NORMAN LISS

HIGHLIGHTS AND DIVERSITY OF PRACTICE AND CAREER

• Successfully completed multiple cases with recoveries in excess of $1,000,000.00 in representing individuals seriously injured through negligence or malpractice. Obtained one of the largest settlements in Bronx County for an individual plaintiff.

• Was one of the lead attorneys in the tragic Happy Land Social Club fire litigation in which 86 people died. His efforts led to a contribution by the City of New York to the settlement based upon the City’s failure to close the club because of social and cultural reasons.  His efforts led further to the settlement of the matter on behalf of the families of the deceased.

• He continues to represent victims of personal injury, medical malpractice and product liability on behalf of his own clients and on behalf of other attorneys with less expertise.

• Successfully conducted an action against the United States, receiving a substantial sum for an individual who was wrongfully incarcerated by U.S. agents for actions taken outside of the U.S. borders. The sum collected was less important than the uniqueness of the proceeding because it resulted from violations by agents of the United States outside of its territory, which was a breakthrough in this area.
  
  

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• A specialist in representing, as General Counsel, agencies, schools and group homes for the handicapped and mentally retarded in all phases of their legal needs.

• Successfully brought a proceeding against the New York City Board of Education to provide special education teachers on behalf of retarded and profoundly retarded individuals in state institutions, which resulted in a requirement to provide special education teachers in all state facilities.

• At the request of former Chief Justice Warren Burger, represented the United States of America as Special Counsel in a proceeding brought by the State of Tennessee against the U.S. Bicentennial Commission.

• Served as counsel to Congressman James Scheuer in his New York City mayoral campaign.

• Served as counsel to the New York State Statue of Liberty Commission during the restoration of the Statue from 1982 to 1986. 
  
  
  Mohammed Ali, with Norman Liss. Ali received
  an award from Mr. Liss' Commission, the NYS
  Statue of Liberty Commission.
   

• Serves as counsel to the Bronx Council on the Arts.

• He continues to represent causes, individuals and agencies in the public arena.

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• Was retained to meet with Prime Minister Pindling in the Bahamas to organize a heavyweight championship fight between Ali and Frazier, originally to be held in Nassau.

• His relationship to professional and collegiate sports places him in a unique position to represent athletes.

• Has represented people in many diverse theatrical endeavors, including investors, management, publicists, agents and performance artists and provided legal counsel to performance artists including The Drifters, The Coasters, Grand Master Flash, Bobby Lance, Arlene DeMarco, Tony Orlando, Jerry Gunn, Wilson Pickett, D. J. Webstar, Concert Violinist Ralph Hollander, Saul Richfield, Theatrical and Public Relations Representative, Joe Franklin, Radio and Television Host, and filmmaker Robert Renfield, among others. Continues to represent artists and producers in major deals with record companies.

• Represents real estate developers and owners in a variety of real estate matters, including the development, purchase and sale of car washes and parking lots.

• Served as General Counsel to the HUB Third Avenue Merchants Association, representing the second largest shopping area in Bronx County for approximately 20 years, and currently serves as a consultant.

• He currently represents the Lower East Side District Management Association, Inc. in litigation.

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• Represents Executors and Administrators in contested and uncontested estate matters.

• Successfully represented flight attendants and cargo employees of American Airlines before arbitration panels by defeating efforts by the airline to terminate employment based upon alleged violations of employment obligations, and continues to represent airline employees.

SERVICES TO FOREIGN GOVERNMENTS AND
INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMACY

• Represented Norway in an action to expunge the records of guilt of Norwegian sailors arrested in the United States.  The services were performed on behalf of Queen Sonia and Prime Minister Gro Harlem Brundtland.
  
