About Master Lawyer
OUR STORY
Why Choose Us?
We started this firm to give people what we wanted
as clients: straight answers and a lawyer who calls back
Not every dispute belongs in court. We settle when a settlement serves you, go to trial when it does not, and tell you which is which before you spend money on fees.
Rene Mackovsky and Claire Dumont opened Master Lawyer in a two-room office on Lexington Avenue in 1987. Today 120 lawyers work from New York, London and Paris, on everything from custody disputes and injury claims to cross-border financings. The firm has grown, but the way we work has not: a partner reviews every new matter, you get a written plan and a fee estimate up front, and your lawyer returns calls within one business day.
Most new clients come to us on the recommendation of someone we have already helped. We take that as the best measure of our work.
Most new clients come to us on the recommendation of someone we have already helped. We take that as the best measure of our work.
Rene Mackovsky
President & Co-Founder
120
Qualified Lawyers
1900+
Successful Cases
1825+
Happy Clients
140+
Honors & Awards
Our Legal Team
Meet Our Attorneys
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Jonathan PierceBusiness LawyerJonathan PierceBusiness LawyerJonathan leads our startup and emerging companies group. He has guided more than two hundred founders through incorporation, seed and Series A financings, and has negotiated the sale of eleven venture-backed companies. Before joining the firm in 2009 he was general counsel at a New York software company. He holds a JD from Columbia Law School and teaches a seminar on venture financing. Clients value his habit of explaining a term sheet, line by line and in plain English, before anyone signs it. -
Helena MarshBanking & Finance LawyerHelena MarshBanking & Finance LawyerHelena advises banks, credit funds and fintech companies on lending, refinancing and regulatory compliance. She spent eight years as in-house counsel at a New York commercial bank before joining Master Lawyer in 2012, and now divides her time between our New York and London offices. She is admitted to practice in New York and in England and Wales, and regularly closes cross-border loan facilities. She also chairs a pro bono clinic for small businesses, and has run the London marathon four times. -
Michael HartleyCriminal Defense LawyerMichael HartleyCriminal Defense LawyerMichael heads our criminal defense practice. A former Manhattan assistant district attorney, he has tried more than sixty cases to verdict and now defends clients charged with fraud, assault, drug offenses and serious driving crimes. He is known for preparing every case as if it will go to trial, which is often what earns his clients a better offer long before a jury is chosen. He lectures on trial advocacy and sits on the board of a legal aid society, and he still answers his phone at three in the morning. -
Elena RussoFamily LawyerElena RussoFamily LawyerElena handles divorce, custody and support cases, and is especially experienced with families who own a business or significant property together. She is a trained mediator and believes most disputes are best settled at a table rather than in a courtroom, but she is a determined advocate when a case needs a judge. She joined the firm in 2014 after a decade at a family law practice and speaks Italian and Spanish. Parents appreciate that she keeps the children's routines at the center of every proposal.
