Author: JGL Law

GREENBELT-David Bulitt and Barbara Jorgenson, two senior members of the Family Law Group at Joseph, Greenwald & Laake, PA, have been recognized by Washingtonian Magazine to be among the metropolitan area’s 2009 Top Divorce Lawyers.

“What a great way to start 2009,” quipped Ms. Jorgenson, who was selected for the first time this year. “It is enormously gratifying to be selected again,” said Mr. Bulitt who has been selected three times previously. Each year Washingtonian Magazine identifies the top divorce lawyers in the metropolitan area after extensive interviews with local divorce attorneys.

Ms. Jorgenson and Mr. Bulitt are part of an eight-member Family Law Group, which also includes senior partner, Stephen A. Friedman, Esq. The Family Law Group handles all types of family law cases from uncontested divorces to highly contested cases involving division of substantial assets. Ms. Jorgenson and Mr. Friedman specialize in cases involving tracing assets and the valuation of professional practices and businesses. Mr. Bulitt is frequently called upon by local judges to represent children in custody disputes and serves as a mediator in property and financial disputes.

Both Mr. Bulitt and Ms. Jorgenson are also trained in collaborative law, an emerging field in which family cases are handled cooperatively with the aim of out-of-court settlement. “Collaborative law is the wave of the future,” noted Ms. Jorgenson. “In the next 10 years, collaborative law will be the norm in family law cases, not the exception,” she predicted. Mr. Bulitt agreed, “In the 20-plus years, Barbara and I have been practicing, we have seen more and more efforts towards resolving family law cases out of court. Collaborative law is the newest, and to my mind, the best move towards faster, better settlements.”

The Family Law Group is complemented by JGL’s business, tax, criminal, personal injury, and medical malpractice groups. JGL serves clients in Washington, DC, and throughout Maryland. It has offices in Montgomery, Prince George’s, and Calvert Counties.

Timothy Maloney, a principal in the Maryland law firm of Joseph, Greenwald & Laake, PA was inducted last month into the American College of Trial Lawyers in Tucson, Arizona.

The American College of Trial Lawyers is composed of the best of the trial bar from the United States and Canada and is widely considered to be the premier professional trial organization in America. Founded in 1950, the College is dedicated to maintaining and improving the standards of trial practice, the administration of justice and the ethics of the profession. Fellowship is extended only by invitation, after careful investigation, to those experienced trial lawyers who have mastered the art of advocacy and whose professional careers have been marked by the highest standards of ethical conduct, professionalism, civility and collegiality.

Maloney, a popular and well known Maryland lawyer and former state legislator, is well known for his likeable personality and wit. He was asked to provide a keynote speech at last month’s induction ceremony in Tucson. In accepting fellowship to the College, Maloney said: “There will always be a need for trial lawyers as long as facts will be in dispute, as long as civil rights will be at stake or liberty at risk – in short, for as long as there will be people living in a free society…”

Mr. Maloney is an attorney in Joseph, Greenwald and Laake’s litigation Group. He conducts and oversees litigation of criminal and civil matters in judicial as well as administrative proceedings. He was a member of the Maryland General Assembly from 1979-1995 and has been an active member of numerous bar associations. He attended college at Georgetown University. He attended law school at the University of Baltimore where he graduated in 1986.

Joseph, Greenwald & Laake is one of the largest and most well respected law firms in suburban Maryland, having provided almost 40 years of quality legal representation to businesses and individuals throughout the National Capitol Area.

Law360, New York (September 02, 2009) — American Eagle Express Inc. drivers have hit the company with a putative class action accusing it of violating the Fair Labor Standards Act by misclassifying employees as independent contractors and illegally docking and withholding regular and overtime pay.

In a complaint filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on Tuesday, the plaintiffs allege that AEX ignored the FLSA, and several local statutes, in an effort to avoid its obligations as an employer and required drivers to work more than 40 hours per week without overtime pay.

The 11 drivers are seeking to certify this matter as a collective action for violations of the FLSA and as a class action for violations of the Maryland Wage and Hour Law, the Maryland Wage Payment and Collections Law, the DC Wage Payment and Collection Law and the DC Minimum Wage Act, according to the complaint.

“Without [certification] AEX will likely retain the benefits of its wrongdoings and will continue a course of conduct that will result in further damage to the named plaintiffs and the class and subclass,” the complaint said.

The couriers are seeking declaratory relief asserting that they are employees of AEX and injunctive relief prohibiting the company from misclassifying the plaintiffs and others as “independent contractors” and requiring it to provide to the drivers the rights, benefits and privileges of employees, the complaint says.

