NEW YORK - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Adjunct Professor at New York Law School
César de Castro is an experienced litigator whose practice focuses on criminal defense, corporate investigations, commercial litigation, and appellate litigation. He regularly appears in New York federal courts as well as the criminal and civil courts of the State of New York. César is an active trial lawyer and has successfully defended high-profile clients including a full acquittal in the largest tax shelter prosecution in United States' history. César commands respect from both federal and state prosecutors and the judges that he appears before. He has a reputation that is trustworthy and sincere, but most importantly, a passionate and tireless advocate for his clients. César's prior experiences as a judicial law clerk and prosecutor as well as his experience in private practice allow him to zealously and effectively represent his clients.
From 2000-2002, César served as a law clerk in the Staff Attorneys' Office for the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit where he received the 2002 Sustained Excellence Award. César then served as an Assistant District Attorney under Robert M. Morgenthau in the New York County District Attorney's Office for more than six years, working first in the Trial Division and later in the Racket's Bureau where he conducted long-term investigations into organized criminal activity, including, enterprise corruption, political corruption, bid-rigging, schemes to defraud, and money-laundering.
After leaving the Manhattan District Attorney's office, César joined the litigation department of Tarter Krinsky & Drogin LLP where he litigated civil and criminal matters in the Federal and State Courts. He then joined Lankler Carragher & Horwitz, a preeminent New York City boutique firm where he litigated complex and high profile civil and criminal matters.
César is also an adjunct professor at New York Law School where he teaches a course entitled "The Investigation, Prosecution, and Defense of Today's Organized and White Collar Crime Cases." From 2004-2010, he taught first-year law students the fundamentals of legal writing, including appellate brief writing and oral advocacy.
Job Titles:
- Trial Preparation Assistant / Paralegal
Kimberly Tabares joined The Law Firm of Cesar de Castro, P.C. in 2020. Ms. Tabares is involved in all aspects of each of the firm's matters. Ms. Tabares works alongside Mr. de Castro and the rest of the firm's legal team, communicating with clients and their families both inside and outside the courtroom. Ms. Tabares assists counsel with review of voluminous case discovery and evidence and assists counsel to prepare matters for trial.
Seth H. Agata is an attorney with more than 40 years experience encompassing government ethics, public sector labor law, criminal law and general litigation.
Immediately before joining the Law Offices of César de Castro, he served as Executive Director and Counsel to the Police Benevolent Association of New York State, a major New York state public sector labor union representing police officers employed by the State University of New York, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation and the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation.
He has also served as special counsel and founding co-chair of the Lobbying Law and Public Ethics Practice in the international law firm of Jenner & Block.
Before returning to the private sector, he was appointed Executive Director of the New York State Joint Commission on Public Ethics (JCOPE) where he was responsible for administering lobbying and public ethics laws in New York State. As Executive Director, JCOPE promulgated the first comprehensive lobbying regulations in New York State history, conducted numerous ethics and lobbying law violations and revamped post-employment "revolving door" restrictions.
Following nomination by New York's Governor and confirmation by the New York State Senate, he was appointed Chair of the New York State Public Employment Relations Board, New York's neutral regulatory agency charged with regulating labor relations primarily, although not exclusively, in the public sector. Mr. Agata authored decisions, oversaw litigation, supervised staff and managed the administrative and policy-making aspects of the agency.
In the Executive Chamber of the Governor of New York, Mr. Agata held a variety of roles including Assistant Counsel and First Assistant Counsel to the Governor before being appointed as Acting Counsel to the Governor. In that position, he was the Governor's chief legal and ethics officer, oversaw policy in dozens of state agencies, drafted and negotiated legislation and the state budget and advised the Governor on selecting judges to the New York Court of Appeals and to other courts and on clemencies and pardons.
Before joining the Governor's staff, Mr. Agata held junior and senior legal and policy positions for the New York State Assembly Majority where, among other things, he helped negotiate and draft major amendments to New York State's Penal Law and Criminal Procedure Law including reforming the so-called "Rockefeller Drug Laws" and establishing the Office of Indigent Legal Services. He also served as Counsel for Investigations in the Office of New York State Comptroller and as an assistant district attorney for Columbia County, New York where he tried felony and misdemeanor cases, argued appeals and presented cases to grand juries. He began his career in private law practice in New York City and continued in private practice representing criminal defendants and litigants in Columbia County, New York, before entering New York State government with the State Assembly.
He is a co-author of The History of the New York Court of Appeals, 1932-2003 (Columbia U. Press, 2006) and has spoken and written on topics related to constitutional rights, public policy and ethics. He is a contributing author to Lefkowitz on Public Sector Labor and Employment Law (4th Edition, New York State Bar Association). He is a longtime member of the American Bar Association as well as the New York State Bar Association in which he serves on a number of committees including the Association's select Special Committee to Examine the Selection of Judges for the New York Court of Appeals. He is also an adjunct faculty member at Albany Law School's graduate program where he teaches government ethics in its Government Affairs and Advocacy Program.
He is a 1979 graduate of Cornell University (School of Industrial and Labor Relations) and a 1982 graduate of the Cornell Law School.
Shannon McManus joined The Law Firm of César de Castro, P.C. in 2021. He focuses his practice on state and federal criminal defense and civil litigation. Prior to joining the firm, Mr. McManus represented numerous clients in a wide range of criminal charges. A graduate of Fordham University School of Law where Mr. McManus was a member of the Brendan Moore Trial Advocacy team and Environmental Law Review journal. He received the magna cum laude Archibald R. Murray Public Service Award. Mr. McManus was also accepted into New York State's Pro Bono Scholar program, allowing him to take the bar early and practice Federal defense work prior to receiving his degree.
Valerie Gotlib practices in the areas of criminal defense, regulatory enforcement, and business litigation in both federal and state courts. Ms. Gotlib has been admitted to practice in the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York since 2010. Ms. Gotlib has worked on multiple federal cases, both criminal and civil, including multiple jury trials, and has been appointed as associate counsel in multiple Criminal Justice Act matters in the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York. Ms. Gotlib's vigorous representation has helped to secure acquittals for clients in both federal and New York State courts.
Prior to becoming Of Counsel to the The Law Firm of César de Castro, P.C., Ms. Gotlib was an associate attorney with the law firm Sher Tremonte LLP.
Ms. Gotlib's representative matters include obtaining an acquittal for a client charged with manslaughter, defending principals of a high-frequency trading firm in a federal criminal investigation of violations of the Economic Espionage Act, defending a chief investment officer in a FINRA investigation relating to the Bernard Madoff Ponzi scheme, and prosecuting a civil action arising under the Driver's Privacy Protection Act.
Ms. Gotlib previously worked for the Albany County District Attorney's Office, where she prosecuted matters in Albany Criminal Court. Ms. Gotlib also worked for the Honorable Rachel Kretser in Albany Criminal Court.
While in law school, Ms. Gotlib was employed by the New York Division of Criminal Justice Services, the state's highest law enforcement agency, where she participated in arbitrations and advised various law enforcement officials throughout New York State concerning criminal procedures and investigative techniques.
Ms. Gotlib is a graduate of Skidmore College and of Albany Law School, where she received the prestigious Dean's Scholarship for each year she attended.