Michael Siris

Michael Siris
Born	September 11, 1945 (1945-09-11) (age 66) US
Occupation	Lawyer

Michael J. Siris (born September 11, 1945) is an American attorney best known for successfully representing the plaintiff in a lawsuit against the New York State Senate in 1992 to compel production of information on taxpayer-subsidized mailings.

Life and career

Siris was educated at Great Neck North High School (1963), Yale College (B.A. 1967) and New York University Law School (J.D. 1970).^{[citation needed]}

Following a primary win, Siris was the Democratic nominee in 1992 for the New York State Senatorial District (the 7th) in Nassau County then represented by the late Michael J. Tully, Jr.^[1] During the campaign, a campaign worker named Weston, under New York's Freedom of Information Law (FOIL), requested information on the cost of Tully's taxpayer-subsidized mailings, which Siris argued were really thinly-disguised promotions of the incumbent although styled as educational. Siris argued that such mailings gave Tully (and other incumbents) an unfair advantage over challengers who statistically almost never succeeded.^{[citation needed]}

When the State Senate declined the FOIL request and claimed immunity from disclosure, the campaign worker sued the Senate during the campaign and Siris acted as his counsel. Entitled "Weston v. Sloan" ("Sloan" having then been Secretary of the Senate), the lawsuit worked its way up to New York's highest court, the Court of Appeals, where the Court, after Siris had lost the general election to Tully,^[2] directed the Senate comply with FOIL.^[3] During the litigation, the Senate was criticized for withholding the information requested.^[4]

After the Court of Appeals' holding, then-Governor Mario Cuomo appointed Siris to fill an interim vacancy on the New York State Supreme Court. Cuomo claimed that he nominated Siris unaware of the lawsuit and that he did not intend to embarrass Tully.^[5] In any event, the nomination died in committee.^{[citation needed]}

For his efforts, in 1995 Siris received the New York State Bar Association's annual Root-Stimson award for public service.^[6]

Siris is counsel to the Garden City, New York law firm, Solomon and Siris.^[7] Siris specializes in real estate law and title litigation.^[8][9]

References

1. ^ "The 1992 Campaign; Candiates in Today's Primary". The New York Times. September 15, 1992. http://www.nytimes.com/1992/09/15/nyregion/the-1992-campaign-candiates-in-today-s-primary.html. Retrieved October 13, 2011. 
2. ^ Sullivan, Joseph F. "In Trenton, It's the Vote No One Wants to Cast", p. 3, The New York Times, November 29, 1992. Retrieved October 19, 2011
3. ^ "Matter of Weston v. Sloan - Argued October 19, 1994". Leagle.com. http://www.leagle.com/xmlResult.aspx?xmldoc=199454684NY2d462_1503.xml&docbase=CSLWAR2-1986-2006. Retrieved October 13, 2011. 
4. ^ "The Secret Ways of State Republicans". The New York Times. March 2, 1993. http://www.nytimes.com/1993/03/02/opinion/the-secret-ways-of-state-republicans.html. Retrieved October 13, 2011. 
5. ^ "Confirmation of Judge Could Be Stalled", New York Times, July 7, 1993, http://www.nytimes.com/1993/07/07/nyregion/confirmation-of-judge-could-be-stalled.html, retrieved October 11, 2011 
6. ^ "Committee on Civil Rights | Award information". Nysba.org. http://www.nysba.org/AM/Template.cfm?Section=Award_information&Template=/CustomSource/award/awardrecipients.cfm&code=MS_ROOT. Retrieved October 13, 2011. 
7. ^ Solomon and Siris official website
8. ^ Siris, Michael. "What to Expect When Selling or Buying a Home", Solomon and Siris, P.C., Retrieved October 19, 2011
9. ^ See, e.g., George v. Grand Bay; Jean v. Joseph; and Martin v. Cohen