Michael D. Billok

John is the managing partner of the firm’s Capital District Offices in Albany and Saratoga Springs. He advises clients on various legal and regulatory issues. For example, as part of the Energy Team, John successfully represented the owners of nuclear and coal-fired electric generating facilities before the New York State Public Service Commission (PSC) in connection with securing three reliability support services agreements (RSSA) with two upstate utilities. He also represents a natio...

Karen Martino Valle is Of Counsel to our firm and focuses her practice on the organization and operation of business and not-for-profit corporations, partnerships and limited liability companies, as well as estate planning and administration, contested estate and trust matters and business succession planning. She advises clients on a wide range of business matters, including transactional matters, mergers and acquisitions, tax planning and commercial leasing and financing, with a specific fo...

Mathew serves as the managing partner for Harris Beach Murtha's offices located in Albany and Saratoga in New York's Capital Region. As a co-leader of the Financial Institutions Industry Team, Mathew assists clients in navigating complicated matters related to commercial real estate and lending. Collaborating with a diverse range of financial institutions, he contributes valuable insights into commercial lending and related real estate transactions. In addition to advising on transactions rel...

Benjamin Friedman is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Nonprofit / Charities Law. Benjamin, who practices law in Albany, New York, has been recognized since 2026. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Benjamin is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

Kurt Bratten is a partner in our Health Law Department. His practice includes a wide range of civil litigation, transactional work, compliance and other advisory services. Kurt’s primary focus is on counseling health care providers regarding various compliance and transactional matters such as state and federal data security and privacy requirements, managed care and other contractual matters, and state and federal regulatory requirements applicable to various provider groups. He freque...

Florence Richardson is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Family Law. Florence, who practices law in Albany, New York, has been recognized since 2025. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Florence is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

Pam has been a Partner at O’Connell & Aronowitz for 23 years where she practices in our Personal Injury Litigation Department. She was the firm’s managing partner for fifteen years. Her accomplishments tackling the legal issues that arise during litigation have been critical to the firm’s overall success. Pam consistently obtains excellent results representing plaintiffs in all areas of personal injury lawsuits including wrongful death cases, medical malpractice, automob...

Mr. Bottar brings more than 20 years of experience to the pursuit of medical malpractice, wrongful death, and complex personal injury actions throughout New York and the northeastern United States, with a focus on claims for birth injuries, neonatal/pediatric negligence, heart attack, stroke, brain damage, nerve injuries, cancer misdiagnosis, and liability under the Federal Tort Claims Act. Mr. Bottar is a graduate of Colgate University and is a summa cum laude (top 2%) graduate of Syracuse U...

Whitney Phelps represents healthcare clients in corporate, transactional, and regulatory matters. She has extensive experience in health care benefits, managed care and value-based contracting. Prior to joining Nixon Peabody, Whitney also served as Director of Managed Care and Associate Counsel at the Healthcare Association of New York State. My focus I am a healthcare strategist. I provide practical and solution-oriented options for healthcare stakeholders of all kinds on a broad range of co...

John "Jack" Phelan is the senior partner at Phelan Phelan & Danek LLP and was one of the founding partners of the firm. He concentrates his practice in the defense of medical malpractice and construction litigation. Jack has tried over 150 cases to verdict in New York State and Federal Courts. He also has served as general counsel to a large construction and development family of companies. He has lectured through out New York State on construction litigation issues Mr Phelan is a member ...