Suffolk County selects outside counsel mostly for medical malpractice matters

In-house. That's where Suffolk County Attorney Christine Malafi plans on handling most of the county's legal work.

Malafi, the first woman and the youngest person to hold the position of Suffolk County attorney since it was created in 1970, said the county will hire outside counsel for

The firms being tapped to handle the county's defense in medical malpractice cases include the law offices of Vincent McNamara of East Norwich; Mulholland, Minion and Roe of Williston Park, and Fumuso Kelly Deverna Snyder Swart & Farrell of Hauppauge.

[Malpractice] cases really need expertise, and that's why we turn to those firms, said Malafi, of cases stemming from the county's health department and clinics.

The firm where Malafi practiced previously, Lewis Johs Avallone Avilles & Kaufman, of Melville, provided legal services for the county in the past but has not received any work since Malafi was hired. That firm, however, is expected to receive approval to resume that work from the county's ethics commission, which has been examining Suffolk's relationship with the practice, Malafi said.

Robert Avallone, managing partner of Lewis Johs, said he hopes to continue doing defense work for Suffolk, even though it would be minimal. I don't see any type of conflict of interest, and we should be hired when needed, he said.

Malafi, who oversees a staff of 100 that includes 60 attorneys, said most if not all of the county's other legal matters can be handled in-house.

Kevin Law, chief deputy county executive and former managing partner of Garden City-based Nixon Peabody, said the county basically runs a full-service law firm. It's a very deep and talented staff, he said.

Malafi said the county handles a broad range of legal issues, from real estate to civil litigation. And Malafi, who served as outside counsel to Suffolk law department for the past seven years, has two other female deputy attorneys in Lynne Bizzarro, former Babylon Town attorney, and Elizabeth Harrington, formerly at the county attorney's appellate bureau.

There are times, however, when the county needs assistance from outside, Malafi said. In Suffolk County Community College's battle against former college president Salvatore LaLima, for example, the county sought the counsel of Garden City-based Besen & Trop.

LaLima filed a $300,000 lawsuit against the county claiming that he was improperly denied the payout of sick and vacation time and suffered lost pension benefits. LaLima also pointed out that former County Attorney Robert Cimino, when asked for an opinion, agreed that LaLima was entitled to the pay. Malafi said it would have been a blatant conflict of interest for her office to represent the parties involved.

Stuart Besen, a partner at Besen & Trop, believes that his three- attorney firm, which specializes in litigation, received a nod from the county because of its experience in representing municipalities such as Babylon and Huntington. Besen said he had no personal relationships with members of the Levy administration.

I try to find firms that have unique experience, Malafi said. I try to go to a firm that I know has good litigators and does good research - ones I know by reputation, but not on a personal level.

Suffolk sought outside counsel also to defend it in a discrimination lawsuit brought by female police officer Felicia Collins.

Just moments before the federal trial, Malafi learned that Collins, a member of Levy's transitional public-safety team, had a second lawsuit pending - this one charging that Collins was discriminated against in not receiving a promotion. Malafi said she sought outside counsel to avoid the perception of a conflict of interest. In the end, Suffolk hired Williston Park-based Mulholland, Minion & Roe for the case.

It does certainly cost the county more [to get outside counsel], but we're looking to maintain high ethical standards, Malafi said.

The county attorney's office also is performing its own internal checks by looking for complaints filed with the Office of Court Administration and examining whether the hired firms have a conflict of interest.