  
  Queen Sonia of Norway with Norman Liss

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• Served as a filed foreign agent under the Foreign Agent Registration Act, representing the Turkish government for three years, commencing just prior to the U.S. invasion of Iraq and was enlisted by representatives of the Turkish government to present Turkey in a better light in the United States in order to induce the Turkish parliament to cast a favorable vote to allow the U.S. Fourth Division to enter Iraq through southeast Turkey.  In that capacity, Mr. Liss obtained a statement by one of the highest U.S. officials speaking of Turkey in a favorable light, which statement was presented to the Turkish parliament in order to induce a vote in favor of the American position.
  
  
  Norman Liss; CEO of HSBC Bank; Prime Minister Ergodan of
  Turkey; Jack Rosen, President, American Jewish Congress
   

• Arranged for Turkey’s Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations to receive media exposure to present Turkey in a better light to induce the Turkish parliament to support the American position.

• Arranged for and hosted a luncheon for Turkey’s Prime Minister Ergodan during his one day stop in New York on his first trip to visit President Bush at the White House in 2004.

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• Was called upon by America’s Ambassador to the U.N. to arrange for discussions between Savimbe and President DeSantos, representing the two warring sides in Angola through his contacts with the Portuguese government.

• Participated in a high level foreign ministry-approved mission to Lebanon at the end of the Israeli-Lebanese war.  As part of the mission, he interviewed Phalangist representatives concerning the Shatila and Sabra camp killings and submitted a written report to Congressmen Weiss, Biaggi and Garcia.

• Became personally known to Prime Minister Rabin of Israel and had several private meetings with him, discussing both politics and Israel’s participation in Operation Sail.
  
  
  Norman Liss and Prime Minister Rabin
   

• Organized and chaired a rally for Israel featuring Comptroller Abraham Beame, Assistant to President Kennedy Theodore Sorensen and Congressman Ottinger.
  
  

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• Under the auspices of and as a guest of the U.S. Coast Guard, he was present in Panama prior to the invasion and seizure of Noreiga

• Utilized his many contacts to provide food and funds in 1992 during the 500th anniversary of Columbus’ discovery of America to five Russian tall ships that had sailed to the U.S. without supplies, which event received vast media coverage.
  
  

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EVENTS

• Was retained to create an alternate Olympics to be held in the Philippines during the Carter administration following President Carter’s withdrawing American participation in the Russian Olympics. The Olympic Committee never approved the alternate Olympics although the White House approved it.

• As a member of the Host Committee, organized a tour of 25 buses of Convention delegates to the Democratic Convention of 1980 in New York, which culminated with their attendance at a Yankees game at Yankee Stadium, and the reading of a Proclamation from Second Base welcoming the delegates to New York.
  
  
  Gene McHale, President, New York Yankees; Elston Howard, former Yankees catcher; Former Mayor Ed Koch; Former Bronx Borough President Stanley Simon; Bob Tisch, Chairman of the Citizens Committee for the National Democratic Convention in 1980; Tisch assistant; Norman Liss (from left to right)
  
  
  Bronx Borough President Stanley Simon, Norman Liss, and
  Gene Michael, General Manager, New York Yankees

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• Arranged for and served as a host to Convention delegates at the Republican Convention in 2004 on their trip to Ellis Island.

• At the request of the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, organized and hosted a series of Law Days on the Coast Guard Barque Eagle, attended by judges, prosecutors and public officials.
  
          
            Administrative Judge of Bronx County Burton Roberts;
            Walter Cronkite; Admiral John Linnon; Norman Liss
   

• Arranged for Walter Cronkite to speak before the Respect for Law Alliance dinner and on the Barque Eagle in 1994, to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the D-Day invasion.

• At the request of the Coast Guard, communicated and presented material to the media in Normandy, France, at the commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the D-Day invasion, in 1994.  The material underscored the Coast Guard’s role in the D-Day invasion.  As part of that event, arrangements were made with Tom Brokaw’s producers to have Tom Brokaw televised from a Coast Guard cutter looking towards Normandy.

• Arranged for the original Magna Carta to be displayed at Lehman College during the Bicentennial of the U.S. Constitution.