They are also seeking restitution for wages lost due to illegal deductions and payment practices, together with interest, additional damages as provided for under local law and the costs of the action, the complaint says.

The named plaintiffs are pickup and delivery drivers who provide courier services from a Maryland warehouse to AEX clients within the state and in Washington – primarily banks and drug stores, the complaint says.

AEX requires each employee to sign a lengthy form contract that misleadingly classifies these drivers as “independent contractors,” despite also detailing the direction and control AEX will maintain over the couriers to such an extent that it creates an employer-employee relationship, the complaint says.

AEX unilaterally controls all aspects of work performed by the plaintiffs, including their schedule, route and nonnegotiable wages, and prohibits the couriers from exercising any management or independent discretion, refusing to undertake deliveries assigned by AEX management, or wearing shirts and hats other than those with the company’s logos emblazoned on them, the complaint says.

The company would cease to function without the services of the couriers, who “provide the majority, if not all, of the services required by [the company’s] clients,” and are almost exclusively economically dependent on money earned at AEX as they work over 40 hours per week and could not work elsewhere, the complaint says.

“Despite its knowledge of all of the aforementioned facts, [AEX] persists in a uniform policy of misclassifying named plaintiffs, the class and the subclasses as ‘independent contractors,’ with full knowledge that they are actually employees of [the company] as a matter of law,” the complaint said.

AEX is a courier service that employs over 450 people in Washington and at least four states: Maryland, New Jersey, Delaware and Pennsylvania.

Representatives for both parties did not respond to requests for comment Wednesday.

The plaintiffs are represented in this matter by Joseph Greenwald & Laake PA.

Counsel information for the defendant was not immediately available Wednesday.

The case is Spellman et al. v. American Eagle Express Inc., case number 1:09-cv-01666-RMC, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

GREENBELT, MD, July 27, 2011—A record 11 Joseph, Greenwald & Laake (JGL) attorneys have been recognized by the 2012 Super Lawyers Magazine.  JGL is the one of the largest suburban Maryland law firms, serving clients throughout Maryland and Washington, DC.

     The nine JGL attorneys selected as 2012 Super Lawyers are:  David Bulitt, Jeffrey Greenblatt, Andrew Greenwald, Barbara Jorgenson, Burt Kahn, Walter Laake, Timothy Maloney, Steven Pavsner, and Steven Vinick.
     In addition, JGL attorneys Veronica Nannis and Reza Golesorkhi were listed as a Rising Stars.
Super Lawyers Magazine is a publication which rates outstanding lawyers from more than 70 practice areas who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement. The selection process is multi-phased and includes independent research, peer nominations, and peer evaluations.  The Super Lawyers listing is published in Super Lawyers Magazine, which reaches 13 million readers throughout all 50 states.
     “Our firm is extremely pleased to have a third of our lawyers recognized by Super Lawyers this year.  Since Super Lawyers began publishing in Maryland in 1991, our lawyers have always been included, but this year’s group is our largest number ever.  We are particularly gratified to see recognition for lawyers in both our Greenbelt and Rockville offices,” said managing director, Burt Kahn.

About Joseph, Greenwald & Laake, P.A.

     Joseph, Greenwald & Laake (JGL) has been providing legal counsel to clients in Maryland and Washington, DC for more than forty years.  The firm has more than 35 attorneys, primarily practicing in the areas of medical malpractice, family law, bankruptcy, business law, labor and employment law, estate planning, civil litigation, criminal defense, workers’ compensation and personal injury.  The firm has offices in Greenbelt and Rockville, Maryland.  For more information, visit www.jgllaw.com. 

Brian J. Markovitz, an attorney with the suburban Maryland firm of Joseph, Greenwald & Laake, PA was a major force behind a new Maryland law clarifying the definition of “wage” as used in the State’s Wage Payment and Collection Law.

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(Vocus/PRWEB ) April 22, 2010 — On April 13, 2010, Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley signed into law Maryland HB214/S694, “clarifying (that) the definition of ‘wage’ as used in the Wage Payment and Collection Law” has always included and includes overtime. As a result, Maryland employees who are withheld overtime pay illegally and without good reason can seek triple damages on the overtime they are owed. The law is intended to specifically address two incorrect federal court rulings, McLaughlin v. Murphy and Williams v. Maryland Office Relocators, Inc., in which the federal courts mistakenly held that the triple damages provision did not apply overtime.

