Our Approach

For over a century, Satterlee Stephens Burke & Burke LLP has been helping its clients solve their challenging legal problems and achieve their commercial and personal objectives.

The firm’s clients include major industrial companies, book publishers, electronic publishers, newspapers, magazines, radio, television, and cable networks, web-based businesses, domestic and foreign banks, investment banking firms, insurance and reinsurance companies, foreign and domestic operating oil and gas companies, sponsors of public and private oil and gas programs, advertising agencies, British, European, Canadian, Australian, Asian, and Latin American companies (and their U.S. affiliates), professional associations, hospitals, educational, religious, cultural and charitable organizations, individuals (U.S. and foreign), and small businesses. Our approach to the practice of law emphasizes four key elements: quality, service, results and cost-effectiveness.

A Dedication to Quality

Good lawyering begins with a commitment to quality. We care, above all, that the job be done well. Satterlee prides itself on its rigorous research and scholarship, on its clear and careful draftsmanship, on its adept negotiating skills, and on its cogent and persuasive litigation documents and oral advocacy. We also recognize the importance of combining knowledge with a pragmatic, result-oriented perspective on the law. Members of our firm are experts in their fields who are regularly called upon to speak and write about their specialties. Our attorneys include bar association leaders; board members of major corporations, universities, museums and civic organizations; and authors of leading legal treatises and influential journal articles. We recruit talented attorneys from the first tier of the nation's finest law schools. Energetic young lawyers are attracted by our reputation as a smaller, congenial firm that regularly handles large-scale transactions and cases that receive national attention. Our attorneys share a dedication to excellence, an attention to detail, a willingness to undertake the hard tasks, and a keen sense of responsibility to our clients.

A Tradition of Service

Satterlee respects the tradition of the lawyer as counselor. We know that our clients need the resources of a law firm, but want a relationship with a lawyer. We also know that understanding a client's enterprise is as important as understanding the law. We have made it our business to know our clients, their industries and their needs. As a result of this long-term commitment to service, our firm has relationships with clients that have lasted for decades in many instances for more than half a century. Major corporate clients often find they prefer working with Satterlee to working with larger, sometimes less attentive firms that too often fail to learn their clients' unique circumstances and special needs.  Our emphasis on service manifests itself in many ways: We listen carefully to our clients. We provide clients with a high level of continuity and a quick turn-around that larger firms often find difficult to achieve. We keep our clients fully informed of the status of each matter. We staff each matter with attorneys who have experience and familiarity with our clients' particular areas of business. We are available day and night for consultation and provide prompt advice and answers. We track court decisions, pending legislation and regulatory developments that may affect our clients' activities. We avoid over-lawyering small matters; we want to solve our clients' problems, not add to them.

An Ability to Achieve Results

Our goal is to achieve our clients' immediate goals, while also protecting and advancing their long-term interests. We work side-by-side with them to identify and refine their objectives, to anticipate potential risks, and to formulate a strategy that achieves the desired results. With more than a century of legal service behind us, we draw on broad experience to formulate solutions to our clients' problems. Where a traditional solution is not appropriate, we find creative approaches and craft constructive new legal strategies. In litigation, we have successfully represented clients in some of the highest profile cases of recent years. But we have also favorably disposed of thousands more quietly, quickly and inexpensively. Equally important to us is the prevention of litigation by careful legal planning and counseling. We anticipate problems and resolve them before they give rise to lawsuits. Our corporate and tax departments provide assistance in structuring transactions and litigation awards to enhance the economic benefits to our clients. We handle both major newsworthy transactions and smaller transactions with the same care, ingenuity and efficiency.

An Emphasis on Value

Good service also requires a determined commitment to contain legal costs, through the resourceful management of lawyer time. With our background and expertise, as well as the in-depth knowledge gained from continuous contact with a client, we ensure that work is carried out efficiently. We staff our matters leanly. And the reduced overhead of a mid-size firm permits us to offer exceptional lawyering at hourly rates that are often lower than those charged by larger firms. Satterlee consistently offers outstanding quality service and results at a cost that is significantly lower than that of many other firms.

Get to Know Us

We would be pleased to provide you with more specific information about the firm and those practice areas most relevant to your needs. Or, browse through some of the articles, attorney biographies and other information on this web site. Better yet, get to know Satterlee Stephens Burke &Burke by scheduling an appointment to visit one of our offices - we welcome the opportunity to meet with you.

Telephone (212) 818-9200

E-mail