Attorney Profiles

Maria Coffinas

Maria Coffinas practices in all areas of Matrimonial and Family Law to which she has focused her entire professional career.  With her calm and confident demeanor, Maria is a skilled negotiator with a high rate of favorable and comprehensive out-of-court settlements, even in the most emotionally charged and difficult cases.  A skilled trial lawyer with over 25 years of extensive court room and trial experience, Maria has earned a well deserved reputation of the highest quality work, a superb knowledge of the law, the most individualized attention to her clients and cases and for the highest ethical standards.

Early on in her career, Maria's legal work on behalf of her client (a mother who faced a challenge to the custody of her children) established a bedrock legal principle of family law, namely that children have the right to independent and impartial counsel of their own at court proceedings concerning their custody and living arrangements.   This landmark case has helped secure the rights of children all across New York State.  However, more importantly to her, Maria's work on this case allowed this client, this mother, to maintain custody of her children.  This former client keeps in touch with and still thanks Maria to this day.

Maria is a member of the New York State Bar Association (Family Law Committee), the American Bar Association (Family Law Section), the Brooklyn Bar Association (Family Law Section) and the Brooklyn Women's Bar Association (Family and Matrimonial Law Committee).  She has lectured on Matrimonial and Family Law to her peers and law to school students.

Maria received her law degree from Brooklyn Law School in 1984 and her undergraduate degree from Brooklyn College in 1981.  She is admitted to practice in the State of New York and the Federal Courts for the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York.

Maria is happily married with three sons.  She is the daughter of the beloved late Honorable Nicholas Coffinas, former Administrative Judge of the Criminal Court, Kings County.   Her sister Eleni Coffinas, a partner at the law firm of Sullivan, Papain, McGrath & Cannavo, is one of the most successful medical malpractice trial litigators in the State of New York.  Her sister Gigi Coffinas is employed by the Office of Court Administration.  Her husband practices law in the field of criminal defense in the firm of Clifford E. Lazzaro & Associates.

Meredith A. Lusthaus

Meredith A. Lusthaus practices in all areas of Family and Matrimonial Law to which she has focused her entire legal career.  Meredith is an aggressive litigator and fierce negotiator with nearly a decade and a half of legal experience inside and outside of the courtroom.  Meredith has earned the well deserved respect of the bench and bar and a reputation as a highly skilled and results oriented litigator.  Her clients have said that she is "extremely knowledgeable" a "tough" but "tactful" litigator who can "easily explain complex legal issues in a way that laypersons can well understand" and who is "more than willing to meet any reasonable request of her client."

Meredith's legal work on behalf of her client (a husband who wanted his fair share of the equity in the marital home even though he obtained an out-of-state divorce) helped establish the New York State precedent that an out-of-state divorce does not bar the distribution of the property of the parties held within New York State.  Meredith's work in this matter secured her client's interest in his property and brought to conclusion his five year inter-state quest for a divorce and equitable distribution.  Meredith keeps in touch with this forever grateful client to this day.

Meredith is the past president of the Brooklyn Women's Bar Association and was awarded that association's highest honor, the Sybil Hart Kooper Award, in 2009.  Meredith is the former two year co-chair of the Matrimonial Law Committee of the Women's Bar Association of the State of New York, the former multi-year chair of the Brooklyn Women's Bar Association's Family and Matrimonial Law Committee, a member of the New York State Bar Association (Family Law Committee), the American Bar Association (Family Law Section), and the Brooklyn Bar Association (Family Law Section).  She has lectured on Matrimonial and Family Law for the National Business Institute and for the Women's Bar Association of the State of New York.  She has received numerous Proclamations and Citations from the Brooklyn Borough President for her devotion to justice and her contributions to the legal profession and society.

Meredith received her law degree from the George Mason University School of Law in 1996 and her undergraduate degree from the American University in1993.  She is admitted to practice in the States of New York and New Jersey and in the Supreme Court of the United States of America.

Meredith is happily married with two small children.  Her brother Russell Lusthaus and father Stephen Lusthaus are partners in the law firm of Lusthaus & Lusthaus, PLLC  where their practice focuses on complex wills, estate planning, probate work, real estate and landlord / tenant law.  Her sister-in-law, Julianne C. Lusthaus is a partner in the law firm of Einbinder & Dunn, LLP where her practice focuses on franchise law litigation.