Attorneys
-
Gary P. Rothman
PARTNER
Gary P. Rothman is a partner at the firm. Gary was born and raised in Plainview, New York, and has been a practicing Labor, Employment and Employee Benefit Funds lawyer for over 35 years. During his career, Gary has represented labor unions in a broad array of industries, and was previously a partner at O’Dwyer and Bernstein, where, for over ten years, he represented the New York City District Counsel of Carpenters and their affiliated benefit funds. Gary has represented labor unions and employee benefit funds in a panoply of matters concerning union organizing, contract administration, intra-union structuring and administration, arbitration, employment practices, wage and hour matters, benefit plan drafting / administration and trustee fiduciary duties, among others.
In November 2023, Gary was inducted as a Fellow of the College of Labor and Employment Lawyers, at their annual gathering in Seattle, Washington.
Mr. Rothman received his B.A. from Syracuse University and his law degree from Pace University. Gary is admitted to practice in the federal and state courts in New York and New Jersey and is a member of the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans.
-
Matthew P. Rocco
PARTNER
Matthew Rocco is a partner at the firm. Matt was born and raised in Rockville Centre, New York, and handles numerous contract negotiations, arbitrations, and litigation matters for the firm’s union and employee benefit fund clients, as well as administrative matters before the NLRB, PERB and PERC. Mr. Rocco has significant experience successfully representing clients in litigation matters involving a broad array of claims under the LMRA, ERISA and the LMRDA.
Matt earned his undergraduate degree in Industrial and Labor Relations from the Cornell University School of Industrial and Labor Relations in Ithaca, New York, and received his law degree from the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law at Yeshiva University in New York City .
Matt is admitted to practice in the federal and state courts in New York and New Jersey.
-
Eric J. LaRuffa
PARTNER
Eric J. LaRuffa is a partner at the firm. Eric began his career in the labor movement as a union official for many years, and then went back to school and earned a law degree at Hofstra University. As an attorney, Eric got his start in the airline industry litigating union grievances and arbitrations at Trans World Airlines. For the last 25 years, Mr. LaRuffa has represented labor unions and employees in hundreds of arbitration and administrative proceedings in the public and private sectors , in addition to negotiating hundreds of collective bargaining agreements.
-
William K. Wolf
PARTNER
William K. Wolf is a partner of the firm. Born and raised in Yonkers, William practices primarily in the areas of employee benefits and related litigation. Throughout his career, Bill has represented Boards of Trustees and Unions in affirmative and defensive litigation and has tried cases to judgment and earned favorable decisions and settlements in the Federal, State, and Bankruptcy courts, at arbitration, and before the National Labor Relations Board, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the New York State Division of Human Rights, the Department of Labor, and the Internal Revenue Service.
Bill also assists and advises the Boards of Trustees and Executive Staff of Multi-Employer Pension, Health, and Benefit Funds in all aspects of their operations including benefit structure, coverage determinations, policy formulations, statutory and regulatory interpretation and compliance, fund document creation and amendment, participant and beneficiary interaction, investment oversight, insurance issues, asset protection, auditing of participating entities, debt collection, special investigations, expense control, staffing and personnel matters, and day-to-day administration.
Prior to joining the firm , Bill was a senior partner at Friedman & Wolf for over 15 years. Bill graduated from Cornell University in 1982 and Boston University School of Law in 1986.
-
Elise S. Feldman
SPECIAL COUNSEL
Elise is a special counsel to the firm. She earned her undergraduate degree from Columbia University in 1995 and her law degree from NYU in 2000.
Elise has spent almost twenty years practicing union-side labor and employee benefits law, and began her legal career as a judicial clerk for the Honorable Elliott Wilk of New York State Supreme Court in Manhattan. Prior to joining the firm, Elise represented labor unions and their benefit funds while working at Friedman & Wolf and Meyer, Suozzi, English & Klein.
Elise is admitted in the state and federal courts of New York and Connecticut.
-
The Law Offices of David W. New, P.C.
Mr. New has been standing counsel to the Trustees of many multiemployer pension, annuity, welfare, education, vacation, apprenticeship, industry advancement, and other employee benefits plans. These funds cover union employees of many industries including trucking, warehousing, manufacturing, maintenance, construction, roofing, sheet metal work, hotel/apartment management, manpower, and clerical staff. During the course of this representation, he has been involved in nearly every aspect of ERISA law addressing multi-employer plans.
During the course of his years of practice, Mr. New had gained particular expertise in the handling of withdrawal liability matters. Due to his expertise, Mr. New has been accepted by the American Arbitration Association to be on their Multi-employer Pension Plan Arbitrator roster, hearing exclusively Withdrawal Liability and Trustee Deadlock issues.
Mr. New has also been appointed, and currently serves, as a professional trustee on several Multiemployer Benefit Funds.