PITTA & BAIONE - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Founding Partner
- Partner
- Principal of a 9 / 11
CHRISTOPHER J. BAIONE is a nationally recognized New York City-based 9/11 lawyer and founding partner of Pitta & Baione LLP. Christopher is the only principal of a 9/11 firm who has devoted his entire professional legal career to representing clients before the federal September 11th Victim Compensation Fund. Christopher meets clients in the firm's Manhattan, Brooklyn, Staten Island, and Albany offices as well as their homes or in hospitals as situations oftentimes require. Super Lawyers has awarded Christopher NY Metro's Rising Stars for 4 consecutive years…2018, 2019, 2020 & 2021. Christopher has also been awarded-the Client's Choice Award from Avvo for 2015 & 2016 and recognized in Best Lawyers as Ones to Watch.
Christopher is a proud New Yorker who was born in Brooklyn and raised in Staten Island. He recalls all too well looking up at the brightwork lights atop the Fresh Kills Landfill two miles from his home where the remains of over one thousand 9/11 victims were identified by responders who sifted through debris for months. He remembers his neighbors - active and retired NYPD police officers, FDNY firefighters, and DSNY sanitation workers - returning home from Ground Zero and the Fresh Kills Landfill with clothes covered in dust and eyes that had seen more than their mouths could ever speak.
Years later, Christopher witnessed firsthand the 9/11-toxins exposure epidemic as those same neighbors began developing respiratory illnesses, lung diseases, cancer, and other conditions. He remembers feeling that their plight was eerily similar to that of his namesake, FDNY Lieutenant Christopher J. Baione, who died from cancer attributed to inadequate safety regulations and equipment during the infamous New York Telephone Company Fire. Christopher firmly believes that his clients, like his grandfather, were wronged by the government and that it is now his responsibility to fight for their rights - and for the rights of the entire 9/11 community.
As co-manager of the firm's September 11th Victim Compensation Fund practice, Christopher determines eligibility, establishes and proves damages, develops strategies to maximize awards, appears at evidentiary hearings, forecasts economic losses, reviews VCF loss calculations, and argues appeals for increased compensation. During his career as a 9/11 lawyer, Christopher has successfully recovered tens of millions of dollars for clients from the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund including $2M for an NYPD Police Officer suffering from disabling brain cancer and $1M for the family of a Local 282 Teamster who suffered from disabling lung cancer.
Christopher regularly lectures to unions and community groups about 9/11 toxins exposure and the various federal 9/11 benefit programs. He has been featured in NBC, the Staten Island Advance, the Chief Leader, LaborPress, 530AM The Mission, 970AM The Answer, World Journal, News India Times, and Sing Tao.
Christopher graduated magna cum laude in cursu honorum from the Peter J. Tobin College of Business at St. John's University with a degree in finance. While attending college, he worked at international law firm Holland & Knight LLP under the direction and mentorship of Frank G. Sinatra, a government relations attorney and bankruptcy trustee. Christopher earned his Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree from Seton Hall University School of Law where he was awarded a Presidential Scholarship and Public Interest Fellowship. During law school, Christopher interned at the Kings County District Attorney's Office supporting prosecutors in trial preparation and with New York State Supreme Court Justice Anthony J. Cutrona assisting with courtroom proceedings and pretrial conferences in the Mental Hygiene Court.
Education
Seton Hall University School of Law, Newark, New Jersey
JAMES P. MOLINARO is the former three-term Borough President of Staten Island and served in government for over 40 years. During his tenure as Borough President, Mr. Molinaro commissioned the "Postcards" memorial on the St. George Esplanade honoring the 275 Staten Island residents killed in the attacks on September 11th. Mr. Molinaro relies on his extensive government and community outreach experience to help raise awareness about health and compensation benefits available under the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act.
Mr. Molinaro is the former three-term Borough President of Staten Island and served in government for over 40 years.
Lian manages the firm's probate, administration, elder law, trust, and estate planning practice areas.
MATTHEW J. BAIONE is an internationally recognized New York city-based 9/11 lawyer. Matthew is the youngest founding partner of Pitta & Baione LLP, and the youngest principal attorney of any 9/11 compensation firm in the nation. Super Lawyers recognized Matthew for his success as a top rated 9/11 lawyer in 2018 and 2019, and Avvo has awarded him the Clients Choice Award in 2017, 2018, and 2019.
Moving with deliberate speed has come to define his career: Matthew graduated as the youngest member of his graduating class in both college and law school. Clients have commented on the urgency with which he practices - "the most professional, efficient, and speedy process that I've ever experienced in my life"…"substantial settlement with unbelievable speed"…"proactive, involved, energetic, open and compassionate"…"wise beyond his years."
