Bond, Schoeneck & King to combine with smaller NYC–area firm, adding 15 attorneys

NEW YORK, N.Y. — Bond, Schoeneck & King, PLLC, a Syracuse–based law firm with 250 lawyers across more than 10 offices, says that it is combining with a smaller, boutique law firm in the greater New York City area.

Effective April 1, the 155-year-old firm of Putney, Twombly, Hall & Hirson — which has offices in Manhattan, Garden City (Long Island), and Red Bank, New Jersey — will join Bond, bringing 15 attorneys and five or six support staff.

Putney will be vacating its space in Manhattan and Garden City and moving into Bond’s existing offices in those locations, respectively. Additionally, Putney’s office in Red Bank, New Jersey will give Bond its first office in that state.

Partners at Bond, Schoeneck & King and Putney, Twombly, Hall & Hirson were familiar with each other after competing against one another for many years. That helped make this combination opportunity rise to the top from among many offers of interest the Putney law firm says it has received.

“In the last 30 years, we have been approached by multiple firms [about a combination]. Some of them were not acceptable to us because they had limited practices. We wanted a firm that was a full-service,” Dan Murphy, long-time managing partner of Putney, tells CNYBJ in an interview. “There is also a long tradition and friendship between Putney and Bond that in my case goes back over 40 years through various associations. We’ve always thought very highly of Bond.”

The commonality of practice groups — both firms are well known for their labor and employment practices — and office locations also created a good fit, says Murphy, who adds that he is a graduate of Le Moyne College in Syracuse.

Kevin Bernstein, chair of Bond’s management committee, says that in addition to the compatibility of culture and law practices, the combination allows the Bond firm to expand Putney’s portfolio of law services.

“We have more that Putney can offer to its clients. We have immigration lawyers, we have OSHA lawyers, we have intellectual-property lawyers, we have real-estate lawyers, we have cybersecurity lawyers, which is a big issue these days. You know, we have so much more that it’s something I believe combined will give benefits to clients of Putney,” Bernstein says.

Bond, Schoeneck & King currently has 14 attorneys and 7 support staff in Garden City and 18 lawyers and 7 support staff in New York City.

Bond has eight offices in New York state, as well as offices in Boston, the Kansas City area, and Naples, Florida.