Legal Professionals
James G. McCarney
Mr. McCarney is a native New Yorker and founder of the Firm. His experience melds together a unique blend of AmLaw100 power & depth with boutique firm dexterity & finesse. Mr. McCarney spearheaded successful New York office initiatives as a partner and practice group leader at both Howrey LLP and Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLP where he brought experience to bear on behalf of Fortune 500 and other large multi-national clients. Previously he co-founded the premier white-collar criminal and civil litigation boutique, Engel, McCarney & Kenney, where he joined forces with two veteran prosecutors from the United States Attorney’s Office in Manhattan. Mr. McCarney has handled a wide variety of civil and criminal litigations in federal and state courts across the country, as well as arbitrations in both the U.S. and Europe. Prosecuting and defending claims on behalf of both a domestic and international clientèle, he served as lead trial and appellate counsel in the wide range of matters which give rise to the Firm’s current practice areas.
Read MoreEducation
New York University School of Law
Juris Doctor, 1981
NYU Law Review
University of Virginia
B.A., 1978
Echols Scholar
Woodrow Wilson Honors
Chaminade High School
Court Admissions
- U.S. Supreme Court
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Second Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Third Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Fourth Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Seventh Circuit
- U.S. Court of Federal Claims
- U.S. District Court, District of Columbia
- U.S. District Court, District of New Jersey
- U.S. District Court, Eastern District of New York
- U.S. District Court, Northern District of New York
- U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York
Bar Admissions
- New York
- New Jersey
Professional Memberships
- Federal Bar Council
- New York City Bar Association
- New York State Bar Association
Speeches
- City Bar Center for CLE, “Document Retention – Ethical & Legal Practical Advice.” Presented with Professor Elizabeth Goldman (Cardozo Law School), Steven G. Rawlings (SEC-NY) and Joana Goldenstein (KPMG).
Honorarium
- Super Lawyers Magazine, cited for General, Securities and International Litigation
Eliot R. Clauss
Mr. Clauss is both a litigator and a business lawyer, with a special focus on US-China matters. As a litigator, Mr. Clauss has been involved in the insurance defense business for more than twenty years handling a wide variety of claims including products liability, medical malpractice, general liability, advertising injury, trademark and patent infringement, maritime and insurance coverage.
Read MoreHe has resolved many cases through direct settlement discussions and mediation, and has tried numerous cases to verdict in the state and federal courts of New York and Connecticut. He has also represented clients before the Asian Domain Name Dispute Resolution Centre in Beijing and the Hong Kong International Arbitration Centre.
As a business lawyer, Mr. Clauss has represented both emerging and well established public and private companies in such fields as aviation, hotels and hospitality, pharmaceuticals, fashion, textile and industrial manufacturing, shipping and transportation. Much of Mr. Clauss’ work involves assisting companies in developing and structuring business entities and transactions in both the United States and China. Mr. Clauss began his career as a Special Assistant United States Attorney in the Southern District of New York on the Organized Crime Strike Force.
He then spent approximately five years as a corporate and securities attorney with Manhattan law firms Davis & Cox and Jacobs, Persinger & Parker before joining Peltz & Walker as a trial lawyer, where he focused on commercial litigation including complex insurance, professional liability, products liability, civil racketeering and intellectual property cases. He left to establish his own practice in 1998 to focus on litigation, intellectual property and US-China cross-border matters.
Mr. Clauss has lectured on professional liability and risk management issues for professional organizations and insurance companies in the United States and in China and has been a commentator for CNN and the BBC.
Education
New York Law School, Juris Doctor
University of Wisconsin, B.A.
Court Admissions
- United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
- United States Court of International Trade
- U.S. District Courts for the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York
- U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut
Bar Admissions
- New York
- Connecticut
Honorarium
- New York City Bar Association
Member and Former Vice-Chairman of its Asian Affairs Committee - United States-China Chamber of Commerce
Former President - China Chamber of Commerce in the U.S.A.
Former Senior Adviser - American Chamber of Commerce-Shanghai
Member
Cliodhna J. Duggan
Ms. Duggan joins the Firm from her native Ireland where she received a Law Degree from University College Cork. Her previous work experience with American Express in Sydney, Australia, coupled with her academic focus on inter-jurisdictional commercial and litigation matters, serves to compliment the Firm’s multi-disciplinary international expertise.
Read MoreEducation
- University College Cork
- Bachelor of Civil Law, 2018
Professional Memberships
- New York City Bar Association
- New York State Bar Association
Languages
- Irish
Karina Podkladneva
Ms. Podkladneva joins the Firm from Ireland’s innovative tech law firm Mason Hayes & Curran. After receiving top honors at Ireland’s leading law school, she distinguished herself yet again in Europe’s premier international graduate law program before embarking upon her legal career. Bringing a unique blend of legal education and multicultural experience to the Firm, she strives to focus her broad perspective through an American lens to best suit our clients’ needs.
Read MoreEducation
Trinity College Dublin
LL.B. in Law, 2014
All Ireland Scholarship
St. Louis Secondary School Scholarship
Law Society, Amnesty International Board Member
University of Amsterdam
LL.M. in International and European Private Law, 2017
Education Committee Board Member
Professional Memberships
- New York City Bar Association
- New York State Bar Association
Languages
Russian
Publication
European Corporate Law (3rd ed. 2017) (Legal Editor)