke before a crowd of executives, academics and students last week as part of The Entrepreneurs Edge series sponsored by the university’s College of Business. She was interviewed onstage by Joe Campolo, managing partner of Ronkonkoma-based law firm Campolo, Middleton & McCormick LLP.

Zier earned her bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from Stony Brook and credits the school with teaching her “how to think” by taking problems and breaking them down.

She also has a master’s degree in electrical engineering and computer science and an MBA from MIT.

Zier, now president and chief operating officer at Tivity Health Inc., the Nashville, Tennessee, company that acquired Nutrisystem, said she never thought of herself as a leader but learned on the job.

“Leadership is a modeled behavior,” said Zier, who said she learned many lessons while rising to become the second-ranking executive at Readers Digest. “I did not grow up thinking I’d want to be a CEO.”

A management technique used at Readers Digest and transferred to Nutrisystem when she took the top job there in November 2012 was to lean on data analytics.

We put a “fact-based culture” in place that used “data to make decisions,” she said.

Zier instituted a system of performance-based financial rewards, cut costs and sought to banish “a culture that accepted losing.”

She also moved Fort Washington, Pennsylvania-based Nutrisystem’s core message back toward weight loss and away from an image as a gourmet food brand.

Since then, Nutrisystem’s revenue has almost doubled, from $396.9 million in 2012 to $691.0 million in 2018.

The turnaround was so successful that it attracted the attention of a suitor. Tivity Health, a provider of fitness and health-improvement programs, called her in September to explore a merger.  On March 8 the $1.3 billion cash and stock deal was closed.

Zier, who also serves as a director at Lake Success-based The Hain Celestial Group, said Tivity Health will have an expanding market as fitness and weight loss programs move toward a personalized DNA body blueprint.

“I believe the future is about personalized nutrition,” she said. “It’s no longer a vanity play.”

Read more here.