Thomas N. Kendris
Board Member, Wagner College Board of Trustees
"When we were searching for a new President for Wagner College, we turned to George Birnbaum to advise us on contractual issues and to draft a contract that we could have ready to go when we made an offer to our new President. George listened carefully to our goals and priorities and drafted a contract that was fair to both sides. Indeed, when we did make an offer, the contract negotiation process was quick and efficient, as George had anticipated and addressed in the draft agreement almost all potential issues. George’s deep experience and knowledge of higher education and academia, as well as presidential contracts, was the primary reason that we were able to resolve negotiation points in a way that was fair to both to Wagner and our new President. The negotiation process was smooth and easy, with no confrontation or argument. With George’s expert advice and counsel, Wagner and its new President were able to execute the agreement and move to announcement within a few days. I highly recommend George Birnbaum to anyone who is dealing with contractual issues between colleges and their presidents. George brings long experience, deep knowledge and excellent judgment to these issues and we relied on him explicitly to enable Wagner to get off to a great start with our new President.”
Dr. Sylvia Torti
President, College of the Atlantic
"George Birnbaum and colleagues provided me with highly professional and experienced counsel as I negotiated my new position. George understands the world of education and wants clients to succeed. He listens well, responds to individual needs and wishes, and then offers nuanced, well-considered perspectives. I highly recommend Birnbaum Law.”
Dr. Thomas D. Chesney
President, Southwestern College
"It has been my pleasure to work with George Birnbaum Law across two different college presidencies. Employment contract negotiations can be clouded by the excitement of anticipating a new role, eagerness to get started, and a desire to keep everything moving positively and quickly. I found working with Lisa Horowitz at Birnbaum to be one of the most valuable decisions I could make to inform the process, build trust and a level playing field with the governing board, and put objectivity ahead of emotions in executing a fair and mutually supported contract to ensure the institution and I were both on firm footing. The process moved quickly, in part, because of Lisa's responsiveness, willingness to meet on my schedule, and clear communications. I would use Birnbaum Law again and will continue to refer higher education colleagues to their team.”
Eliza McLaren
Head of School, Wellington School
"Lisa and George provided essential advice and support in the days and weeks following my appointment as Head of Wellington School. I trusted Lisa completely throughout the contract negotiation process knowing she would advocate for me effectively while building and respecting the need for a positive relationship with my future school. Given my own experience, I recommend Lisa and George to anyone I know who is considering independent school headship. They are outstanding.”
Dr. Christopher Roellke
President, Stetson University
"George Birnbaum and his colleagues served both me and our university exceptionally well. George delivers outstanding counsel and does so with kindness, clarity, and excellent communication. A University presidency is challenging and important work and George understands what it takes to retain and support high performing executives in our field.”
Dr. Samuel Schaffer
Head, Roxbury Latin School
“George and Lisa, thank you so much for your help with the contract and negotiations with Roxbury Latin. You have been great to work with, and I really appreciate your responsiveness and professionalism and care.”
Dr. Strom Thacker
President, Pitzer College
“I cannot imagine navigating the process of contract negotiation without George’s expert assistance. His deep knowledge, skills and experience helped lead us smoothly to a favorable outcome and a vastly improved contract, for both sides. No one knows this sector better than George, and I found his wise counsel invaluable. He is also a true pleasure to work with. Thank you, George!”
Harry J. Elam, Jr.
President, Occidental College
“When I was selected as the new President of Occidental College, I turned to George Birnbaum to help me secure a good, fair contract. In one of the most important professional moves of my life, George’s integrity, professionalism, knowledge and experience clarified the process and ultimately enabled me to start off my presidency on a firm foundation. He brought significant issues to my attention and carefully navigated the contract negotiation. In all our exchanges, I found George to be an active listener, responsive to my particular needs and genuinely concerned with what moving to a new job and a new city meant for my family and me. I would highly recommend him to any new or current college or university president!”
Barbara Altmann
President, Franklin & Marshall College
“As a college president, I have on more than one occasion relied on George Birnbaum’s knowledge and experience of what college and university presidents require in order to help me meet the challenges that we all confront in the third decade of the 21st century. Providing strong leadership in higher education right now requires the proverbial ‘24/7’ commitment. George guided me through several situations with great expertise, understanding, and humanity. He helpfully reminded me that I can better lead my institution when I also take appropriate care of myself.”
Ralph Kuncl
President, University of Redlands
“As a successful sitting President, I expected a good renewal contract, but George Birnbaum and Lisa Horowitz helped me achieve an agreement which exceeded my expectations. They also assisted me ably later on as I prepared to depart from a long-time presidency. I found them thoughtful with respect to my particular needs, cost-effective and prompt in their responses, understanding that they could only communicate with me during the few breaks in a university president’s crowded schedule. I warmly recommend their services to any college or university president or provost, whether a new hire or long-time chief officer, and I have proven that by referring other colleagues to them as clients.”
