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<\/a>Gregory T. Cerchione has held more leadership titles than most lawyers accumulate in a lifetime, but those who know him best say his most important work has rarely depended on a title at all.<\/p>\nCerchione received the President\u2019s Award, the Brooklyn Bar Association\u2019s most prestigious honor, at the association\u2019s annual dinner on Monday, Dec. 8.<\/p>\n
The award recognizes sustained service to the bar and the broader legal community, and Cerchione, this year\u2019s honoree, was described repeatedly as someone whose influence is felt most strongly behind the scenes.<\/p>\n
Christina Golkin, the president of the Brooklyn Bar Association, said Cerchione\u2019s leadership begins with the way he views the organization itself.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cHe never calls it the bar association. He always calls it \u2018our bar association,\u2019 and to Greg, this place is our professional home, a community we share.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cerchione\u2019s words match his conduct, Golkin continued, \u201cHe reminds us that we are stewards of something larger than ourselves, and that sense of service, fairness and responsibility is what he represents as one of the presidents of our association.\u201d<\/p>\n
Judge Barry Kamins, another past president of the Brooklyn Bar Association, spoke on Cerchione\u2019s role after his presidency, saying Cerchione has remained the go-to person whenever there is a crisis in the association; \u201cEverybody says, \u2018Let\u2019s ask Greg.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was great when he was president,\u201d Kamins said, \u201cbut I think it\u2019s more than being president, sort of like being the elder statesman, somebody everybody feels steers the ship when things get difficult.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mario Romano, president of the Columbian Lawyers Association, said Cerchione\u2019s influence across Brooklyn\u2019s legal community comes from his accessibility and his willingness to help without concern for appearances, titles or formalities.<\/p>\n
Romano called Cerchione\u2019s style direct and unpolished, but that approach is precisely what makes him effective and trusted across organizations. \u201cWhen he talks, you can tell he\u2019s from Brooklyn. But anybody who has an issue, a problem, that needs help, he\u2019s the first person to step up.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cerchione\u2019s commitment is reflected not just in words, Romano noted, but in the amount of time he devotes to the legal community, often moving from one event to another on the same night to make sure he is present where he is needed.<\/p>\n
\u201cQuite frankly, I don\u2019t know how he has the time,\u201d Romano said. \u201cSometimes he doesn\u2019t get his foot in the door until halfway through the event.\u201d<\/p>\n
Grace Borrino, vice president of the Columbian Lawyers Association, spoke of Cerchione\u2019s consistent support of younger attorneys across generations.<\/p>\n
\u201cI can remember from being a young attorney that he is always so welcoming and so supportive,\u201d Borrino said. \u201cEven now, there is always an open door, he\u2019s always willing to help, and he\u2019s always willing to give his time to everything.\u201d<\/p>\n
Borrino said Cerchione\u2019s influence within bar organizations is structural rather than symbolic, shaping their culture and continuity.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s like the backbone of every organization,\u201d Borrino continued. \u201cI remember meeting him, and he was like the Godfather of the organization.\u201d<\/p>\n
Steve Bamundo, executive director of the Columbian Lawyers Association, said Cerchione\u2019s leadership is defined by an aversion to recognition and a focus on service, even though he plays a central role in multiple bar organizations.<\/p>\n
Bamundo explained that Cerchione consistently puts the needs of others and the institution ahead of his own visibility.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe never cares where he sits,\u201d Bamundo said. \u201cHe doesn\u2019t want to be announced. He is someone who has a generosity of spirit that I\u2019ve never seen before, both personally and professionally.\u201d<\/p>\n
On Cerchione\u2019s willingness to help, Bamundo recalled, \u201cI remember when I became president 17 years ago, whenever I would call him and I say, \u2018I need,\u2019 he would say \u2018yes\u2019 before I even finished what I was saying. He still does that today, and you\u2019ll never meet a more optimistic and upbeat person than Greg.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cerchione concentrates his law practice in plaintiff\u2019s personal injury litigation. He received his undergraduate degree from Syracuse University and his law degree from Hofstra University School of Law. He joined the Brooklyn Bar Association shortly after his admission to the bar in January 1986 and has since served as president of the Brooklyn Bar Association, the Columbian Lawyers Association of Brooklyn and the Catholic Lawyers Guild of Brooklyn.<\/p>\n
He currently chairs the Brooklyn Bar Association Grievance Committee and serves on judicial screening and character and fitness committees within the Appellate Division, Second Department.<\/p>\n
When Cerchione rose to accept the award last Monday, he said the honor was meaningful not only because of its prestige, but because of his long relationship with the Brooklyn Bar Association.<\/p>\n
Cerchione credited his late father, Richard Cerchione, a Brooklyn lawyer with a neighborhood practice, with shaping his understanding of the profession and instilling in him what he described as the golden rule of loyalty: treat other lawyers the way you want to be treated.<\/p>\n
As he spoke, members of his family were in attendance, including his son, Greg J. Cerchione, a young lawyer himself, who watched as his father accepted an award recognizing decades of service carried out largely without fanfare.<\/p>\n
\u201cI am humbled and honored to receive this award,\u201d Cerchione said in his remarks. \u201cIt is particularly meaningful to me because my connection to the Brooklyn Bar Association has always been both personal and professional. Our association stands on the shoulders of our past presidents, and I am confident that future generations will continue its legacy, committed to relevance, excellence, integrity and service to our profession.\u201d<\/p>\n
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