ALLYN & FORTUNA - Key Persons
Andrea Platner Hellman joined the firm in 1996 and became a partner of Allyn & Fortuna in 2005. She concentrates in administrative and regulatory law, employment law, commercial litigation and intellectual property.
Ms. Hellman specializes in advising businesses of all sizes on a wide array of regulatory matters ranging from procuring required approvals and permits to successfully defending clients in administrative and criminal proceedings. Clients from a variety of fields seek Ms. Hellman's expertise to navigate the government regulatory process and manage the nuanced and complex interactions that businesses have with regulatory agencies, including hearings and other proceedings before the courts and numerous federal, state, and local administrative agencies, including fire safety, buildings, consumer protection, health, alcohol, and environmental matters. She is also experienced in motion practice and appeals from determinations of these agencies. Also, Ms. Hellman proactively advises businesses on regulatory matters in order to prevent adverse governmental administrative action. In addition, she develops training materials for businesses and helps formulate internal procedures to ensure compliance with regulatory requirements. Ms. Hellman's skill in conjunction with almost 25 years experience, insight, and relationship building with various agencies are of great benefit to Allyn & Fortuna's clients.
When an agency's final determination adversely affects the firm's clients, Ms. Hellman is adept at obtaining judicial relief from such determination. She has mastered the procedural and substantive requirements necessary to effect judicial intervention and review of agency actions.
Christopher T. Owen is Of Counsel to Allyn & Fortuna LLP since 1993. He has over 26 years of experience in commercial litigation, real estate matters, wills, trust and estate matters, matrimonial law and criminal law. Mr. Owen's clients have included large utility companies, privately-owned businesses and individuals. As Of Counsel to Allyn & Fortuna, Mr. Owen offers his extensive litigation experience in conducting civil and criminal trials before judges and juries and his appellate experience before the various appellate divisions in New York. Mr. Owen's experience and knowledge in the specialized fields of matrimonial law and wills, trusts and estate matters are also valuable resources available to Allyn & Fortuna's clients.
In addition to his practice in New York, Mr. Owen maintains an active practice in Florida where he offers services to Allyn & Fortuna's clients.
Job Titles:
- Associate With
- Writer to the
Megan J. Muoio has been a litigation associate with Allyn & Fortuna LLP since 2006. Ms. Muoio has successfully represented a wide range of clients, from national corporations to small New York businesses, in state and federal courts in New York and New Jersey. She has briefed and argued appeals in the New York State appellate courts and the United States Second Circuit Court of Appeals. Ms. Muoio also has experience representing clients before administrative tribunals and before mediators and arbitrators in New York.
Ms. Muoio concentrates her litigation practice in the areas of employment law, contract disputes, construction litigation, real estate litigation and transactions, and intellectual property issues. She has experience handling complex employment law and commercial issues, and clients frequently call on her to provide business-focused solutions to their litigation problems. Ms. Muoio also counsels clients with an eye toward preemptive resolution of common business disputes through careful drafting of documents and agreements.
Megan Muoio was born in Marlton, New Jersey. Ms. Muoio was awarded her B.A., magna cum laude, from Gettysburg College in 2001, where she was a double-major in Political Science and Women's Studies. She is a member of Alpha Phi Omega and Phi Beta Kappa. Ms. Muoio earned her J.D. from Boston University School of Law in 2004. During law school, Ms. Muoio was a member of the Boston University School of Law Civil Litigation Clinic and served as a legal intern for Associate Justice Scott L. Kafker of the Massachusetts Appeals Court.
Ms. Muoio is also a contributing writer to the Allyn & Fortuna's blog on employment law development and emerging legal issues.
Job Titles:
- Partner
- Founder and Managing Partner of the Law Firm
Nicholas Fortuna is founder and managing partner of the law firm Allyn & Fortuna LLP. He concentrates in complex commercial litigation, corporate litigation and employment litigation. Mr. Fortuna has a diverse practice encompassing a broad range of clients, including Fortune 500 companies, nationwide retailers, major manufacturers, biotech firms, banks, restaurant chains, construction industry professionals, regional and family-owned businesses and non-profits.
He advises companies on a wide range of issues including litigation, corporate transactions and employment law. He is an experienced trial and appellate lawyer and stands ready to represent companies in a full range of suits that can arise. Clients rely on him for advice on their most sensitive and critical litigations. Mr. Fortuna also advises these clients on a range of issues such as preventive strategies to avoid litigation.
With more than 30 years of practice, Mr. Fortuna has litigated cases before juries and judges in federal and state courts, argued cases before federal and state appellate courts, and handled matters before administrative tribunals and federal, state, and municipal regulatory agencies. He is always lead trial counsel in defense of his clients.
Job Titles:
- Partner
- Member of the New York City Bar Association
- Writer
Paula Lopez joined Allyn & Fortuna LLP in 2005 and became a partner of the firm in 2013. She focuses her practice on employment law, complex civil litigation matters and administrative and regulatory law.
While at Allyn & Fortuna, Ms. Lopez has litigated and advised clients on a variety of legal issues ranging from employment disputes, corporate governance, corporate disputes, and the arbitrability of disputes. Ms. Lopez's litigation experience includes serving as trial and appellate counsel in federal and state courts. As a result of her extensive experience and superior skills in researching, writing and analyzing intricate legal issues, Ms. Lopez has a stellar record of formulating successful litigation strategies on behalf of the firm's clients. She has defeated claims and avoided the delays and expense of lengthy trials through the submission of written motions and briefs.
Professional Activities: Ms. Lopez is a member of the New York City Bar Association, New York State Bar Association and New York County Lawyer's Association. She has designed and given presentations on Developing and Implementing Social Media Policies in Compliance with the NLRB to trade groups.
Other Activities: Ms. Lopez is a contributing writer to the firm's on-line bulletin on employment law and emerging legal issues, www.allynfortuna.com.
Ying Cao, Esq. is Of Counsel to Allyn & Fortuna LLP as of 2016. Ms. Cao has extensive experience in national and international corporate transactional matters ranging from structuring multinational companies, cross border investments and related regulatory considerations, to negotiating and drafting contracts and resolving commercial disputes. Ms. Cao's transactional experience also includes commercial real estate transactions and commercial lease negotiations, as well as experience in use variance applications and the hearing process.
In recent years, Ms. Cao has expanded her practice into the area of investment immigration, successfully representing several Chinese investors in conducting due diligence of EB-5 regional center projects, analyzing risks, guiding clients in the preparation of source of funds documents, and preparing and submitting applications to United States Citizenship and Immigration Services. Ms. Cao also represents clients headquartered in China, India and Pakistan in forming U.S. subsidiaries and navigating the immigration process necessary for obtaining L-1 visas for intra-company executive transferees or transferees with specialized knowledge to work in their U.S. subsidiaries. Some of the other business visas Ms. Cao represents clients in obtaining include H-1B work visas for employees of hi-tech startup companies and EB-1 immigration visas or O-1 nonimmigrant work visas for clients with extraordinary ability in the fields of sciences, sports and business.
Ms. Cao was born and grew up in Beijing, China and can advise clients in both English and Chinese. In addition to her work as Of Counsel to Allyn & Fortuna, Ms. Cao is the founder of Ying Cao Law LLC and maintains an active practice in New Jersey. Ms. Cao previously worked at Sullivan & Cromwell LLP, Pryor Cashman LLP and Goodwin Procter LLP. Ms. Cao provides pro bono legal services to several New Jersey non-profit organizations on corporate matters.