On Sept. 1, CSG Law will have 211 lawyers, making it the largest law firm in the state — a remarkable achievement for a firm that is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year.
For name partners Jeff Chiesa and Frank Giantomasi, the data points are an affirmation of their commitment to create a firm based on culture and character — and being meticulous and thoughtful about how they operate.
Then, there’s this: When the firm was created in April 2015, neither Chiesa nor Giantomasi was sure it would last 10 months, let alone 10 years.
The firm was created in the aftermath of the fallout of Wolff & Samson, a venerable firm that was founded in 1972 but headed to an inglorious ending.
Chiesa and Giantomasi, both relatively new to the firm, joined with longtime partner Armen Shahinian to start again.
After gaining control of the firm, they made a move that was far more significant than simply changing the name.
They changed how everyone would get paid.
“When we completed the redemption of all the shares of Wolff & Samson, we had a big decision to make — and I still think it was the most important decision that we made,” Giantomasi said. “We issued one share of stock to every partner.
“All of a sudden, people who had worked here for 30 years and were just employees — not shareholders and not owners — were true partners.
“Jeff and I could have said: ‘We’re keeping it all. It’s ours. We were brought in to resurrect the firm.’ We didn’t. We decided that what was more important was to build the team.”
The challenge was just beginning.
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Chiesa knew the early weeks and months were key. Firms that are viewed to be in trouble are easily raided. Attorneys at firms believed to be in trouble are often looking to leave.
“When we completed the redemption of all the shares of Wolff & Samson, we had a big decision to make — and I still think it was the most important decision that we made. We issued one share of stock to every partner.” — Frank Giantomasi, Partner,
CSG Law
Chiesa said the leaders needed to set the tone.
“When you go through an event like we did, where the firm completely changes its name and there’s some uncertainty that surrounds that, the one thing you’re really looking to have is the trust of your partners and the people who you’ve been working with,” he said.
To be clear, that understanding had to start with Chiesa and Giantomasi. Best of friends now, they didn’t know each other when Giantomasi joined the firm in December 2014. A few months later, they were being called on to lead it.
“When we were approached about doing this, both of us were brand new,” Chiesa said. “You had a lot of lawyers that had been here for decades, so they needed to trust us. They needed to understand that, while the name of the firm was changing, the quality of work wasn’t going to change, the culture wasn’t going to change. And, most importantly, the way we treated each other wasn’t going to change.
“And, to all of our partners’ credit, some very senior to me and to Frank, they trusted us.
“Partners like litigator Adam Derman, environmental attorney Dennis Toft, employment attorney Catherine Wells, (intellectual property) attorney Jeffrey Weinick and real estate attorney Mitchell Berkey were all recognized practitioners and an important part of the brand of the firm at that time,” Giantomasi said. “That deep bench of talent helped lay the foundation for the firm’s future.”
Chiesa agreed.
“The process has been a very thoughtful one,” he said. “But, in the end, this has been about trust and camaraderie among the members and the senior lawyers.”
And the junior lawyers, too.
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Marie Mathews was an associate at Wolff & Samson 10 years ago. A concerned associate.
“I wasn’t in those meetings where they were developing what was going to happen in the next phase, I was kind of on the outside wondering, ‘What’s next — how’s this going to go?’” she said.
Mathews knew Chiesa and Giantomasi — but not enough to know if they were the real deal. She went to someone she trusted to get the goods.
“I went to one of the partners and I said: ‘What’s happening here? Do I need to polish my résumé?’” she recalled.
“I obviously asked the right person, because they said to me: ‘Everything’s going to be fine. We’re in good hands.’”
Neither Mathews nor the partner knew just how good.
It quickly became apparent that Chiesa and Giantomasi were offering far more than equal pay — they were offering equal opportunity.
Mathews was quickly identified as the type of next-generation leader CSG wanted to build around.
She became a partner, a practice group leader (litigation) and a deputy general counsel to the firm. In January, she was named the new managing member of the firm.
This didn’t happen by accident.
“It’s not serendipitous — it’s methodical; it’s planned,” Giantomasi said. “From the minute we took over managing the place, we began to identify the next generation of leaders and started succession planning.