Matthew manages Pitta & Baione LLP's appellate practice and exigent circumstances division. In his appellate practice, he applies his background in litigation to fight for justice on behalf of his clients. Appeal hearings are sometimes necessary to establish eligibility for certain 9/11-related conditions, prove sufficient exposure to 9/11 toxins, unravel nuances in VCF policy, and explain lost earnings. A few of Matthew's appellate victories include successfully defeating an enforced retirement age wrongfully applied to a New York City mechanic, which resulted in an award of over $550,000; successfully establishing exposure to 9/11 toxins on behalf of a worker who was caught in the dust cloud after narrowly escaping the World Trade Center before it collapsed; and successfully reviving a claim on behalf of an area resident suffering from 9/11 colon cancer which was previously denied due to a VCF filing deadline, among many others.
As manager of the Firm's exigent circumstances division, Matthew represents claimants who require immediate attention, careful prosecution, and swift justice like those battling aggressive 9/11 cancers and other severe illnesses or who are experiencing extreme financial hardship due to their conditions. Victories on behalf of VCF claimants in the exigent circumstances division include an award of over $3,000,000 on behalf of a disabled financial executive suffering from metastatic breast cancer, which was increased from $1,000,000 after a successful amendment; an award of over $1,700,000 for a disabled New York State court reporter battling brain cancer, and an award of over $1,100,000 for a disabled Local 94 operating engineer suffering from late stage pulmonary fibrosis.
In addition to prosecuting claims, Matthew serves as the Firm's liaison to the VCF - regularly meeting and conferencing with VCF staff attorneys to discuss and resolve client issues. During the VCF's 2019 Funding Crisis, Matthew met with Special Master Rupa Bhattacharyya and Deputy Special Master Jordy Feldman to discuss policy proposals and their potential impact on the Firm's clients and the 9/11 community at large. Matthew also worked with Staten Island Congressmember Max Rose to organize a town hall about the 2019 Funding Crisis, which featured VCF and WTC Health Program leadership.
Matthew regularly lectures to unions and community groups about 9/11 toxins exposure and the various federal 9/11 benefit programs. He has been featured in publications and news outlets such as NBC, the Staten Island Advance, Grit Post, LaborPress, 970AM The Answer, World Journal, Epoch Times, and Sing Tao. During the 2019 VCF Funding Crisis, Matthew co-authored with the Firm's Senior Advisor and former Staten Island Borough President Jim Molinaro, an op-ed in the Staten Island Advance calling on Congress to pass the Never Forget the Heroes Act.
Prior to founding Pitta & Baione LLP, Matthew practiced complex real estate, construction, and commercial litigation at a prominent midtown law firm while simultaneously serving as of counsel to a personal injury and employment litigation firm. During this time, Matthew prepared arguments for a precedent-setting decision in the Court of Appeals, the highest court in the State of New York. In addition to practicing in the civil sector, Matthew worked on both sides of the criminal bar. Matthew started his legal career assessing preliminary evidence and drafting criminal complaints at the Kings County District Attorney's Office. Matthew later worked at the world-renowned Innocence Project under Vanessa Potkin, Director of Post-Conviction Litigation, where he helped exonerate a wrongfully convicted client using DNA evidence.
Driven by a will to practice law, Matthew graduated St. John's University cum laude in cursu honorum in just two and a half years, with a B.A. in Social Studies, Philosophy minor. Matthew's mentor and thesis advisor Professor Joseph Bongiorno, Esq. sponsored him for induction into the Phi Alpha Theta history honor society. Matthew received his law degree with a concentration in constitutional law from Yeshiva University's Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law as a Dean's Scholar and graduated as the youngest member of his class. While in law school, Matthew served as Staff Editor of the Arts & Entertainment Law Journal where he researched constitutional law.
Education
Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, New York, New York
Doctor of Jurisprudence, Constitutional Law concentration, 2014
St. John's University, Staten Island, New York
Bachelor of Arts, Social Studies, minor in Philosophy, 2011
As the youngest founding partner and the youngest principal attorney of any 9/11 compensation firm in the nation, Matthew manages the firm's appellate practice and exigent circumstances division.
SALVATORE J. CASSANO is the former Commissioner of the New York City Fire Department. Mr. Cassano, a Staten Island resident, became an FDNY member in 1969 and served in every uniformed rank, including the highest-Chief of Department. In the aftermath of 9/11, Cassano was immediately promoted Chief of Operations to rebuild the department. Mr. Cassano serves as Senior Advisor, advising the firm on proof of presence at Ground Zero and community outreach.
Mr. Cassano led the United States' largest fire department with more than 16,000 fire, EMS and civilian members, and an annual budget of $1.6 billion. He spent more than 44 years in the FDNY and held every uniformed rank prior to his appointment by Mayor Bloomberg in January of 2010.
Mr. Cassano served as the FDNY's Chief of Department - the highest-ranking uniformed officer - from 2006 through 2010, overseeing many of the agency's most important bureaus including Fire and EMS Operations, Training, Safety, Fire Prevention and Communications. From 2001 to 2006, he served as Chief of Operations - a position to which he was appointed immediately after Sept. 11, 2001.
