Roger Stavis – Partner

Roger Stavis is one of New York’s most experienced and respected criminal defense attorneys. He has tried more than 100 cases to verdict in state and federal courts, many of which were high-profile, complex, multi-defendant cases. Mr. Stavis has also argued more than 100 appeals in various state and federal courts around the country.

Mr. Stavis is a former prosecutor and is the former Chairman of the Criminal Courts Committee of the New York City Bar Association.

Other Practice Areas

• Civil Litigation
• Appellate Practice
• Regulatory Investigations

In the News

• The New York Times, “$95,000 to Fix Up a Studio Apartment, but It Was All a Scam, Officials Say,” May 30, 2019.
• The New York Post, “Sara Sampaio’s beau cleared of charges in alleged AmEx scam,” April 12, 2019. Mr. Stavis gets charges against client Oliver Ripley dismissed.
• CBS 48 Hours: “The Psychiatrist and the Selfie,” Dec. 3, 2016. Program focused on Mr. Stavis’ forensic psychiatric trial defense of a young man accused of attempted murder.

Published Works

• Computer Searches: A “General” Warrant Can No Longer Satisfy Requirements, New York Law Journal, May 22, 2017
• “Perspective on the Finale of the Strauss-Kahn Case,” The New York Times, August 25, 2011
• “Federal Plea Agreements Leave Open Risk of Prosecution In Other Districts,” New York Law Journal, September 28, 2010
• “Report on the Merger of the Bronx Supreme and Criminal Court,” New York City Bar Association, June, 2009
• “The New Man at the Justice Department,” The New York Times, September 18, 2007
• “Religion and Justice,” The New York Times, April 28, 2002
• “Disorder in the Court,” The New York Times, April 5, 2001
• Criminal Trial Advocacy (Appellate Division, 1992, ) Contributing Author Criminal Defense Techniques (Bender 1991), Contributing Author
• “Jury Selection in the Robert Chambers Murder Trial: The Successful Use of An Individual Voir Dire,” Queens Bar Bulletin, May 1988

Lectures and Presentations

• “The Fourth Amendment in the Information Age,” Federal Bar Council, April 11, 2019
• “Federal Practice 101: An Introduction to the Nuts and Bolts of Federal Civil Practice,” New York City Bar Association, March 6, 2018
• “Terrorism Trials and the Second Circuit,” Federal Bar Council, January 11, 2017
• “Key Issues in White Collar Criminal Defense,” New York State Bar Association, December 14, 2015
• New York Criminal Practice 101, New York City Bar Association, April 23, 2012
• “New York Criminal Practice 101,” New York City Bar Association, March 23, 2011
• “The Proper Role of the Courts in National Security,” American Bar Association, Washington, D.C. March 2, 2011
• “New York Criminal Practice 101,” New York City Bar Association, April 19, 2010
• “The NEW New York Rules of Professional Conduct and Their Impact on Criminal Practice,” New York City Bar Association, November 10, 2009

Public Service

• Mediator, United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, 2011 to present
• Member, Independent Judicial Screening Panel for the Supreme Court, Democratic County Committee, 1991 and 1997
• Assistant District Attorney and Supervising Attorney, Bronx District Attorney’s Office, 1982-1986

Reported Cases

• People v. Class, 494 N.E. 2d 444 (N.Y. 1986)
• Associated Press v. Bell, 510 N.E.2d 313 (N.Y. 1987)
• People v. Robert Chambers, 512 N.Y.S.2d 631 (N.Y. 1987)
• United States v. Curtis, 32 M.J. 252 (U.S. Ct. Military. App. 1991)
• United States v. Rodriguez, 968 F.2d 130 (2d Cir. 1992)
• United States v. El Sayyid Nosair 854 F.Supp.251 (S.D.N.Y. 1994)
• People v. Maher, 675 N.E. 2d 833 (N.Y. 1996)
• United States v. Rahman, 189 F.3d 88 (2d Cir. 1999)
• United States v. Kirkham, 195 F.3d 126 (2d Cir. 1999)
• United States v. Pirro, 76 F.Supp. 2d 478 (S.D.N.Y. 1999)
• United States v. Al Kassar, 660 F.3d 108 (2d Cir. 2011)
• Universitas Education v. Nova Group, 784 F.3d 99 (2d Cir. 2015)
• United States v. Binday, 804 F.3d 558 (2d Cir. 2015)

Professional Associations and Memberships

• Chair, Federal Courts Committee, Subcommittee on Criminal Justice, New York City Bar Association, 2018-
• Vice President and Counsel, Larchmont Historical Society, 2016-present
• Adjunct Professor, Iona College, Department of Political Science, 2012-2015
• Adjunct Faculty – Cardozo Law School, Intensive Trial Advocacy Program, 1993-2015
• Guest Lecturer, JFK Special Warfare Center, Fort Bragg, North Carolina, 1995-2006
• New York City Bar Association (Chairman, Committee on Criminal Courts, 2007-2010;
• Member, Federal Courts Committee, 2017-present)
• New York Council of Defense Lawyers, (Liason Committee, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, 2016-present)
• New York State Bar Association (Committee On White Collar Criminal Litigation) American Bar Association National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers

Recognition

• George Washington University Law School Trustee Scholar.
  • Recipient, Professional Achievement Award, The George Washington Law Alumni Association, 1995.
• Selected as a “Super Lawyer” from 2007 through 2019. This is an honor given to fewer than five percent of the state’s most respected attorneys.