Lawyers
Allen A. Drexel
Phone: 212.231.2684
Email: adrexel@drexelgrande.com
Allen concentrates his practice on complex family law issues, including divorce, equitable distribution of business and financial assets, spousal and child support, contested child custody cases, paternity proceedings, prenuptial and postnuptial agreements, and same-sex family law matters.
After graduating from Stanford Law School, Allen served as law clerk to the Honorable A. Joe Fish, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas. He went on to practice general commercial litigation at Simpson Thacher LLP, and then, in 2003, joined Cohen Lans LLP, a highly-regarded matrimonial boutique. Immediately prior to forming Drexel Grande, Allen practiced at Hogan & Hartson LLP, where he worked almost exclusively on family law matters, representing individuals in matters involving substantial estates and novel legal issues.
Allen has delivered CLE presentations and written on matrimonial law issues. He is a member of the Executive Committee of the New York State Bar Association’s Family Law Section and Co-Chair of the Section’s Marriage Equality Committee, and Allen is also a member of the Family Law Section of the American Bar Association. From 2005-08, Allen co-chaired the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Rights Committee of the New York City Bar Association, and he has been repeatedly cited in the New York Times, the New York Law Journal, and other publications regarding family law issues.
Admissions
New York State
U.S. District Court, Northern District of Texas
U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York
Education
Stanford Law School, J.D. 2000
University of Sussex, M.A. 1992
Dartmouth College, A.B. 1991, Magna cum Laude, Phi Beta Kappa
Associations & Memberships
New York State Bar Association (Member, Executive Committee of the New York State Bar’s Family Law Section, 2012-present; Co-Chair, Marriage Equality Committee, 2012-present; Member, Family Law Section, 2006-present; Member, Family Law Section, Legislation Committee, 2008-present; Empire State Counsel Honoree for pro bono service, 2007, 2009).
New York City Bar Association, 2001-present (Co-Chair, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Rights Committee, 2005-2008; Member, Matrimonial Law Committee, 2010-present)
American Bar Association (Member, Family Law Section, 2005-present)
Select Publications
Report: 1,324 Reasons for Marriage Equality in New York State, project co-coordinator and lead drafter, with Ross Levi, Esq., for New York City Bar Association and Empire State Pride Agenda, June 8, 2007.
Children’s Best Interests: Divorce Law, Same-Sex Marriage Debate, N.Y.L.J., Mar. 23, 2006 (with Robert Stephan Cohen).
Before Paris Burned: Race, Class, and Male Homosexuality on the Chicago South Side, 1935–1960, in CREATING A PLACE FOR OURSELVES: LESBIAN, GAY & BISEXUAL COMMUNITY HISTORIES 119 (Brett Beemyn ed., Routledge 1997).
Professional Presentations
Marriage Equality – The Paper Anniversary: Updates on Case Law & Developments, CLE Presentation, New York City Bar Association (June 25, 2012).
Marriage Equality in New York: The New Legal Landscape for Same-Sex Couples, CLE Presentation, New York City Bar Association (November 9, 2011).
What Passage of the Marriage Equality Law Will Mean for Same-Sex Couples in New York: A Multidisciplinary Forum, CLE Presentation, New York City Bar Association (October 4, 2011).
Same-Sex Marriage in New York – What Every Practitioner Needs to Know, CLE Presentation, New York State Bar Association (September 9, 2011).
Presentation regarding (i) impact on same-sex spouses of federal Defense of Marriage Act and inconsistent recognition of same-sex marriages outside New York state, and (ii) related planning issues, New York City Bar Association, Matrimonial Law Committee (September 8, 2011).
Planning for Same-Sex & Unmarried Couples: Probate, Property & Family Law, CLE Presentation, New York City Bar Association (April 28, 2009).
Beyond Ozzie & Harriet: Representing Non-Traditional Couples in the Paterson Era, CLE Presentation, New York Law School (November 21, 2008).
Culturally Competent Lawyering for At-Risk LGBTQ Youth: Advocating Effectively in Foster Care & Juvenile Detention Systems; Chair, CLE Program, New York City Bar Association (May 15, 2008).
Love Among the DOMAs: Conflict of Law Issues Affecting New York LGBT Families & Domestic Partners; CLE Presentation, New York City Bar Association (May 22, 2007).
Honors and Awards
Selected as Super Lawyers Rising Star for 2011
Toni Ann Grande
Phone: 212.231.2683
Email: tfgrande@drexelgrande.com
ToniAnn’s practice encompasses all aspects of family law, including divorce, equitable distribution of business and financial assets, negotiation and drafting of prenuptial and postnuptial agreements, and child custody and support matters.
After graduating from New York University School of Law, ToniAnn began her legal career as a law clerk to the Honorable Max Rosenn of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. She practiced commercial litigation at Sullivan & Cromwell LLP before leaving in 2004 to pursue her dream of representing individuals in their personal legal matters. Prior to forming Drexel Grande, ToniAnn spent six years practicing at Cohen Lans LLP, a highly-regarded matrimonial boutique, where her practice concentrated in complex matrimonial and family law litigation and the negotiation and drafting of prenuptial, postnuptial and separation agreements.
Admissions
New York State
Education
New York University School of Law, J.D. 2000, cum laude, Florence Allen Scholar
Brown University, B.A. 1996
Associations & Memberships
New York State Bar Association Family Law Section
New York City Bar Association
Peter Cardella Senior Citizens’ Center, Chair, Board of Directors
Honors and Awards
Selected as Super Lawyers Rising Star for 2012
Sarah R. Gersowitz
Phone: 646.873.4019
Email: sgersowitz@drexelgrande.com
Sarah’s practice includes all aspects of family law, including divorce, equitable distribution of business and financial assets, spousal and child support, contested child custody cases, and prenuptial and postnuptial agreements.
Prior to joining Drexel Grande in November 2011, Sarah was a post-graduate legal intern at The Trust for Public Land in New York. While at Fordham Law, Sarah was Symposium Co-Editor for the Fordham Urban Law Journal.
Admissions
New York State
Education
Fordham University School of Law, J.D. 2011
Barnard College, Columbia University, B.A. 2005, summa cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa
Associations & Memberships
New York State Bar Association
New York City Bar Association
Park Slope Civic Council, Trustee and Co-Chair of the Outreach Committee
The Berkeley Carroll School, Alumni Council Member
William P. Gross
Phone: 646.205.7093
Email: wgross@drexelgrande.com
Will’s practice includes all aspects of family law, including divorce, equitable distribution of business and financial assets, spousal and child support, contested child custody cases, and prenuptial and postnuptial agreements.
Prior to joining Drexel Grande in April of 2013, Will spent five years as an associate in the commercial litigation department of Milbank Tweed Hadley & McCloy.
While at the University of Texas School of Law, Will served as an attorney ad litem for children through the Children’s Rights Clinic.
Admissions
New York State
Southern District of New York
Education
University of Texas School of Law, J.D. with distinction, 2007
University of Virginia, B.A. 2001, summa cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa
Associations & Memberships
New York State Bar Association
New York City Bar Association