Both as Chief of Operations and Chief of Department, Mr. Cassano played a crucial role in rebuilding the Department in the wake of Sept. 11 and the loss of 343 members of the Department. In the years that followed, more than 6,800 new firefighters were hired and more than 6,000 others were promoted to various officer ranks as the Department went through a difficult but remarkable resurgence. Under his leadership, the FDNY became better equipped, trained and prepared with the result being the lowest number of annual fatalities from fires in the history of the Department.
Prior to joining the FDNY, Mr. Cassano served in the U.S. Army from October 1965 through July 1967 and was deployed to Vietnam in September 1966.
While a firefighter, he attended John Jay College of Criminal Justice and received a Bachelor of Science degree in Fire Science. Mr. Cassano also received an Honorary Doctor of Laws Degree from St. John's University in May 2013. In September 2009, Commissioner Cassano was awarded France's highest decoration, the Légion d'honneur, by French President Nicolas Sarkozy.
Education
John Jay College of Criminal Justice, B.S. Fire Science
New York City College of Technology, A.A.S. Fire Protection Technology
Mr. Cassano is the former Commissioner of the New York City Fire Department. Mr. Cassano was appointed Chief of Operations immediately after 9/11/01.
Sidrah is a 9/11 compensation attorney who has dedicated her entire professional legal career to the 9/11 community by advocating on behalf of claimants to the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund.
Job Titles:
- Tunnel to Towers Foundation, Board Member
VINCENT F. PITTA is the managing partner of Pitta & Baione LLP. Throughout his nearly forty year career, Mr. Pitta has made it his life's mission to ensure that working men and women can earn a living to support their families, are treated fairly, have safe workplaces, and maintain benefits that allow them to retire with dignity. Given his life's mission, Mr. Pitta began his advocacy on behalf of the 9/11 victims immediately following the terrorist attacks. Mr. Pitta takes pride in assisting his clients to obtain health care and victim compensation benefits under the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act.
Vincent, a lifelong champion for workers' rights, has been advocating on behalf of 9/11 victims and their families since the immediate aftermath of 9/11. He currently represents over 50 labor unions within New York State and New York City.
VITO R. PITTA is a founding partner of Pitta & Baione LLP. Mr. Pitta concentrates his efforts in legislative advocacy on behalf of 9/11 victims. He routinely monitors federal, state, and local governmental action which might impact 9/11 health and compensation. Mr. Pitta also conducts community outreach to promote awareness of available health and compensation benefits.
A native New Yorker, Mr. Pitta vividly recalls attending high school in Manhattan during the 9/11 terrorist attacks and the recovery efforts. While commuting from Staten Island through a wrecked downtown to attend Manhattan's Regis High School, Mr. Pitta was inspired to volunteer with The Twin Towers Fund, where he helped issue payments to the families of 9/11 victims. Established by former Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, the fund issued $160 million in total private benefit payments to the families of 9/11 victims.
In addition to his work with Pitta & Baione LLP, Mr. Pitta serves as Member of Pitta Bishop & Del Giorno LLC, a government relations and consulting firm. In that capacity, Mr. Pitta advocates on behalf of private- and public-sector labor union, not-for profit, M/WBE, and corporate clients. Pitta Bishop & Del Giorno LLC, which represents the New York City Detectives' Endowment Association, the New York City Uniformed Sanitationmen's Association, as well as dozens of other labor unions whose members were 9/11 first responders and recovery workers, advocated on behalf of 9/11 victims to the federal government in the years leading up to the 2015 reauthorization of the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act.
Mr. Pitta is also a Partner at Pitta LLP, a firm whose practice consists primarily of traditional union-side labor law, employment law, employee benefits law, and campaign finance compliance law. The firm counts more than forty local and international labor unions as its clients. Mr. Pitta primarily advises the firm's political campaign and political action committee clients with respect to federal, state, and local campaign finance laws.
Mr. Pitta is a graduate of New York University's Gallatin School of Individualized Study, where he was a Lewis Rudin Scholar for the entirety of his undergraduate career. In 2008, he received a B.A. in Interdisciplinary Study, having concentrated in law, language, and linguistics. Having graduated summa cum laude, Mr. Pitta was a Founders' Day Award recipient and Honors Scholar. In 2011, Mr. Pitta received his J.D., cum laude, at Brooklyn Law School, where he was a Carlswell Scholar.
Education
Brooklyn Law School, Brooklyn, New York
J.D., Doctor of Jurisprudence, 2011
New York University, Gallatin School of Individualized Study, New York, New York
B.A., Bachelor of Arts, 2008
Regis High School, New York, NY
Vito concentrates his efforts in legislative advocacy on behalf of 9/11 victims. He routinely monitors federal, state, and local governmental action which might impact 9/11 health and compensation benefits.