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Editor's Note: Learning the Secrets to Their Success

They handle complex and consequential matters across continents. They fight decades-long battles with billions of dollars at stake. Everything they touch is precedent setting, high stakes, high profile. Yet they have time to mentor young lawyers, to help the less fortunate and bring out the best in a profession they clearly love.

Retired Court of Appeals Judge Albert Rosenblatt, who was speaking about lifetime achievement award winner Michael Cooper, of counsel at Sullivan & Cromwell, could have been talking about any of our winners when he said: "I marvel at how he could excel in big-time lawsuits at one moment and, in the next, look after the impoverished or work to release someone from Guantanamo as part of his pro bono universe."

Like Cooper, our winners are imbued with an uncommon blend of ambition, determination, passion, vigor and compassion, and most of them, truth be told, hate to lose. But here's the mystery: Why do our esteemed winners reach such rarefied heights when other very capable lawyers only come close?

Their partners, mentors and protégés did suggest a commonality. And it was this: they practice ordinary skills with extraordinary grace. This is how Carmita Alonso, a partner at Fragomen, Del Rey, Bernsen & Loewy, describes her mentor, the firm's chairman, Austin Fragomen Jr.: "I've admired his ability to listen above his many other very fine qualities. Listening seems like such a simple thing, but it's not. It's a skill that's acquired through practice and attention. It's rare."

Ryan A. Partelow, an associate at Covington & Burling whose professor was lifetime achievement winner Jerry Goldfeder, special counsel at Stroock, Stroock & Lavan, had this to say: "The fact that he asked a student to write this for the Law Journal speaks volumes as to who Jerry is. He has been a mentor and friend to me, and to many of my fellow students—and I believe that this trait defines Jerry more than most of his other qualities."

Traits like integrity were mentioned again and again. But so were judgment, mastery of the facts, long institutional memory, zealous advocacy, trustworthiness, respect for the profession, civility and reasonableness. And, perhaps not surprisingly, our winners admired those same traits in their adversaries.

While this is a time for celebration, I would be remiss if I didn't acknowledge that our honorees did see some dark undercurrents buffeting the profession.

Distinguished leader winner Brad Karp, chairman of Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison and our attorney of the year winner last year, said, "The profession of law is at risk of being overwhelmed by the business of law. This transformation will accelerate as AI and machine-learning capabilities increasingly replace human capital and as client pressure on fees intensifies. At many firms, a single-minded obsession with the bottom line is eroding core values of pro bono, community engagement, diversity and professionalism."

Susan Kohlmann, the New York managing partner at Jenner & Block and one of our distinguished leaders, lamented, "Sometimes, it seems change happens too slowly. The business and profession have long recognized the need for increased diversity and inclusion, but the numbers have not moved significantly."

Those battles will be fought another day, but for today we'd like to celebrate lawyers at all stages of their careers. For our Rising Stars, their biographies are just beginning to be written. Our Distinguished Leaders are already at the pinnacle of their careers. And our Lifetime Achievers have amassed years of accomplishments, but none of them are ready to rest on their laurels. With our Litigation Departments of the Year, our accolades are for a team effort.

As always, I'd like to recognize our extraordinary Attorney of the Year finalists; this is our most coveted award. They are: Robert Giuffra, a partner at Sullivan & Cromwell; Jeffrey Kessler, a partner at Winston & Strawn; and Mark Lebovitch, a partner at Bernstein Litowitz Berger & Grossmann. I highly recommend that you read the special profiles of them we've prepared for this magazine. The winner will be announced Oct. 23 at our annual awards dinner at Tribeca 360.

These awards wouldn't have been possible without our distinguished panels of judges who helped us sort through pages of impressive court wins, multimillion-dollar settlements and outstanding pro bono work. Please accept our thanks.

Special Sections editor Angela Turturro put together this special supplement, Deputy art director Monika Kozak came up with the beautiful design, and David Handschuh took the wonderful photographs. I can't thank them enough.

Let's pause to celebrate the many accomplishments of the New York legal community as we look forward to another year of extraordinary achievements. Congratulations to each and every one of you!

Mark Lebovitch, Partner at Bernstein Litowitz, Is NYLJ's Attorney of the Year

Lifetime Achievement Awards

Attorney of the Year Finalists

Distinguished Leader Awards

Rising Stars

Rising Stars: The Slideshow

Litigation Departments of the Year

In-House Legal Department of the Year