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EXHIBITIONS AND COMMEMORATIONS

• Organized a ceremony on the Coast Guard Barque Eagle at the South Street Seaport and arranged for former Chief Justice Warren Burger to present awards to children who had written compositions about the U.S. Constitution for a Scholastic Magazine contest.
  
  
  Former Chief Justice Warren Burger and Norman Liss
   

• Arranged for the rededication of the Deed to the Statue of Liberty by President Ronald Reagan and President Mitterand of France at 12:00 noon on July 4, 1986 on Governor’s Island, New York.  Received a commendation from President Reagan for that accomplishment.
  
             
  President Ronald Reagan and French President François Mitterand
   

• Was a guest at the White House to attend the appointment of Lee Iacocca as Chairman of the U.S. Statue of Liberty/Ellis Island Commission and was a guest for lunch at the Navy Mess at the White House on several occasions.

• Arranged for the noted sculptor Erte to distribute his sculpture version of the Statue of Liberty on behalf of the NYS Statue of Liberty Commission and served as host at Trump Tower of an Erte/Brooke Shields event for the Statue of Liberty.
  
  
  Brooke Shields and Norman Liss

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SERVICE ON BOARDS, COMMITTEES AND COMMISSIONS

• Serves as Chairman of Development of the Ellis Island Restoration Commission that brought to the attention of the Department of Interior the need to restore Ellis Island as a museum commemorating the history of the Island and the contributions of immigrants to the growth of America.
  
  
  Standing: Joseph Brechner; Norman Liss; far right: Tex McCrary, all of the Ellis Island Restoration Commission;
  Seated: Philip Lax, President of the Commission; Cecil Andrus, Secretary of Interior

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• In 1980, the Commission entered into an agreement with the Secretary of Interior for the restoration of Ellis Island.

• The Commission campaigned for and succeeded in arranging for the creation of the Family History Center at Ellis Island, where the computerized records of the manifests of 16 million Americans can be found.
  
                        

• Received a commendation from Senator, then Congressman, Charles Schumer for having achieved the creation of Family History Center.
  
                                              
   

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• After conceiving of and lobbying for the passage of a bill before the United States Congress to name the third floor library at Ellis Island the "Bob Hope Memorial Library", the bill was passed by the House and Senate and was signed into law by President George W Bush.  An announcement was made at Ellis Island on November 24, 2008 of the creation of the Library, with a temporary exhibition.  The formal opening and full exhibition will take place in April 2010.

  
  Norman Liss with Congressman Eliot Engel, principal House sponsor of the bill, on November 24, 2008, the day the Bob Hope Memorial Library was announced at Ellis Island.
  
  

   
                            Bob Hope
 

• Arranged for the family arrival records of General Colin Powell to be researched and presented said records to General Powell at Ellis Island.
  
  
  Jacqueline Beusse; General Colin Powell; daughter Linda Powell; Brian Andersson, Commissioner of Records, City of New York, who researched the General's family's records; Norman Liss

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• Served as Chairman of the Historical Documents Committee of Operation Sail in 1986, commemorating the 100th anniversary of the Statue of Liberty.  Organized an exhibition at Federal Hall in New York of liberty documents from 27 countries, which exhibit included an original Magna Carta, original Declaration of Independence, the original deed to the Statue of Liberty, the Emma Lazarus poem, and the constitutions and liberty documents from countries around the world.

• Presented and displayed Princeton University’s copy of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1986 on the Coast Guard Barque Eagle and Norman Lear’s copy of the Declaration of Independence in 2000 on Operation Sail days on the Hudson River.

• Received a commendation from former Chief Justice Warren Burger for a published article about the Declaration of Independence.
  
        

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• Serves as an Honorary Chair of a Magna Carta exhibition at Fraunces Tavern in New York.

• Served as a member of the New York City Commission for the Bicentennial of the United States Constitution.

