Brendan T. Fitzpatrick is the partner in charge of the Firm's Appellate Group, and he is based in the Albertson office. Mr. Fitzpatrick has briefed and argued hundreds of appeals in the State of New York, including every Appellate Department, the New York State Court of Appeals, and the Second Circuit Court of Appeals. The appeals have covered a wide range of issues, including contractual indemnification, general negligence standards, insurance contracts, constitutional law, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, and Article 78 petitions. Mr. Fitzpatrick also works closely with the Firm's attorneys at the trial level, assisting with the preparation of trial memoranda and jury charges.
He is presently a member of the Appellate and Ethics Committees for the Defense Research Institute (DRI). He is also a Member of the Committee on the Development of the Law for the Defense Association of New York (DANY). As a member of this DANY Committee, Mr. Fitzpatrick has contributed to the preparation of amicus briefs to the New York State Court of Appeals. The cases have included Morejon v. Rais Construction, 7 N.Y.3d 203 (2006) and Stiver v. Good & Fair Carting & Moving, Inc., 9 N.Y.3d 253 (2007). In addition to publishing articles with the New York Law Journal, Mr. Fitzpatrick has published articles through Aspatore Publishing concerning the value of having an appellate attorney involved throughout the litigation process (Inside the Minds: Domestic and International Litigation Strategies: Learning to Deal with Uncertainty, Aspatore Publishing, 2007) and the impact of recent amendments to the Federal Rules of Evidence on e-discovery (Instant Awareness: An Immediate Look at the Legal, Governmental, and Economic Ramifications of the Amendments to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and Electronic Discovery: The Cost of Prevention in e-Discovery, Aspatore Publishing, 2008). Mr. Fitzpatrick has also contributed to various compendiums for US Law, including trucking law.
The Defense Association of New York honored Mr. Fitzpatrick with its 2009 Literary Award "in recognition of his outstanding work on the Amicus Curiae Committee".
Representative Cases:
- Stiver v. Good & Fair Carting & Moving, Inc., 9 N.Y.3d 253 (2007);
- Morejon v. Rais Construction, 7 N.Y.3d 203 (2006);
- O'Sullivan v. IDI Construction Co., Inc., 7 N.Y.3d 805 (2006);
- Toefer v. Long Island R.R., 4 N.Y.3d 299 (2005);
- Bower Assoc. v. Town of Pleasant Valley, 2 N.Y.3d 617 (2004);
- Cavanaugh v. 4518 Assoc., 9 A.D.3d 14(1st Dep't 2004);
- David v. County of Suffolk, 1 N.Y.3d 525 (2003);
- Pecker Iron Works v. Travelers Ins. Co., 99 N.Y.2d 391 (2003);
- Matter of Ins. Co. of North America v. Kaplun, 274 A.D.2d 293 (2d Dep't 2000);
- Walczak v. Florida Union Free Sch. Dist., 142 F.3d 119 (2d Cir. 1998)
Publications:
- Inside the Minds: Domestic and International Litigation Strategies: Learning to Deal with Uncertainty, Aspatore Publishing, January 1, 2007;
- Instant Awareness: An immediate Look at Legal, Governmental, and Economic Ramifications of the Amendments to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and Electronic Discovery: The Cost of Prevention in E-Discovery, Aspatore Publishing, 2008
- Pecker: Contract Interpretation and Contribution Among Insurers, New York Law Journal, February 23, 2004;
- The Use of Excess Clauses in Additional Insured Endorsements, New York Law Journal, May 8, 2003;
- Good News for Counsel Defending Against "Kinney" Claim, New York Law Journal, January 30, 1998
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Education:
University of Notre Dame Law School, J.D., 1995
University of Notre Dame, B.A., 1992
Bar Admissions:
Memberships:
New York State Bar Association
Defense Research Institute : Appellates and Ethics Committees
Defense Association of New York: Committee of the Dev. of the Law
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