Patrice Rankine
Dean, University of Richmond
“As a Dean and Senior Administrator at the University of Richmond, I heartily endorse, from my own personal experience, George Birnbaum and Lisa Horowitz. They are skilled and patient counselors who understand the practicalities as well as the legal nuances of not just contracts, but broader employment questions with respect to higher education. They always take the “long view” of an academic’s current career and future aspirations. I have been glad to have them in my corner as I progress through the employment landscape of higher education. Equally important as their legal expertise, they are good human beings, who give excellent book recommendations.”
Julian Schlossberg
Westchester Films
When my film distribution company found itself unfairly dragged into litigation, I turned to George Birnbaum because I felt that -- correctly as it turned out -- he would be more interested in resolving my problems than in allowing matters to drag on at the cost of unnecessary time and expense. His firm litigated promptly and fiercely, but he also sought out the first available moment at which he could negotiate matters to a resolution in my favor. When that moment came, George tirelessly pursued what turned out to be complex negotiations to achieve a successful agreement. He refused to let the agreement fall apart, even when the other side seemed intractable or irrational. I felt that he understood my business and was committed to helping me achieve the best and most prompt result.
Dawn Barrett
Former President of Massachusetts College of Art and Design
I cannot ever thank George Birnbaum and Lisa Horowitz enough for the kindness, guidance, support and professional wisdom that they brought me in connection with my presidential contract. Their consummate professional expertise, from investigative research to the strategic and tactical conclusion of their efforts, was remarkable to observe in action. In my eyes, one of the things that really stand out with respect to their legal practice is the personal involvement that both of them took on for me as their client. It is not often that people like the emotional and the emotive to be evident in their work -- but for my part I respect this tremendously as I realize this is the work of real humanists and one of a superior judgment in human affairs -- and I thank them for that as well.
Christina Wayne
CEO, Assembly Entertainment
When I was transitioning from running an international TV studio into starting my own TV production company under an exclusive overhead deal at a competing studio, George Birnbaum expertly negotiated and navigated my separation agreement. Mr. Birnbaum was readily available with expert advice, responding quickly and forcefully to my former employer's attorney. Mr. Birnbaum had previously settled a case with the opposing attorney and his first hand knowledge of how this attorney worked was very instrumental in helping me obtain a favorable outcome. Additionally, his vast experience and expert knowledge of the employment laws were made evident during many rounds of negotiations. I was very pleased with the outcome Mr. Birnbaum was able to secure which resulted in me receiving a full year's compensation after leaving the company. I would not hesitate to work with Mr. Birnbaum again should I need him and highly recommend him to anyone needing an uemployment attorney.
Charles Lynch
President, Charles M. Lynch and Associates, LLC
After 30 years of successfully building a group of companies which I had co-founded and built into a major force in the ship brokerage industry, I found myself in an executive employment dispute I had not anticipated. It was an unexpected shock to me and, needless to say, I was in a state of high emotion. In such a situation, common sense does not always rule the day. I called George Birnbaum to explain the situation and see if he could help. George promptly rearranged his schedule to meet with me the next morning. Over the next few weeks we had many discussions. George listened to my concerns and we agreed on a course of action in which litigation was coupled with a willingness to have a difficult and heated situation presented to a mediator. Mediation allowed us to cut through a tremendous amount of red tape and posturing. Throughout detailed and complex negotiations, George always kept common sense in the conversations.Within only a few months after it began, George achieved a significantly better result than I had anticipated, and a prompt conclusion to one of the most difficult and challenging experiences in my lengthy business career.
Beth Ellard
Senior Vice President of Ad Council and former NBC/Comcast Executive in charge of DailyCandy
Super-smart, strategic, highly-experienced, with just the right balance of tenacity and perspective, fight and fairness – George Birnbaum successfully guided me at a time of opportunity and change in my career. At such times, every industry can feel like a small world (relationships matter), and there’s the need for both immediacy and trust. George’s process was rigorous, detailed enough to derive insights and nuance – while also time-effective. With George’s representation, I achieved my end goal. I recommend him highly.
Eric Pierce
Founder and CEO of Total Bank Solutions
The services that George Birnbaum Law provided for my company were invaluable. They treated the matter at hand with the utmost professionalism and urgency to ensure that our situation was resolved as effectively as possible. I can confidently say that my company is better off for having utilized their knowledgeable and skilled team.
Grant Collins
Senior Executive, WeCare
I am a senior executive in the “welfare to work” industry and George Birnbaum has successfully handled my executive employment matters through the negotiation of several contracts and one termination. I also consider him a friend, as he takes genuine interest in the lives and careers of his clients. Most recently, when I had certain claims against a former employer, George not only found me excellent local counsel in Louisville, Kentucky, but stayed closely involved with my matter until it was satisfactorily concluded. I would readily recommend him to other senior executives who are looking for resourceful, caring and knowledgeable counsel.
Craig Katz
Senior Vice-President, Institutional Sales, AIQ, Inc.
The counsel and guidance provided by George Birnbaum and Lisa Horowitz proved to be invaluable and instrumental in helping me negotiate through an unexpected and stressful employment situation. Thankfully, based on their expert advice, I arrived at the best possible outcome for me and my family. George and Lisa took the time to get to know me, my business, my employment situation, and were always there with the best advice when needed through the process. I would highly recommend George Birnbaum Law.