Slowinski Atkins LLP – The right choice when it counts!
“Working closely with our clients to meet their objectives and minimize their costs.”
In the early 1990s we located our base at 744 Broad Street in Newark, New Jersey and our New York office downtown at 140 Broadway near the State and Federal courthouses. In 1997 we moved our Newark office to One Newark Center and the home of Seton Hall University School of Law. Our New Jersey office is now located at the Eisenhower Corporate Campus in Livingston, New Jersey, a premier Class A office space with LEED Silver Certification by the U.S. Green Building Council and our New York office at 576 Fifth Avenue in New York City.
Our Recognition
Twenty years after its founding, the firm is now recognized as one of the nation’s most esteemed environmental and civil trial practices, being listed in the Martindale-Hubbell® Bar Register of Pre-Eminent Lawyers™, the definitive guide to America’s leading law firms. This independent peer-review publication includes only the most distinguished law practices in America and is based upon the confidential opinions of practicing attorneys and members of the judiciary. For more than 80 years it has served as a resource for identifying the most highly regarded law firms in the country. Only those firms that have first achieved the prestigious “AV” rating – the top ranking in the Martindale-Hubbell Law Directory – then qualify for the distinction of AV Pre-Eminent. This is fewer than 5% of all law firms in the United States. Our attorney recognition includes being named over a decade ago to the first list of Super Lawyers, a guide to the top attorneys in the State of New Jersey published by Law & Politics magazine based on a peer-review survey in which attorneys are asked to nominate the best lawyers they have personally observed in action, and more recently as New Jersey’s Top Rated Lawyers as well as Senior Fellow to the Litigation Counsel of America, a trial lawyer honorary society of the nation’s top trial lawyers. We have never paid for an ad or a profile and do not solicit peer endorsements.
Representing clients in the complex fields of renewable energy, climate risk, environmental law and litigation requires experienced counsel as well as ongoing cost monitoring and risk analysis. At Slowinski Atkins, LLP each matter is approached by counsel under a framework of cooperative teamwork with the client, rigorous evaluation of the objectives and legal strategy and a time-sensitive view toward controlling costs. In litigation matters we work hard to develop early dismissal and settlement opportunities, whether we are pursuing a claim on behalf of a plaintiff or a defendant. Yet when an adversarial stance must be pursued to the end, our client’s position is advanced with all the strength and confidence that comes with a formidable team of accomplished trial attorneys. We are renowned for always acting with professionalism and courtesy but never lacking in zealousness; we will pursue your claim with vigor and if you are entitled to attorneys’ fees we will seek them.
Our unique and aggressive approach has attracted a broad range of clients from individuals and closely held corporations to multi-national Fortune 100 and 500 companies including clean-tech entrepreneurs, major oil companies, chemical and product manufacturers seeking to manage climate risk, insurance companies and other members of industry. With offices located in New Jersey and New York we provide service on a local or regional basis.
“Skill and experience is a given – but so is value.”
We recognized the growing demand for less costly legal representation in complex areas of law that did not sacrifice the paramount goal of preeminent representation. We were determined to meet that demand by challenging the traditional methods of much larger law firms and restructuring the way they provide legal services. We saw the need for change and a new view of our role as counsel – an approach designed to deliver not only the highest quality service, but value to our clients.
The traditional law firm model is based on a pyramid structure designed to generate revenues through leveraging the services of associate and junior level attorneys. Those same attorneys however, lack the trial experience and judgment to cost-effectively achieve a client’s objective. We believe this offers little value to our clients and may actually increase costs when handling complex cases. Thus, our approach is based on a reverse pyramid – top heavy with skilled trial attorneys with substantial litigation and courtroom experience. A highly experienced litigator handles every claim but under a model of cost-containment and productivity. The experience and judgment we bring to each case, combined with a dedication to cost-effective quality management techniques and sound business practices, is designed to substantially reduce legal costs without sacrificing the highest quality legal representation.
The principles on which the firm was founded – prompt and superior service, cost control, abiding judgment – distinguish us in the larger legal community. In many ways we are a progressive law firm; we do not adhere to the deep-seating practices and pyramid structures typically rooted in your traditional firm. We offer a different paradigm – one that optimizes expertise and promotes cost-efficiency.
These guiding principles remain an integral part of our practice, constantly shaping our firm philosophy and forging our client relations. In essence, we reject the notion that the practice of law has become big business. We still believe it is a service profession and that we must constantly explore innovative alternatives in order to better serve our clients.
“Ongoing cost assessment is always part of the legal process.”
Slowinski Atkins, LLP is particularly sensitive to the cost of handling complex legal matters. Cost control is one of the fundamental principles on which the firm was founded, and it continues to remain an integral part of the firm’s management philosophy. At Slowinski Atkins, LLP we believe that clients should not only be able to predict their legal costs; they should also be able to reduce them. The firm works closely with its clients to achieve these objectives in several ways.
Slowinski Atkins, LLP is always open to discussing various alternative billing arrangements such as blended rates and volume pricing to accommodate the fiscal needs of our clients. We offer a more dynamic and flexible approach to fee structuring that allows for the application of different models based on the nature of the case, the complexities involved and the long-term relationships that we maintain with our clients.
Our firm has been at the forefront in setting the trend away from the excessive overhead and ineffective operations that historically drove up legal costs. We also reject inefficient billing practices such as using multiple attorneys for single lawyer tasks or using a file to train new associates. The firm’s effective utilization of experienced counsel is designed to promote cost-efficiency while eliminating the learning curve cost often incurred when less seasoned associates are assigned to matters under a traditional firm structure.
Furthermore, at Slowinski Atkins, LLP we firmly believe that a reasonable hourly rate is a vital part of any quality management plan. It is by combining reasonable rates with other cost-effective practices that significant cost reduction is attained.
Slowinski Atkins, LLP brings a total quality management approach to representation which challenges the view that every complex legal matter comes with a huge financial price tag. We are committed to cost control and stand ready to offer our substantial experience and resources to deliver the highest quality legal service at the most competitive rates.