For more than three decades, Jeff has provided clients – from public and private companies to senior corporate and financial executives – with practical solutions to their business and legal problems.

He leads major real estate projects and transactions for tenants and landlords across the country. He protects the interests of corporate and financial industry leaders through aggressive negotiations and well-crafted employment contracts, offer letters, and exit packages. And, he provides businesses of all sizes with sound advice on strategic activities and day-to-day operations.

Comprehensive Real Estate Advice

Jeff regularly leads office and retail leasing and subleasing transactions for landlords and tenants alike. They count on his responsiveness, hands-on approach, and commitment to meeting their objectives, like the global technology company who called Jeff on the eve of a holiday vacation with an urgent request to negotiate and execute the lease for about 150,000 square feet in central Manhattan. They needed to close the deal in a week’s time, and knew Jeff would meet their deadline. And he did: one week later, the lease was signed.

Jeff is landlord’s counsel for many office buildings in the New York area. He also regularly represents companies such as IBM, Chobani, Ipsos and Citrin Cooperman & Company in connection with their real estate matters. In addition, he has represented International Federation of Accountants, Davis Wright & Tremaine, Clyde & Co., ALM Media, Bjarke Ingels: BIG Architect, Godiva, Galvanize, Faherty Brand, and Grubb & Ellis in connection with their New York City headquarters.

His recent conveyancing and financing transactions include the net lease of an office building on 57^th Street in New York City, the refinancing of a Madison Avenue office tower and the acquisition of the most expensive townhouse ever purchased in New York City, and the highest per acre land sale ever closed in the Bronx. Other notable real estate transactions Jeff has led include:

• Representing IBM in the leasing of 144,000 square feet of space at 51 Astor Place, New York, NY.
• Representing Rubenstein Communications in the leasing of 68,000 square feet of space at One World Wide Plaza, New York, NY.
• Representing Trunk Archive in the leasing of the entire building at 190 Bowery, New York, NY.
• Representing Citrin Cooperman & Company in the leasing of 110,000 square feet of space at 50 Rockefeller Center, New York, NY.
• Representing Citrin Cooperman & Company in the leasing of 90,000 square feet at 529 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY.
• Representing Bjarke Ingels: BIG Architect in the leasing of 55,000 square feet at 45 Main Street, Brooklyn, NY.
• Representing Hudson River Trading in the leasing of 70,000 square feet at 4 World Trade Center, New York, NY.
• Representing IPSOS in numerous leasing and subleasing matters.
• Representing Davis Wright Tremaine in the leasing of 50,000 square feet at 1251 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY.
• Representing ALM Media in the leasing of 46,000 square feet at 150 East 42^nd Street, New York, NY.
• Representing Grubb & Ellis in the subleasing of 43,000 square feet of space in New York City.
• Representing Bright Roll (now Yahoo) in the leasing of 26,000 square feet at the Empire State Building, New York, NY.
• Representing Oxford Health Plans in numerous leases and subleases in the New York area in excess of 1,000,000 square feet in the aggregate.

Guidance on Executive Compensation

Jeff is considered a “go-to” advisor to high-level executives in connection with their employment matters with a particular emphasis on the financial industry. He has represented partners at some of the world’s largest investment banks, hedge fund analysts and portfolio managers, and directors and CEOs of private equity firms, hedge funds and CEOs, and other senior executives, of large and small corporations, including Fortune 100 companies.

In addition, he negotiates separation and other exit packages for his clients that maximize the value of their contribution to their employer’s or company’s success, including – when necessary – guiding them through litigation to achieve their objectives.

Jeff also represents employers in the preparation and negotiation of compensation arrangements. His executive compensation work includes:

Effective Problem Solver

Jeff excels at analyzing challenging situations and implementing quick and effective legal and business solutions to the problems his clients face. Corporate clients rely on his experience and insight to guide them through employment issues, mergers and acquisitions, executive compensation, and other matters. In addition, Jeff has served as counsel to many family offices spearheading their legal needs in all aspects of their dealings including, in some cases, directing them to advisors necessary to meet their needs. Jeff is considered by many as “a lawyer’s lawyer” and is often the first call many make in need of counsel for a variety of legal problems.

Community Leadership

A graduate of Northwestern University, Jeff remains actively involved in supporting and promoting the school. He has served on the Board of Visitors of Northwestern’s Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences for more than ten years. Jeff also co-chairs the Northwestern University Leadership Circle’s New York Regional Board and is a member of the Advisory Committee of the Center for the Study of Diversity and Democracy at Northwestern.

REPRESENTATIVE MATTERS

• Representing the CEO of a major financial services firm in the negotiation of his compensation arrangements.
• Representing a senior portfolio manager in all aspects of his employment, partnership and compensation arrangements.
• Representing the founder of a major hedge fund in the buyout and exit from his fund.
• Representing several partners and senior executives of major bulge bracket financial institutions such as Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Citi, UBS, and Barclays in their compensation arrangements and exits from their firms.
• Representing partners in major New York City law firms in the separation from their firms.
• Representing numerous traders, portfolio managers and other financial service analysts, executives and other personnel in connection with their employment matters.
• Representing the CEO of a New York Stock Exchange listed company in his employment and related agreements with the Company.
• Representing the head of human resources of one of the largest hedge funds in the U.S. in her departure from the firm.

Education

• American University Law School, J.D., Articles Editor, Law Review
• Northwestern University, B.A., with honors

Bar and Court Admissions

• New York
• U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York

Board of Visitors, Weinberg College of Arts & Sciences, Northwestern University

Co-Chair, NULC New York Regional Board, Northwestern University

Advisory Committee, Center for the Study of Diversity & Democracy (CSDD), Northwestern University

Co-author: “New York Practice Guide: Business and Commercial, Corporations,” Chapter 6, Benders