Counsel, New York State Senate, Albany, NY, 1972-1987
City Judge, Glens Falls, NY, 1976
Chair, Council on the Environment of New York City, 2007-
New York State Bar Association (Former Chair of Environmental Law Section)
American Bar Association
New York City Bar
Real Estate Environmental Liability News (Board of Editorial Advisors)
New York Super Lawyers 2010-2011
Fellow, The New York Bar Foundation
Chambers USA: Environment 2003-2011
Best Lawyers in America 2006-2012
Robert J. Kafin currently serves, by appointment of the NYC Mayor, as Chair of GrowNYC and devotes most of his time to that and other not-for-profit civic and environmental organizations, while continuing as an Optional Service Partner at the firm, where he remains available to advise its clients. He is the founder and a member of the firm’s Environmental Group.
From 1991 to 2009, Bob was a member of the senior management of the firm, serving as its Chief Operating Partner for 15 years and also as its General Counsel.
Bob has concentrated his outside client service in the area of environmental law since 1971. As such, he has handled complex problems arising under the entire spectrum of environmental issues which face businesses and has a sophisticated understanding of their legal, political, regulatory, scientific and transactional aspects and regulatory schemes under the major federal environmental laws and state analogues, including the Clean Air Act, Emergency Planning and Right-to-Know Act, Federal Water Pollution Control Act, National Environmental Policy Act, Oil Pollution Act, Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, Safe Drinking Water Act, Superfund, and Toxic Substances Control Act.
In addition, Bob has reviewed and evaluated environmental compliance and liabilities in major transactions involving almost every type of industry. He also has assisted clients with “Brownfields” projects in working their way through the regulatory and financing maze created by new statutes and regulations setting up voluntary clean-up and liability protection programs.
Land use regulation and environmental impact analysis has been another branch of Bob’s environmental law practice. He has worked extensively on the environmental impact and zoning problems of major real estate developments and industrial facilities, including the 1980 Winter Olympic Games in Lake Placid, for which he supervised the preparation of environmental impact statements and obtained permits for the major sports facilities.
In addition to his position at GrowNYC, Bob is Vice Chair of the Times Square Alliance, the Adirondack Council, and Parks and Trails New York. He also serves as an officer and director of The Broadway Association and the Preservation League of New York State.