Cozen O'Connor has taken a pair of energy and utility lawyers from New York-based midsize firm Windels Marx Lane & Mittendorf, launching an office in Newark, New Jersey.

Partner Gregory Eisenstark and of counsel Michael Connolly work with utility companies in the state, including Jersey Central Power & Light and New Jersey Resources—clients they are bringing to Philadelphia-based Cozen O'Connor.

Eisenstark said he has long known Cozen O'Connor partner Ira Megdal, who is based in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, and that they have “similar, but complementary practices.” Joining the firm in Newark, he said, “was just a good opportunity both for my practice and for Cozen.”

His practice is largely based in New Jersey, he said. He added that he has done some work involving the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission in Washington, D.C., though that's not a very active part of his practice now. Additionally, Eisenstark noted, he has done some work in Pennsylvania, which made Cozen O'Connor's platform attractive. The firm has offices in Philadelphia, Harrisburg, Pittsburgh, Wilkes-Barre and West Conshohocken.

Eisenstark became a partner at Windels Marx in 2014, when he joined the firm along with Connolly. Before that, he was senior counsel at Morgan, Lewis & Bockius. He spent the earlier part of his career in-house and in government, including a decade at New Jersey's Public Service Enterprise Group, the parent company of electric utility Public Service Electric and Gas Co.

Before joining Windels Marx, Connolly previously served as vice president for law at GPU Service Inc. and its affiliates, Jersey Central Power & Light, Metropolitan Edison Co. and Pennsylvania Electric Co., according to his new firm.

“In a regulated field as complex as the utility industry, experience is the difference between success and failure,” Cozen O'Connor CEO Michael Heller said in a statement Monday. “Greg and Mike bring executive-level experience to clients on rate making, acquisition approvals, and rulemakings and are ideally suited to spearhead our Newark office.”

Newark is the firm's 28th office, and its second in New Jersey. The firm also has a location in Cherry Hill, which is about 80 miles south of Newark.

Cozen O'Connor has opened several new offices in the past two years, including Santa Monica, California; Richmond, Virginia; Pittsburgh; and Las Vegas. The Pittsburgh location opened in 2017, and has grown to nearly 30 lawyers since then, including two recent litigation hires.

Last year Cozen O'Connor opened an office in Vancouver started by subrogation partner Lisa Myers. But that location is no longer listed on the firm's website, and Myers is now listed as being resident in Seattle.

A spokesperson for Windels Marx did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

|

Read More

Cozen O'Connor Sees Revenue Outpace Profit Growth in Investment Year