• Served as Chairman of Historical Documents for Operation Sail.

• Served on an Advisory Committee to Congressman James Scheuer to select candidates for the U. S. Naval Academy.

• Member of the United States Supreme Court Historical Society.

• Member of the Friar's Club.

• Served as a member of the Host Committee for the 1980 Presidential Democratic Convention in New York.

• Served as President of the American Jewish Congress, Bronx Division, for 12 years before leaving over disagreements with the organization’s Israel policy and recommending the resignation of the entire Board, which accepted his recommendation.

• Served as Chairman of the UJA Bronx Lawyers Division.

• Serves as Executive Vice President of the Riverdale Chapter of B’Nai B’Rith.

• Served as Journal Chairman of the NYS Trial Lawyers Division of UJA.

• Served as a member of the Regional Board of the Anti Defamation League.

• Serves as a member of the National Executive Committee of the American Jewish Congress.

• Serves as a Trustee of the American Jewish Historical Society.

• Serves as a member of the American-Israel Public Affairs Committee.

• Served as an arbitrator for the American Arbitration Association.

• Served on the New York City Mayor’s Advisory Committee for the Handicapped.

• As Chairman of the Bronx County Bar Law Day Committee, created and organized the largest Court Law Day in the United States, now in its 16^th year, with more than 50 judges and lawyers visiting more than 50 schools in Bronx County.

• Arranged for a California group, raising funds to build a 9/11 memorial in California, to obtain girders from the World Trade Center disaster for the memorial.

• Served as a consultant for the Medal of Honor Society of Charleston, South Carolina, for the purpose of obtaining a change in the name of the medal being awarded by another organization, and to call upon President Clinton not to receive the medal until the change was made.

• Helped organize the Wall Street rally against the Vietnam War.
  
  
  Washington Rally of the Association of the Bar of the City of New York Against the Viet Nam War. Senator Jacob Javits speaking. In the crowd, Congressman James Scheuer conversing with Norman Liss.
   

• Organized and hosted Congressman Jonathan Bingham’s retirement concert at Lehman College.
  
  
                                                  Former Mayor Ed Koch and Norman Liss
   

• Arranged for and sponsored two selected high school students to visit Israel annually during the summer months on behalf of B’Nai B’Rith.

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• Arranged for a promotional tape in the Yankees clubhouse of Ron Guidry promoting Bronx County and the New York Yankees. 
  
  
  John Dunn, New York Telephone; Bronx Borough President Stanley Simon; Yankees pitcher Ron Guidry; Norman Liss; with two young Yankees fans
   

• Created and organized clinics with players of the New York Yankees in high schools in Bronx County, with leading Yankees speaking to students about sportsmanship and how to play a variety of positions.

• Conceived the concept of the baseball fans purchasing the New York Yankees team and organization from the Yankees through the purchase of shares of the team.  The idea received widespread media coverage and support by the Borough President and members of Congress.
  
        
   

• Organized and served as Commissioner of the Riverdale Synagogue Softball League and arranged for members of the New York Yankees to present awards on World Series Day.

• Arranged for Bronx Little League teams to receive equipment from the New York Yankees.

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PUBLIC SERVICE, COMMENDATIONS AND HONORS

• Received a commendation from the New York State Lawyers’ Fund for Client Protection that states:

  “Your generosity and skills as a lawyer contributed greatly to the successful prosecution of your client’s claim, and we are all indeed grateful to you and your firm for this  contribution of public service.”
  
