Underberg & Kessler Celebrates 100 Years of Service
- Underberg & Kessler
- 1 day ago
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Updated: 1 hour ago
Underberg & Kessler LLP, a full-service law firm based in Rochester with offices in Buffalo, Canandaigua, and Geneseo, proudly marks its 100th anniversary in 2026. For a century, the firm has delivered comprehensive, client-focused legal services to businesses, municipalities, not-for-profit organizations, and individuals throughout Rochester, Western New York, and across New York State.
The firm’s origins trace back to 1926, when respected attorneys Joseph Goldstein and Manuel D. Goldman formed a partnership in the Union Trust Building at 19 West Main Street in downtown Rochester. For more than 25 years, Goldstein and Goldman remained a two-attorney practice, with Joe and
Manny dedicating long hours to client service and community involvement. In 1952, the firm expanded when Harry D. Goldman, Manny’s brother, joined as a partner, prompting a name change to Goldstein Goldman and Goldman. That same year, Irving L. Kessler, recognized for his leadership in real estate law, joined the firm as an associate. Five years later, Irv became a partner, and the firm was renamed Goldstein, Goldman and Kessler.
In 1963, Alan J. Underberg, an accomplished corporate practitioner, joined the partnership, leading to the firm’s next name change: Goldstein, Goldman, Kessler and Underberg.
Continued growth throughout the following decade culminated in the firm’s relocation in the early 1970s to the newly opened Chase Lincoln First Tower, where it became the building’s first non-banking tenant. By July 1988, with more than 30 attorneys, the firm adopted the name Underberg & Kessler LLP. The firm remained in the Chase Lincoln First Tower until relocating its headquarters in 2005 to Legacy Tower (formerly Bausch & Lomb Place), where it remains today.
Through every phase of growth and change, the firm’s mission has remained constant: to build and sustain trusted, long-standing client relationships.
“Today, Underberg & Kessler stands on the shoulders of generations of attorneys who believed in putting clients first,” said former Managing Partner Anna E. Lynch. “Our practice is built on relationships, many spanning multiple generations. We have worked carefully to ensure that the highest standards of legal expertise, work ethic, and client loyalty are reinforced and continue into the future.”
Throughout its history, Underberg & Kessler attorneys have advised individuals, families, and many of Rochester’s most well-known institutions, including dozens of not-for-profit organizations, banks, health care providers, municipalities, and private and public companies. The firm’s legacy also includes alumni who served in prominent judicial roles, among them Harry D. Goldman, Presiding Justice of the New York State Supreme Court Appellate Division Fourth Department, Patricia E. Gallaher, who served as a Monroe County Family Court Judge and Acting Justice of the Monroe County Supreme Court, John C. Ninfo, II, a retired Federal Bankruptcy Judge for the Western District of New York, and Richard A. Dollinger, a former judge of the New York Court of Claims and an Acting Justice of the 7th Judicial District Supreme Court in Monroe County.
Reflecting on the milestone, current Managing Partner Patrick L. Cusato stated, “We celebrate 100 years of service with immense pride and gratitude. This anniversary reflects the firm’s enduring commitment to excellence, perseverance, and dedication to our clients. We remain deeply committed to honoring the legacy and culture established by our founders for generations to come.”
As Underberg & Kessler enters its second century, the firm remains committed to providing strategic, practical, and results-driven legal services tailored to today’s evolving challenges. The firm continues to advise individuals, businesses, and institutions across a broad range of practice areas, including corporate and business, commercial lending, construction, creditors’ rights, cannabis, environmental, estates and trusts, family, health care, labor and employment, litigation, municipal, real estate and finance, and tax law — with the same focus on integrity, responsiveness, and partnership that has defined its first 100 years.