The law was the result of the suggestion of Brian J. Markovitz, an attorney with the law firm Joseph, Greenwald and Laake, P.A., to Delegate Joseline Peña-Melnyk who sponsored the bill in the House of Delegates and saw to its passage through both chambers. “The two federal court holdings were inconsistent with state court rulings and the intent of the legislature in passing the Wage Payment and Collection Act in 1993, and these rulings resulted in a lot of unnecessary confusion with the courts at all levels that needed to be clarified,” said Brian Markovitz. As the bill is a clarification of existing law, it applies to pending cases. “Delegate Peña-Melnyk and Senator Lenett, the Senate sponsor, did fantastic jobs ensuring that there will be judicial clarity on this issue,” Mr. Markovitz said.

Joseph, Greenwald & Laake, PA, is a full service law firm with 33 lawyers, practicing in several areas, including business, tax, criminal, employment, family, personal injury, estate planning and medical malpractice. JGL serves local and national clients in Washington, DC, and throughout Maryland. It has offices in Montgomery, Prince George’s, and Howard Counties.

Clayborne E Chavers Joins Suburban Maryland Law Firm

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Clayborne E. Chavers, Sr., a nationally known civil rights attorney, has joined the Maryland law firm of Joseph, Greenwald & Laake, PA.

Greenbelt (Vocus/PRWEB ) March 19, 2010 — Clayborne E. Chavers, Sr., a nationally known civil rights attorney, has joined Joseph, Greenwald & Laake. Chavers will head the Firm’s Strategic Employment Group at the Firm’s Greenbelt headquarters.

Chavers is the originating attorney in the landmark civil rights case against Eastman Kodak which resulted in a settlement of $21.4 million dollars. He has represented employers and employees in civil rights cases for more than 25 years and has developed a corporate diversity plan designed to assist Fortune 1000 companies in taking a prospective approach to potential civil rights violations.

Chavers is also a pioneer in the fields of government contracts, business, and arts and entertainment law. Chavers, who began his career at the National Endowment for the Arts, was one of the first lawyers in the greater Washington, DC, area to specialize in specialize in the Arts and Entertainment industry and is the founder and first chairman of the Entertainment, Sports, and Art Section of the National Bar Association. He has represented numerous local television and radio personalities.

“Clay has extensive insight and interest in the economic advantages cultural diversity can generate for industry,” noted Burt M. Kahn, the Firm’s managing director. “Clay’s addition to the Firm expands the Firm’s substantial employment practice, especially with Clay’s reach into a client base that stretches around the country and the world,” said Kahn.

Chavers’ experience spans many fields from contract negotiations, commercial real estate development, litigation, mergers and acquisitions, economic development, corporate governance, to employee training and management relations. He has represented national and international clients, successfully closing complex business deals, managing litigation and negotiations at the administrative, trial, and appellate levels in state courts and federal courts.

Chavers has been a frequent speaker at professional and educational forums, including among others National Association of Broadcasters, Women in Film and Video, Congressional Black Caucus of the United States Congress, Public Broadcasting Service, Corporation for Public Broadcasting, Georgetown University Law Center, District of Columbia Bar Association, Washington Lawyers for The Arts, The National Bar Association, National Association of Broadcasters, The College of William and Mary Law School, Temple University School of Law, and The American University.

Joseph, Greenwald & Laake, PA, is a full service law firm with 33 lawyers, practicing in the areas of business, tax, criminal, personal injury, and medical malpractice. JGL serves local and national clients in Washington, DC, and throughout Maryland. It has offices in Montgomery, Prince George’s, and Calvert Counties.

Learn more about JGL at www.jgllaw.com

“Lady Bankruptcy Lawyer” Joins Expanding Maryland Law Firm

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Sari Kurson Kurland, known to her clients as the “lady bankruptcy lawyer” has become of counsel to the Suburban Maryland law firm of Joseph, Greenwald & Laake, PA.

(Vocus/PRWEB ) February 3, 2010 — Sari Karson Kurland joined Joseph Greenwald and Laake, P.A. on January 1, 2010 . She is “of counsel” to the law firm. Ms. Kurland continues to serve as Principal of The Law Offices of Sari Karson Kurland, LLC which she founded in 1992. The focus of Ms. Kurland law practice is helping consumers and small businesses resolve debt through bankruptcy and negotiated workouts. Ms. Kurland has significant experience in all phases of complex Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 cases. Ms. Kurland’s primary areas of practice are consumer bankruptcy and mortgage loan modification.

Receiving her JD from IIT-Kent College of Law in Chicago, IL (1987) , Ms. Kurland is admitted to practice law in the following jurisdictions: Illinois (1988), District of Columbia (1990), and Maryland (2000). Ms. Kurland is also admitted to the following Courts: U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland (1991), U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia (1992) and U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois (1988).