  

•  Received the Meritorious Public Service Award from the U.S. Coast Guard, which read as follows:

  “for his continuing support of Coast Guard Academy public affairs initiatives.  Since his initial involvement with the Coast Guard during Operation Sail in 1986, Mr. Liss has taken an active interest in the Academy and EAGLE. He has spent countless hours away from his busy law practice to gain exposure for the service among influential special interest groups.  Of particular note, Mr. Liss played a major part in establishing a Law Day celebration aboard EAGLE for Federal and state judiciary in New York City. The twice held event was an effective means of positioning EAGLE in a major market.  Mr. Liss’ groundwork set the stage for annualizing this prominent public relations activity.  Beyond his more visual contributions, Mr. Liss has played an integral behind-the-scenes role in promoting the service.  His subtle liaisons helped maintain the Coast Guard’s position of prominence in George Washington’s Inaugural Bicentennial Celebration.  By his selfless hard work, his persistence and his commitment to excellence, he has upheld the highest traditions of the United States Coast Guard.

  THE COMMANDANT

  In recognition of notable services which have assisted greatly, in furthering the aims and functions of the Coast Guard, the Coast Guard takes pleasure in awarding the Meritorious Public Service Award to Norman Liss.”

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• As a Lt. Colonel in the New York Guard JAG Unit, he received a commendation from Brigadier General Hashem, who is positioned in Iraq, as follows:

  "For dedicated service and commitment to the men and women of the Armed Forces, this Certificate of Appreciation recognizes you for going above and beyond the call of duty in support of the 353^rd Civil Affairs Command.”

  “Your tremendous expression of support the day that the troops departed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom serves as a cornerstone to our Command’s ability to maintain a high level of Espirit De Corps while we pursue international peace in support of our nation’s interest.”

  “On behalf of our troops, we thank you for making it your business to achieve and maintain excellence in the service of our troops, their families, and the Civil Affairs Community.”
  
  

• LTC Liss received a Defense of Liberty Medal and Certificate for his services to the State of New York following the attack on America on 9/11.

• LTC Liss was Officer-in-Charge of Coast Guard Legal Services in the Metropolitan area of New York.

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• He has been honored by:
   

  • The Ellis Island Restoration Commission

  • United States Coast Guard

  • American Jewish Congress

  • The Institutes of Applied Human Dynamics, Inc.

  • The Kineret School

  • United Jewish Appeal

  • Riverdale Community Council

  • Bronx County for bringing the original Magna Carta to Lehman College
     

• He is the subject of a biography in Who’s Who in America, Who’s Who in American Law and Who’s Who in the World.
  
        

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POLITICS AND MISCELLANEOUS ACTIVITIES

• As an activist in Democratic politics, he played a key role in eliciting Jonathan Bingham to enter the Democratic primary for Congress in the 23rd Congressional District against Congressman Charles Buckley and played a leading role in the successful primary and election of Jonathan Bingham to the U.S. House of Representatives.

• As an early supporter of Robert Kennedy for the U.S. Senate in New York, he participated in the campaign and accompanied Kennedy on campaign stops in his successful campaign.
  
  
  First article about Robert Kennedy as a possible candidate for the U.S. Senate, referring to Norman Liss and one of Kennedy's former prosecutors, Jay Goldberg.
   

• Served as a campaign manager and played a key role in other campaigns on a local and national level.

• Has been invited to all presidential inaugurations since 1964.
  
  
   

• Was part of a small group that recommended and campaigned for Steven Smith, John F. Kennedy’s brother-in-law, in a little known campaign for Mayor of the City of New York.

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ARTICLES

• He has written published articles on a variety of subjects, including presidential inaugurations, the Declaration of Independence, and political and historical commentaries.

• His essay on Israel is contained in the Alan Dershowitz book, “What Israel Means To Me,” along with the essays of Larry King, Ed Koch and other prominent individuals.
  
                      
   

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DIVERSE BACKGROUND

• During his law school attendance at NYU, he co-wrote, produced and directed the first “Law Revue” of any major law school.

• Created and served as Emcee of the Bronx County Bar Holiday Parody of Lawyers Who Advertise.

BAR MEMBERSHIPS

• Bronx County Bar Association

• New York State Bar Association

• New York State Trial Lawyers Association

• American Bar Association

• Association of Trial Lawyers of America

• United States Supreme Court Historical Society

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