Being energetic is ‘just the Paulino way’

Sitting still is just not in the cards for James M. Paulino II.

A skillful attorney involved in many ventures, at times he seems to follow Newton’s laws of motion and energy, already accomplishing so much in the five and a half years since he graduated from law school.

Paulino’s efforts are being recognized this week by the New York State Bar Association’s Young Lawyers Section, which will honor him with its Outstanding Young Lawyer Award on Wednesday during a luncheon in Manhattan where the association is conducting its weeklong annual meeting.

“On behalf of Faraci Lange, we’re very proud of Jim and being recognized like he has been by the state bar,” said Managing Partner Stephen G. Schwarz. “We do think it is well deserved. Jim has dedicated a lot of his free time to bar association-related activities and community activities supported by the bar and we’re thrilled he’s being recognized for this because his efforts have been extraordinary.”

The Outstanding Young Lawyer Award, presented annually, recognizes an attorney who has actively practiced less than 10 years and has a distinguished record of commitment to the finest traditions of the bar through public service and professional activities.

Paulino, an associate at Faraci Lange LLP, is a member of the Monroe County, New York State and American bar associations. He serves on the NYSBA Committee on Court Structure and Operations, chairing its subcommittee on e-filing. Last March, he presented a “Report on the Progress Toward Implementing Statewide Electronic Filing in New York Courts” to the NYSBA Executive Committee.

“I believe e-filing will benefit lawyers in terms of time and money, so I’m going to work to see it implemented throughout the state, including Monroe County,” Paulino said.

In 2010, he co-authored a report by the Advisory Group to the New York State-Federal Judiciary Council, “Harmonizing the Pre-Litigation Obligation to Preserve Electronically Stored Information in New York State and Federal Courts.”

Paulino, former chair of the Monroe County Bar Association’s Young Lawyers Section, also volunteers as a mediator and mentor for Rochester Teen Court; has served on the board at his high school alma mater, Charles Finney School; and is a member of the town of Irondequoit Zoning Board of Appeals.

“I like doing different things,” he said. “You can always make time for things you want to do. I come from a long line of energetic people. It’s just the Paulino way. If you have time and energy, you should do something constructive with it. My grandmother used to tell me that.”

MCBA Executive Director Mary Loewenguth said Paulino is also held in high regard by senior colleagues, something she said is not always the norm.

“We are very proud of Jimmy,” she said. “It is a well-deserved honor. He’s not alone. We have a group of young lawyers that are just unbelievable in terms in their engagement and commitment to the bar.”

She said Paulino was one of the early leaders that surfaced in the Young Lawyers Section, a section that has grown from about 50 to 60 members to more than 160 and expects to exceed 200 members by June 30, the end of the bar year.

Loewenguth said the Young Lawyers Section is very involved with the Rochester Teen Court and running the annual silent auction that helps support it.

“With Jimmy, there’s just a contagiousness to him,” she said. “New York state has a lot of great young attorneys so for Jimmy to receive this recognition, out of what I’m sure was a very competitive pool, I think really speaks to who Jimmy is, his success as both a volunteer and an attorney. It’s a proud day for Rochester that we boast yet another Outstanding Young Lawyer recipient.”

In fact, Western New York has been well represented in Outstanding Young Lawyer recipients this millennium with Catherine Cerulli (2001),  Bradley P. Kammholz (2002), Elizabeth A. Wolford (2003) and Laurie A. Giordano (2007), all from Rochester; and  John G. Horn (2004) and Joseph M. Hanna (2010), both of Buffalo.

Paulino, a native of Rochester, is a 2007 graduate, magna cum laude, of Notre Dame Law School, where he was a member of the ATLA and Barristers trial teams.

“I’ve always just assumed I was going to be a lawyer,” Paulino said. “Probably because I look up to my dad so much. Pop Paulino is an all-around amazing person.”

His father, James M. Paulino, is now semi-retired after serving more than 30 years as a deputy county attorney, handling child abuse and neglect cases.

“I remember going to his office as a kid,” Paulino said. “I remember his showing me around the courthouse and I remember being proud of the fact my dad was a lawyer, and especially by the type of work he did.”

His father is one of three attorneys Paulino said have had an influence on him. The other two are John Finnis of Notre Dame and Oxford, whom Paulino calls “one of the foremost living legal philosophers,” and former Chief Judge Judith S. Kaye, “who is the model New York state attorney.”

Paulino focuses his practice on commercial and real estate litigation, including insurance coverage, First Amendment religious freedom, education and employment matters, and real estate and construction law.

He said one of the most rewarding things in his career so far was to represent his former high school in a First Amendment matter.

“Litigation is fun and I find a variety of subject matters very interesting,” Paulino said. “And different types of cases bring different types of clients and different types of clients are very interesting. I’m fortunate to be working with such a great group of people and to have the world’s best legal assistant, Darla Hardman,” he added, also recognizing the attorneys at his previous firm, Ward Greenberg Heller & Reidy LLP; and his colleagues in the Young Lawyers Section.

“Doing great work with great people makes it easy,” Paulino said. “I think there is a better world out there and as attorneys, I think we have a responsibility to make sure we’re all headed in the right direction. There are little things we can do to make sure we’re part of the solution, as opposed to the problem.”

He was nominated for the award by his colleagues in the MCBA Young Lawyers Section, now chaired by Timothy P. Lyster, confidential law clerk to the Hon. Paul R. Warren, U.S. Bankruptcy Court.

“Jimmy is a great guy,” Lyster said. “He’s outgoing and I think he’s a natural leader. He has a great personality to lead and manage people.”

The section has a Nominations Committee, co-chaired by Kara Stoddart and Jessica Patrick, which selected Paulino and submitted nominating materials. The advisor to the committee is YSL Treasurer Christin Cornetta.

This award is not the first in Paulino’s young career. He is also the recipient of The Daily Record’s 2011 Up and Coming Attorneys Award and the Center for Youth’s Cuminale Youth Award on behalf of the MCBA Young Lawyers Section.

When he’s not working, Paulino enjoys hanging out with family and friends, listening to music, cooking and watching older movies and documentaries. He also likes to read, usually three books at any given time — something fiction, something historical and something scientific.

A self-proclaimed intellectual geek, one of the most influential books he has read is “Natural Law and Natural Rights,” written by Finnis, who was part of what attracted Paulino to Notre Dame.

Paulino received a bachelor’s in political science and philosophy, magna cum laude and phi beta kappa, in 2003 from the University of Rochester where he received the Joseph P. O’Hern Scholarship for Travel and Study in Europe. He received a master’s in political philosophy in 2005 from the University of York in England.

Paulino, who also likes to keep up on modern architecture, lives with his brother Zachary, a Navy veteran who he says is one of his best friends.