Scott J. Kreppein Attorney-at-Law

I regularly practice before the U.S Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit and New York State's appellate courts.  I have on occasion worked pro hac vice in other jurisdictions, and would be open to doing so on cases with interesting issues or of regional or national significance.

One of my professional goals is to practice more before the U.S. Supreme Court.  I have petitioned for and defended against petitions for certiorari, and would love the opportunity to do more of that work, as well as to work on merits or amicus briefs, including on a pro bono basis for deserving charities or good causes.

Constitutional and civil rights work can be an extremely rewarding area where I often have the opportunity to deal with important issues and address intriguing or cutting edge legal questions.   

Over the years, I have litigated extensively over the interpretation and application of the Equal Protection Clause, Due Process Clauses, First Amendment, and other constitutional issues; and have also developed a fairly deep understanding of the major federal and New York State antidiscrimination laws.  

I provide outside counsel services for many local governments throughout Long Island, as well as some school districts.  My career has fed a strong interest in how government works both in theory and practice, and at times enabled me to not only provide sound guidance on the law but also offer decision-makers a nonpartisan, rational and moderate perspective when addressing sympathetic, sensitive or policy-oriented situations.

I provide high quality representation before federal and state courts and administrative agencies, as well as through occasional consulting work.  In particular, I have a strong background with zoning, land use, and real property related matters, including environmental issues. 

While most of my work in this area is for the government, and I would have a conflict in taking adverse claims against most of the local governments on Long Island, I would be interested in assisting private clients outside of Long Island, particularly civil rights claims against the City of New York (which I did a fair amount of early in my career).

The most lucrative portion of my practice consists of real estate transactions and litigation, usually involving multi-family residential or commercial properties. 

My private clients include non-institutional lenders, investors, developers, brokerages, appraisal firms, condominium sponsors, homeowners associations, contractors, engineers, architects, and others.  I also do related work for governments, as well as insurance carriers when complex property issues are intertwined with covered claims. 

Aside from borrowing against or buying and selling properties, I regularly handle real estate related litigation, including quiet title actions, contract disputes, boundary-line disputes, and other equitable or declaratory actions.  I also have experience with administrative agency matters, including licensing or disciplinary issues with the Department of State, and housing discrimination matters before the New York State Division of Human Rights and U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Tort law was my first niche practice area.  I received both a first year award and graduation prize for it during law school.  Then, early in my career, I worked with some of the best trial attorneys in the country, regularly tried cases in (and against) the City, and gained a lot of interesting experience with mass torts and class actions.  

As my practice has evolved over time, personal injury work has always remained part of it, either with an occasional plaintiff's-side case or, more often, helping insurers and municipalities resolve catastrophic injury or highly complex claims.  

There are many attorneys, some of them very talented, who have a volume personal injury practice and can efficiently handle routine day-to-day cases.  However, I would be very interested in taking on high value cases where a more individualized approach is appropriate.  More often, I am on the side of preventing multi-million dollar verdicts, and am very good at that, but can use those same skills to help maximize the recovery for deserving individuals or groups who have suffered injuries due to someone else's negligent or wrongful conduct.