Ms. Kurland is a member of the Executive Council of the Consumer Bankruptcy Section of the Maryland State Bar Association. She is married to Bobby Bloch, owner of Bobby’s Crabcakes in the Rockville Town Square and has three children, two high school students and a freshman at the University of Michigan.

Ms. Kurland is proud to be part of Joseph, Greenwald and Laake, P.A.’s new home in Rockville Maryland and looks forward to a prosperous relationship with this prestigious and historic Maryland law firm.”I am so excited to join such an established and dynamic group,” Kurland remarked.

Joseph, Greenwald & Laake, P.A., currently has 32 lawyers, operating both from its main location at 6404 Ivy Lane, Suite 400, Greenbelt, Maryland as well as its Montgomery County hub in the Rockville Town Center located at 111 Rockville Pike, Suite #975. The Firm’s areas of practice include family law, business, tax, criminal, employment, personal injury, and medical malpractice. JGL serves clients in Washington, DC, and throughout Maryland. Learn more about JGL at www.jgllaw.com.

JGL Moves Forward with Montgomery County Expansion

Joseph, Greenwald & Laake, PA, is preparing to open the doors of its 8000 square foot office in the Rockville Town Center in Montgomery County, Maryland. Two Montgomery County lawyers, Regina DeMeo and Harvey S. Jacobs, are joining the firm to aid in its growth and improve service to the firm’s clients.

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Greenbelt, Maryland – October 19, 2009 — Joseph, Greenwald & Laake, P.A., the second largest firm in Prince George’s County, has added two lawyers to its new Montgomery County office.

“Our Montgomery County office is close to being fully staffed,” stated David Bulitt, JGL’s assistant managing director who will head the new office. The Montgomery County campus is located at 111 Rockville Pike, #975 in the heart of the Rockville Town Center. The office will open in early November 2009.

“We are pleased to have Harvey S. Jacobs, Esq., and Regina A. DeMeo, Esq., joining us as we move fulltime into Montgomery County,” said Bulitt. “Each of them helps us fulfill our strategic plan which calls for not only expansion of offices but expansion of talent and areas of law,” he continued.

Both Jacobs and DeMeo have been practicing as solos in Montgomery County.

Jacobs has more than two decades of experience in corporate and business transactions-from residential real estate settlements to intellectual property. “I have called my firm ‘The Internet Law Firm,” explained Jacobs, “because I know how to capture the net’s resources for my clients, many of whom have been high tech clients.” “I am pleased to bring my experience with local and national entrepreneurs in the internet, telecommunications, software, and emerging technologies areas to JGL’s 40-plus years of experience with local and regional businesses. The synergies of my practice areas and JGL’s established business base are exciting,” he said.

Jacobs’ many professional accomplishments include handling “roll-up” of the then-burgeoning paging industry; handling all legal and financial aspects of mergers, acquisitions, outright sales and licensing of telecommunications assets; representing a wide variety of business clients as outside general counsel (environmental remediation contractor, postal service government contractor, real estate developers, real estate investors, skydiving center, computer manufacturers, software companies), and representing over 80 “Dot-Com” and other high tech clients.

Jacobs will join JGL effective December 1, 2009.

DeMeo has been practicing family law in the DC Metropolitan Area for over a decade, and has been listed in the Washingtonian Magazine as one of the Top Divorce Lawyers in the area. She has been a long-standing volunteer at the DC Bar and DC Family Court, and is active with both her alma maters Georgetown University and The George Washington University Law School, where she is lecturing this fall. In 2006, she was trained in Mediation and Collaborative Divorce and has been approved as an Alternate Dispute Resolution facilitator for both the District of Columbia Family Court and Montgomery County Circuit Court. In 2009, DeMeo was named as a “Rising Star” in Maryland’s Super Lawyer Magazine. She is currently serving a three-year term on the DC Bar’s Family Law Section Steering Committee, and was recently elected President of Collaborative Divorce Association, Inc., which is an interdisciplinary group of lawyers, mental health professionals and financial experts in Montgomery County who practice and promote collaborative law. “I am very excited to join JGL’s family law group,” said DeMeo. “Virtually every year several members of this group of JGL attorneys are recognized by Washingtonian Magazine, Super Lawyer Magazine, and various state and national groups as outstanding family law practitioners. It is an honor to be part of this group,” she said. “I have a particular interest in the emerging field of collaborative law, and JGL has given me the green light to move forward in expanding its family law practice in that area, as well as supporting the firm’s long-established family law litigation and mediation practices.,” DeMeo said.

DeMeo will join JGL effective November 1, 2009.

