Greenberg Traurig Trio Launch Boutique ‘Firm For The 2020s'
By Emma Cueto
Law360 (March 20, 2019, 6:59 PM EDT) — Three former Greenberg Traurig LLP partners, including Marc L. Mukasey, who currently represents President Donald Trump in a New York state investigation into his charity, have launched their own trial and government investigations boutique, saying in a Wednesday announcement that it is geared to be a “firm
for the 2020s.”
Mukasey Frenchman & Sklaroff LLP, founded by Mukasey, Robert S. Frenchman and Jeffrey B. Sklaroff, will focus on cases in which clients “must fight to protect their freedom, their business or their reputation,” and will make it a priority to be a lean operation that makes innovative use of new technologies, attributes Mukasey says will be essential in the next decade.
“With a smaller shop, you can be a bit more flexible,” Mukasey told Law360. “So we are looking forward to trying cases for all types of clients in a way that is focused and personal than you might get at a big firm.”
“We were in a giant Mack truck of a law firm,” he joked. “Now we're in a racing motorcycle.”
The New York-based firm already has a number of cases across the country that it is working on, Mukasey said.
Mukasey, who was named a Law360 White Collar MVP in 2018, announced his exit from Greenberg Traurig in January. In his last year at the firm, Mukasey won two high-profile cases against the U.S. Department of Justice, including a jury acquittal in a speedy trial in which his client was facing up to 25 years in prison for commodities fraud.
He has also been one of several attorneys representing Trump and three of his adult children in an ongoing suit brought by the New York attorney general accusing the Donald J. Trump Foundation of abusing its charity status.
Previously, he was a former chief of the narcotics unit and deputy appellate chief at the Southern District of New York, and worked with former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani after both were in private practice. He is also the son of former Attorney General Michael Mukasey.
Frenchman's practice has focused on defending financial services clients, and he has frequently faced off against the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, according to the firm.
Sklaroff represents both executives and corporations in a range of criminal matters, and has also headed up internal investigations for clients, according to the firm. He will serve as managing partner for the new firm. The three attorneys worked together on several trials while at Greenberg Traurig, Mukasey said, including the successful defense of former bond trader Michael Gramins, who was acquitted by a jury on eight out of nine charges in his high-profile case.
Mukasey said that all three founding partners at the new boutique had a “wonderful” experience at Greenberg Traurig, but that they were looking forward to the more focused, personal work they could do at a smaller firm. They plan to focus on recruiting top talent rather than expanding, he said.
“We're going to draft the best players and keep a close-knit, elite team,” he said.
–Additional reporting by Allison Grande and Dave Simpson. Editing by Alanna Weissman.