Hayes’ Decision to Join Firm Underscores Growing Attraction
of Plaintiffs’ Firms for Business Clients
NEW YORK, March 1 LAWFUEL – The Law News Network — Hanly Conroy Bierstein & Sheridan LLP announced today that Steven M. Hayes will be joining the firm as a partner and that his name will be added to the firm, which will become Hanly Conroy
Bierstein Sheridan Fisher & Hayes LLP.
Mr. Hayes is a litigator known for his representation of many of the
biggest names in the entertainment industry, from Paul Simon to Donald Trump
and Bertelsmann AG. His work embraces intellectual property, libel and
defamation, contract disputes, competition, and Lanham Act cases.
Prior to joining Hanly Conroy, one of the nation’s pre-eminent contingency
fee law firms, Mr. Hayes was a partner in the New York office of the national
law and consulting firm, Manatt, Phelps, & Phillips, LLP.
In addition to its well known mass tort plaintiffs’ practice, Hanly Conroy
enjoys a lengthy collaboration with SimmonsCooper LLC, the nation’s leading
asbestos litigation firm, which also has strong practices in securities and
intellectual property litigation. Together, the firms are involved in a
variety of business as well as traditional tort litigation, including pharmacy
benefit manager (PBM) cases, consumer fraud, intellectual property, and
commercial litigation.
The collaboration created a “dream team” that generated ongoing buzz
throughout the legal profession as a leading mass tort plaintiffs’ firm
uniquely partnered with a law firm that grew up on complex business
litigation.
Steve Hayes’ arrival at Hanly Conroy further cements the collaboration,
particularly as a number of high-profile business litigators have also been
joining SimmonsCooper. These lawyers include securities litigator Nicholas
Iavarone as well as IP litigator Paul Lesko.
“Steve has represented an entertainment industry Who’s Who,” said Paul
Hanly. “Celebrities can be business entities as well, often very large ones.
And, business-to-business litigation is a vital part of our practice. Because
we have been on both sides of bet-the-company cases, we provide clients with a
breadth of experience, as well as alternative fee arrangements that the
traditional defense firms don’t generally offer.”
“We’re really in the business of representing victims, and big
corporations can be victims too,” added Mr. Hanly.
Mr. Hayes cites the “entrepreneurial” opportunity that a small firm
environment provides. Hanly Conroy, which was founded in 2002 and currently
has six partners, has increasingly taken on more plaintiffs’ work on behalf of
both individuals and corporations — and is now operating almost totally on a
contingent fee basis.
In just a few years, Hanly Conroy has created a highly successful
practice. “This wonderful young law firm has reached the same conclusions
about the practice of law that I have reached,” added Mr. Hayes. “I’ve known
the principal partners, Paul Hanly and Jayne Conroy, for many, many years. We
are kindred spirits and we think alike.”
“There is no finer group of lawyers and people at any national firm than
my former colleagues at Manatt. In fact, we hope to collaborate when the
opportunity to do so arises,” Mr. Hayes continued. “However, I was ready to
try something different. I became convinced that the shared risk inherent in
contingency billing could be the best thing for both client and lawyer in
certain cases and certain circumstances,” said Mr. Hayes.
Among Mr. Hayes’ signature cases, his successful defense of Jonathan
Larson’s heirs set new precedent on joint authorship in a case involving the
play Rent. Among his other successes, Mr. Hayes represented Frank McCourt in a
suit regarding rights to Angela’s Ashes; he defended Sweetland Films in a case
brought by Woody Allen; and he defended Gloria Estefan and Sony Music in a
case brought by Eddie Palmieri.
About Hanly Conroy Bierstein Sheridan Fisher & Hayes LLP
Hanly Conroy Bierstein Sheridan Fisher & Hayes LLP, based in New York
City, is a litigation boutique with extensive success in all manner of complex
litigation. Visit us on the web at http://www.hanlyconroy.com.
SOURCE Hanly Conroy Bierstein Sheridan Fisher & Hayes LLP
Web Site: http://www.hanlyconroy.com
