News
New Jersey Accepts Rights for People in Quarantine to End Ebola Suit
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July 27, 2017
Mr. Siegel said it became clear during negotiations that if Ms. Hickox allowed the state to escape financial liability, she could do something more important: bring about systemic change.
Wounded by ‘Fearless Girl,’ Creator of ‘Charging Bull’ Wants Her to Move
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April 12, 2017
Mr. Di Modica and his lawyers did not disagree with that idea at a news conference — "None of us here are in any way not proponents of gender equality," said one of Mr. Di Modica’s lawyers, Norman Siegel, a former executive director of the New York Civil Liberties Union. They demanded that "Fearless Girl" be moved somewhere else.
BROKEN PROMISE: New York City’s Tenant Interim Lease Program And Those Left Behind
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February 26, 2017
Read a special report used to bring needed public attention to New York City’s unfulfilled commitment to provide thousands of low-income residents in the city’s Tenant Interim Lease program with cooperative ownership of their apartments and building; and persuade elected officials and community leaders to join us in insisting that the city fulfill that commitment.
Oral Nicholas Hillary Acquitted in Potsdam Boy’s Killing
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September 28, 2016
Mr. Hillary’s defense team — which featured two high-profile New York City lawyers, Norman Siegel and Earl S. Ward, drawn by the case’s notoriety — only lightly touched on the issue of race at trial, preferring to attack the prosecution’s case as a weak, circumstantial attempt to pin a gruesome murder on the wrong man.
Improving Police-Community Relations: A Joint Report from a Series of Town Hall Meetings
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October 1, 2015
Read a joint report on a series of town hall meetings taking place in Brooklyn and Manhattan, compiled by the offices of Brooklyn Borough President Eric L. Adams, Manhattan Borough President Gale A. Brewer and civil rights attorney Norman Siegel. The report focuses on the current state of police-community relations, as well as the thoughts and concerns of more than 900 New York residents who expressed their views on this important topic.
Gonzalez: Quarantined nurse Kaci Hickox is bravely fighting policy not based in science
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October 30, 2014
Civil rights lawyer Norman Siegel has defended countless victims of government abuse over the years, including people swept up in another hysterical call for health quarantines during the early days of the AIDS epidemic.
Relatives protest plan to move unidentified remains of 9/11 victims to basement repository in museum building
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May 8, 2014
Attorney Norman Siegel and loved ones of people who died in the 9/11 attacks hold a press conference Thursday to oppose the placement of unidentified human remains of victims in the basement of the 9/11 Museum at Ground Zero.
Special ed parents to DOE: Fix this bus fiasco
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September 6, 2013
A letter sent Friday to Schools Chancellor Dennis Walcott by lawyer Norman Siegel put the Department of Education on notice that students’ “persistent problems” with transportation must end.
The Aftermath of Shelby County v. Holder: Will Voting Rights Be Diminished?
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July 23, 2013
The United States Supreme Court’s recent decision, Shelby County v. Holder, struck down Section 4 of the 1965 Voting Rights Act. This decision eliminated a “preclearance” coverage formula that subjected certain jurisdictions with checkered voting rights histories to oversight by the U.S. Department of Justice. The DOJ oversight prevented these jurisdictions from instituting unfair voting laws in order to protect the rights of minority voters. The article examines Shelby v. Holder, its consequences for minority voting rights, and some possible local remedies.
A Mellower ‘Mr. Negative,’ but Still Passionate About Free Expression
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June 30, 2013
Mr. Siegel discusses the Constitution and civil rights and civil liberties. He details his yearly celebration of the Fourth of July and his tradition of reading the Constitution and all of its Amendments, as well as the Declaration of Independence, in a public park to honor the holiday and the Constitutional principles and values on which the United States was founded. He also talks about current events including the New York mayoral race, NSA surveillance and NYPD stop-and-frisk policies.
NYC Agrees to Pay More Than $230,000 After Destroying Occupy Books
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April 10, 2013
The City of New York settled a lawsuit brought to contest the seizure and destruction of books, library furnishings and equipment during the November 2013 raid of the Occupy Wall Street encampment in Zuccotti Park in New York City’s Financial District. The City agreed to pay $47,000 in damages for the books, library furnishings and equipment and $186,349 in attorneys’ fees and costs. The City acknowledged that it was “unfortunate” that the “books were damaged so as to render them unusable and additional books are unaccounted for” and that the City “exercise due care and adhere to established procedures in order to protect the legal rights of the property owners.”
Suit Settled With Occupy Wall Street Over Seizure of Library at a Park
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April 9, 2013
The City of New York and Brookfield Properties, owner of Zuccotti Park where Occupy Wall Street protests set up camp in September 2011, have agreed to pay more than $230,000 in a settlement over the destruction of books, library furnishings and equipment when the People’s Library was raided in the November eviction of the Occupiers from the park. The suit targeted the loss of about 2,800 books that were unrecovered or made unusable after confiscation by the City during the raid. The City was sued for constitutional rights violations related to the seizure and destruction.
A Letter Regarding the Controversy Over “Zero Dark Thirty”
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February 11, 2013
The recent controversy over the film “Zero Dark Thirty” implicates free expression, artistic freedom, and public policy issues that are of great concern to us.
Some Charges Dropped Against Masked Protesters
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December 11, 2012
The Manhattan district attorney’s office dismissed some of the charges pending against three women who were arrested in connection with a protest of the prison sentences issued in Moscow, Russia to the members of the punk rock band Pussy Riot. The women were arrested and charged with loitering for violating a law against public gatherings of three or more people wearing masks. The masks were worn as a sign of support for the band, Pussy Riot, who wore similar masks while performing.
3 Fight Anti-Mask Law That Prompted Their Arrests
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November 21, 2012
Three women are challenging a 150-year-old New York State statute barring the public gathering of three or more persons wearing masks (balaclavas) for a demonstration. The women are challenging the law in Manhattan Criminal Court after an August demonstration in front of the Russian Consulate. The women wore brightly colored balaclavas in support of Pussy Riot, a Russian punk band who wore similar balaclavas in their performances and who were arrested and jailed in Moscow, Russia after an unsanctioned performance criticizing Russian President Vladimir Putin and the Russian Orthodox Church for supporting Putin.
Legal Brief Supporting the Pussy Riot Protestors in Their Criminal Case
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November 21, 2012
Fix the Frisks
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August 19, 2012
The NYPD’s expanded use of the stop, question and frisk tactic has created resentment and anger in the African-American and Latino communities, which have been subject to the expansion of the policy. There are indications that the NYPD is training officers to engage in far broader application of the stop and frisk tactic than allowed by the U.S. Supreme Court.
A New Law Firm With 161 Years of Experience
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January 15, 2012
Norman Siegel, Herbert Teitelbaum, and Saralee Evans share more than just the legal profession in common. They are also longtime friends and oftentimes colleagues. While many of their contemporaries are retiring, these four are not ready to slow down. Instead, they have combined their more than 100 years of legal experience and opened a new firm, Siegel Teitelbaum & Evans, LLP. With a focus on civil liberties cases, the firm will practice in a wide range of fields, including employment, environmental, and matrimonial law.
Compelling Construction
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March 12, 2012
In August 2011, Marriott International Inc. and Granite Broadway Development announced that they had signed an agreement to develop a 68-story skyscraper, housing two different hotels, at 1717 Broadway at 54th Street. This marked a turning point in what has been a true New York real estate story, involving litigation up to New York's highest appeals court.