With the addition of Jacobs and DeMeo, JGL will have 33 lawyers. Its main office will continue to be located at 6404 Ivy Lane, Suite 400, Greenbelt, Maryland.

For further information, visit www.jgllaw.com

JGL Lawyer To Head New MSBA/ABA Pro Bono Tax Program

Robb A. Longman, senior associate in Joseph, Greenwald & Laake’s business/tax practice group, has been tapped by the Maryland State Bar Association Tax Section to expand the Section’s award-winning pro bono program nationally with the American Bar Association.

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Greenbelt, MD – October 16, 2009 — Robb A. Longman, senior associate in Joseph, Greenwald & Laake’s business/tax practice group, has been tapped by the Maryland State Bar Association Tax Section to expand the Section’s award-winning pro bono program nationally with the American Bar Association.

“Last year our section won the MSBA pro bono service award for its program in matching pro bono tax attorneys with pro se litigants at the U.S. Tax Court,” explained Longman. “The program was so successful that we were approached by the Tax Section of the American Bar Association to work with its pro bono coordinator to set up this program in 32 venues around the country.”

The U.S. Tax Court travels to different cities on a regular basis. For example, it will be in Baltimore on November 30. Mr. Longman uses the MSBA list serve to recruit volunteer attorneys to appear at the Tax Court’s calendar call. “Pro se litigants with a case under $50,000 can meet with one of our volunteers and the Internal Revenue Service counsel. Hopefully, a consent agreement can be reached. If not, the volunteer attorney may represent the litigant pro bono if the attorney chooses to do so.”

In his new role, Mr. Longman will be working with the ABA’s pro bono coordinator to set up this program in other states. There are 32 sites where the Tax Court sits that do not have any pro bono clinic. “These 32 sites will be our focus,” said Mr. Longman.

“The Tax Court has been thrilled with the program,” said Mr. Longman. “It moves the docket along and has saved countless hours of courtroom time.”

Joseph, Greenwald & Laake, P.A., is headquartered in Greenbelt, Maryland, with a satellite office in Rockville. JGL, a full-service law firm with 33 lawyers, has been serving the citizens of suburban Maryland and the District of Columbia for more than 40 years.

For further information, contact Robb A. Longman, Esq., at 240 553 1218.

Firm to Open New Office in Rockville
Debora Fajer-Smith Joins As Part of Expansion
Lawyers To Be Added in Greenbelt and Rockville Offices

Greenbelt, Maryland-Joseph, Greenwald & Laake, P.A., one of the largest and oldest firms in Prince George’s County, will be opening a satellite campus in Rockville Town Center by Labor Day. JGL plans to house a dozen lawyers there, as well as paralegals and support staff. “A few will come from our Greenbelt headquarters and the rest will be new laterals,” said assistant managing director, David Bulitt, Esq., who is chairing the Firm’s expansion efforts.

JGL will take over 7,517 square feet of newly renovated space at 111 Rockville Pike, just a stone’s throw from the Montgomery County Judicial Center and in the center of the expanding business and legal heart of Montgomery County.

A Montgomery County office is not new for JGL. “We have had a small satellite office in Rockville for many years, but we needed more than an outpost to meet the needs of our expanding practice in Montgomery County and further west. We have come to understand that our future lies in diversifying our practice areas and our locations,” said Bulitt.

“Our Greenbelt office will remain our headquarters, and expansion is planned in both offices. If we move a lawyer to the Rockville office, we will replace him or her with another lawyer in Greenbelt,” Bulitt said.
In anticipation of the opening of the Rockville campus, Debora Fajer-Smith, Esq., recently joined the Firm’s Greenbelt’s office. “The addition of Ms. Fajer-Smith met three goals. She brings a new practice area to the firm-worker’s compensation. She also has a substantial practice in Prince George’s County and in Southern Maryland, thereby strengthening the Firm’s foothold there. And she will take the place of another lawyer who will move to the Rockville office,” explained Bulitt. (See attached biography of Ms. Fajer-Smith.)

“Not only are we expanding our locations, we are seeking to expand our practice areas. We hope that Ms. Fajer-Smith’s addition will be the tip of the iceberg, with several new practice areas to be bolstered or added within the next year,” according to Bulitt.

Joseph, Greenwald & Laake, P.A., currently has 31 lawyers, operating from its offices at 6404 Ivy Lane, Suite 400, Greenbelt, Maryland. The Firm’s areas of practice include family law, business, tax, criminal, personal injury, and medical malpractice. JGL serves clients in Washington, DC, and throughout Maryland. Learn more about JGL at www.jgllaw.com.

For further information, contact David Bulitt, Esq., (240) 553-1193.