Nicholas D'Ambrosio, John Gaal And Joseph Zagraniczny Named 2011 Best Lawyers "Lawyer Of The Year" In Their Practice Areas

January 24, 2011

Syracuse, NY: Bond, Schoeneck & King is pleased to announce that Best Lawyers has named three of its members (partners) "Lawyer of the Year" in their respective practice areas for 2011. Nicholas J. D'Ambrosio, Jr. was named the "Albany Best Lawyers Labor and Employment Lawyer of the Year;" John Gaal was named the "Syracuse Best Lawyers Education Lawyer of the Year;" for Higher Education and Joseph Zagraniczny was named the "Syracuse Best Lawyers of the Year" in Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law.

This is the first year for Best Lawyers to designate "Lawyers of the Year" in high-profile legal areas of concentrations in large legal communities. Only a single lawyer in each community is being honored as the "Lawyer of the Year."

Mr. D'Ambrosio focuses his practice in Labor and Employment Law, representing employers in anti-discrimination proceedings, affirmative action matters, employment litigation, disability proceedings, OSHA compliance and proceedings, and wage-hour matters before State and Federal agencies and courts. He also represents private and public sector employers in collective bargaining, arbitrations, unfair labor practice proceedings before the National Labor Relations Board and State labor agencies, hospitals and other health care providers in collective bargaining negotiations, union organizing campaigns, workers' compensation, wrongful discharge litigation, employment discrimination and affirmative action matters. Mr. D'Ambrosio is a graduate of Cornell University's New York School of Industrial and Labor Relations (B.S., 1977) and Syracuse University College of Law (J.D., summa cum laude, Valedictorian, 1980).

Mr. Gaal focuses his practice in Labor and Employment Law, with many clients in the fields of Higher Education and Health Care. In addition to employment litigation (discrimination, breach of contract, tort claims, etc.) in state and federal courts and before state and federal agencies (EEOC and NYSDHR), Mr. Gaal's practice includes such traditional labor services as union avoidance counseling, collective bargaining, and representation of employers before the NLRB and in labor arbitrations. He is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame (B.A., with honors, 1974) and Notre Dame Law School (J.D., magna cum laude, 1977).

Mr. Zagraniczny is Co-Chair of the firm's Business Restructuring, Creditors' Rights and Bankruptcy Practice Group. He has represented (i) clients who have purchased manufacturing facilities, hotels, and other commercial property from Chapter 11 debtors; (ii) landlords of commercial property seeking to modify the automatic stay to terminate leases and/or requiring the debtor to assume or reject such leases; and (iii) secured lenders seeking cash collateral orders, adequate protection payments, and modification of the automatic stay to foreclose their mortgages. He is a graduate of State University of New York at Cortland (B.A., 1971) and Syracuse University College of Law (J.D., magna cum laude, 1978).

Best Lawyers compiles its lists of outstanding attorneys by conducting peer-review surveys in which thousands of lawyers confidentially evaluate their professional peers. The current, 17th edition of The Best Lawyers in America (2011) is based on more than 3.1 million detailed evaluations of lawyers by other lawyers.

Bond, Schoeneck & King, PLLC, founded in 1897, is a full service law firm comprised of more than 200 attorneys, with offices in New York City, Albany, Buffalo, Garden City, Ithaca, Oswego, Rochester, Syracuse and Utica, New York; as well as Overland Park, Kansas; and Naples, Florida.