Steven J. Shanker - Home Page - McElroy, Deutsch, …€¦ · STEVEN J. SHANKER received his...
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STEVEN J. SHANKER received his Bachelor of Arts degree in 1994 from Lehigh University and his Juris Doctorate, cum laude, in 1997 from Western New England University, School of Law. He began his legal career as an Assistant Corporation Counsel for the Law Department of the City of New York. Mr. Shanker has become the leading lawyer in the taxi and limousine industry in New York City by representing some of the biggest and best car services and luxury limousine bases in New York City. No other lawyer in New York City is as steeped in the legal and operational issues that affect the ground transportation industry. Mr. Shanker’s practice focuses on transportation law, counseling clients on a broad range of matters including regulatory compliance, litigation, strategic business planning, regulatory due diligence, administrative law and public policy. Within this area, Mr. Shanker coordinates representation on a wide array of legal matters and services representing ground transportation and related businesses entities. Such include, but are not limited to corporate formation, trademark protection, contract drafting and review, workers’ compensation defense, asset and purchase agreements, personal injury defense, risk management and other commercial litigation. Mr. Shanker is able to effectively represent businesses within the for-hire transportation industry by understanding the diversity of the industry as well as the multiple means by which each company operates. Mr. Shanker is the trusted advisor to many large livery and black car bases. Similar to in-house legal counsel of large corporations, Mr. Shanker has become intimately familiar with the business methods and objectives of his clients. Accordingly, when clients make business decisions, they seek Mr. Shanker’s legal counsel to proactively consider possible ramifications and consequences. Mr. Shanker’s forte is in the area of creating and maintaining the business model by which his clients operate, many of which utilize independent contractors. Mr. Shanker knows that there is a vast difference in the obligations and liabilities of business in utilizing employees versus independent contractors. Mr. Shanker’s work is aimed at ensuring that his clients business model can withstand scrutiny by any governmental agency, minimizing the risk of worker misclassification and that the substance of the relationship equals the form. To that end, Mr. Shanker has never hesitated to defend his clients in court to ensure that their use of independent contractors withstands any and all assaults. Mr. Shanker is the New York City attorney who successfully appealed, what has become, the seminal cases in New York on Steven J. Shanker Counsel Office: New York, NY 212-483-9490 212-483-9129 [email protected] © 2017 McElroy, Deutsch, Mulvaney & Carpenter, LLP All rights reserved.
Transcript of Steven J. Shanker - Home Page - McElroy, Deutsch, …€¦ · STEVEN J. SHANKER received his...
STEVEN J. SHANKER received his Bachelor of Arts degree in 1994 from LehighUniversity and his Juris Doctorate, cum laude, in 1997 from Western New EnglandUniversity, School of Law. He began his legal career as an Assistant Corporation Counselfor the Law Department of the City of New York.
Mr. Shanker has become the leading lawyer in the taxi and limousine industry in New YorkCity by representing some of the biggest and best car services and luxury limousine bases inNew York City. No other lawyer in New York City is as steeped in the legal andoperational issues that affect the ground transportation industry. Mr. Shanker’s practicefocuses on transportation law, counseling clients on a broad range of matters includingregulatory compliance, litigation, strategic business planning, regulatory due diligence,administrative law and public policy. Within this area, Mr. Shanker coordinatesrepresentation on a wide array of legal matters and services representing groundtransportation and related businesses entities. Such include, but are not limited to corporateformation, trademark protection, contract drafting and review, workers’ compensationdefense, asset and purchase agreements, personal injury defense, risk management and othercommercial litigation.
Mr. Shanker is able to effectively represent businesses within the for-hire transportationindustry by understanding the diversity of the industry as well as the multiple means bywhich each company operates. Mr. Shanker is the trusted advisor to many large livery andblack car bases. Similar to in-house legal counsel of large corporations, Mr. Shanker hasbecome intimately familiar with the business methods and objectives of his clients.Accordingly, when clients make business decisions, they seek Mr. Shanker’s legal counselto proactively consider possible ramifications and consequences.
Mr. Shanker’s forte is in the area of creating and maintaining the business model by whichhis clients operate, many of which utilize independent contractors. Mr. Shanker knows thatthere is a vast difference in the obligations and liabilities of business in utilizing employeesversus independent contractors. Mr. Shanker’s work is aimed at ensuring that his clientsbusiness model can withstand scrutiny by any governmental agency, minimizing the risk ofworker misclassification and that the substance of the relationship equals the form. To thatend, Mr. Shanker has never hesitated to defend his clients in court to ensure that their use ofindependent contractors withstands any and all assaults. Mr. Shanker is the New York Cityattorney who successfully appealed, what has become, the seminal cases in New York on
Steven J. ShankerCounselOffice: New York, NY
212-483-9490
212-483-9129
© 2017 McElroy, Deutsch, Mulvaney & Carpenter, LLP All rights reserved.
the issue of the use of independent contractors in the for-hire transportation business model.Such cases include:
Barak v. Chen, 87 A.D.3d 955 (2nd Dept., 2011);Chaouni v. Ali, 105 A.D.3d 424 (1st Dept., 2013)Castro-Quesada v. Tuapanta, 148 A.D.3d 978 (2nd Dept., 2017)
Mr. Shanker also practices in the area of employment law, advising employers concerningemployment practices, the hiring and discharge of employees, employment discriminationlaws and general corporate personnel and policy matters.
Mr. Shanker is Counsel for The New York Independent Livery Drivers Benefit Fund OnJuly 26, 2008, Governor Paterson signed legislation that created the Livery Drivers BenefitFund. The Fund provides Workers' Compensation benefits for serious injuries and crimescommitted against drivers dispatched by qualifying independent livery bases. The LiveryFund Law has helped solve a workers’ compensation problem that has spanned threedecades. For many years, the livery industry has posed a dilemma for the workers’compensation system, due to many gray areas associated with the law regarding the liveryindustry. An important step towards resolving these issues was taken with the enactment ofChapter 392 of the Laws of 2008. That statute allowed livery bases in New York City,Westchester and Nassau Counties, to qualify as “independent” bases if they met certaincriteria typically used by the courts to determine independent contractor status. Specifically,the statute stated that independent bases would pay into the Fund which would purchasespecial coverage that would provide workers’ compensation benefits for the most seriousinjuries, including those resulting from crimes and deaths.
Mr. Shanker is also Counsel for The Livery Round Table, Inc. This not-for-profitcorporation was formally established by members of the Livery/Community Car Serviceindustry in order to pool their resources and address common issues. With over 400Community/ Livery Car bases and over 22,000 affiliated vehicles registered with the NYCTLC, this is the largest segment of the For-Hire-Vehicle industry. An avalanche of newlegal issues has hit the industry in recent years and as a result, the Livery segment of theindustry needed to coordinate its efforts in order to act as a coordinator for the flowof information, to exchange ideas, explain needs and to assist each other when industryissues present themselves.
Education
Western New England College (J.D. 1997) Lehigh University (B.A. 1994)
Admissions
Commonwealth of MassachusettsState of New JerseyState of New YorkSupreme Court of the United StatesU.S. District Court, District of New Jersey
© 2017 McElroy, Deutsch, Mulvaney & Carpenter, LLP All rights reserved.
U.S. District Court, District of New JerseyU.S. District Court, EDNYU.S. District Court, SDNY
© 2017 McElroy, Deutsch, Mulvaney & Carpenter, LLP All rights reserved.