“Everybody here knows who the next chairperson in real estate is going to be, who the next chairperson in corporate is going to be. We really developed a whole series of show and tells, so that people understand who is coming and that we’re not just doing it for the group that’s in leadership now.”
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Every firm has a managing partner; few have a C-suite. CSG does.
In 2019, when the firm’s leaders realized it was ready to take the next step, they created a C-suite with Hany Moussa (chief technology officer), Dawn Afandor (chief marketing officer) and Cheryl Perzely (chief human resources officer). Bob McGowan (chief operating officer and chief financial officer) was brought in soon after.
Afanador, who has worked for two other major firms in the state, was thrilled to see the importance that was placed on her role — and the others in the group.
“Each of us had our business lines and found that we were treated very much like the attorneys,” she said. “We were respected.”
It’s been that way since Day One, she said.
“When I started here, there was a line at my door of people who wanted to meet me and talk about marketing, which is not something I’d really seen before,” she said. “People were excited about it.”
The value was never more evident than during the pandemic.
Many firms struggled to adjust to a work-from-home environment. CSG, led by Moussa’s technology skills, never missed a beat.
Giantomasi said it’s all part of the culture.
“When Dawn says to us, ‘Here’s the reason why I need to grow my group; I need this particular skill set,’ we don’t say ‘No.’ We don’t look at the budget; we look at what it’s going to do for the firm.”
“The people in office services are just as important as the people in the trial pits. It’s one collective operation here. That’s an important thing. We respect what everybody is doing.”
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Most firms had to give employees a reason to come back to the office after the pandemic. CSG gave its employees a new office.
In March 2023, the firm cut the ribbon on a four-story, 116,000-square-foot office in Roseland, just down the road from its longtime home in West Orange.
The space, designed by Gensler and transformed by SJP Properties, has high-tech attributes and accessories that would be the envy of any top tech company. It has more light coming in than you could ask for — and a view you won’t find in an urban setting.
It has numerous conference rooms — and a great room that’s big enough to host a conference.
“The process has been a very thoughtful one. But in the end, this has been about trust and camaraderie among the members and the senior lawyers.” — Jeff Chiesa
It’s a differentiator.
“I think it’s one of the largest recruiting tools that we have,” Giantomasi said. “If an attorney could work at firm ‘X’ or CSG, and the pay is equal, and the prestige is equal and everything else is equal — they are going to work at CSG because they want to work in our facility.
“I had a young lawyer who just came here who said to me: ‘I don’t even feel like I’m working in an office every day. I feel like I’m going to a rich friend’s house,’ and he used the word ‘rich.’”
Giantomasi said it’s all part of the attitude at CSG.
“We put as much effort into culture as we put into proficiency of practice,” he said. “They’re both highly regarded here. We don’t slack off on honing the skills of our lawyers and doing the best that we can for our clients. We also add that same layer of time and commitment and thoughtfulness to culture within the firm.”
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So, how do you become the biggest law firm in the state in just 10 years?
For starters, you make sure nobody leaves.
“There were lots of whispers about the demise of this firm, lots of whispers about who was going to leave, but nobody left,” Chiesa said. “Literally, nobody left.”
Not just during the tumultuous beginning, but since.
“We have had virtually no turnover,” he said.
It’s about adding smartly, too.
“We haven’t grown through a 40-person acquisition; it’s been with very targeted acquisitions,” Chiesa said. “We plan to continue it — and we plan to continue to make sure that anybody we bring in here will not only contribute to the professionalism of the firm, but to the culture that we’ve guarded very carefully.”
As CSG celebrates its 10th anniversary, it does so knowing that its commitment to culture has paid off.
Chiesa knows that was never a sure thing.
“I’ve said it before: Those first 18 months were critical,” he said. “Everyone was watching, saying, ‘OK, let’s see what you guys do.’ That’s why those first 18 months felt a lot longer than the last eight and a half years.
“But, when you look at us now, look at this office that we’re in, look at the fact that we’ve doubled in size, look at the incredible attorneys who have come here, you realize that this is a place that’s exciting and is going to continue to succeed.”
For information about CSG Law, go to csglaw.com.
