It has been reported that Mayor Adams will nominate Randy Mastro as the city’s next corporation counsel. Leading New York City’s 850-lawyer Law Department is an important position. Knowing Randy for more than three decades going back before I was the city’s public advocate, and having worked closely with him over most of the past decade since I became executive director of Citizens Union, I know there is no one better for the job.
I know firsthand how great a lawyer he is, having been represented by Randy over the years in several cases challenging local and state government actions that threatened constitutional and civil rights. Randy is considered one of the best litigators in the country because he is that good. And he is also a person of the highest character and integrity who is deeply committed to public service.
Some City Council members have announced they would oppose his nomination, without vetting his background, holding hearings on his candidacy, or, for that matter, ever meeting him. That is not how a Council confirmation process should work.
So I want to tell you five things about Randy Mastro that people should know before making up their minds.
1. Randy is a life-long Democrat. He was the highest-ranking Democrat in the Giuliani administration. He worked pro bono to represent Bill de Blasio, Bill Thompson, myself and others in challenging Mayor Bloomberg’s overturning of term limits; and he represented Bill Thompson, Letitia James and others in successfully challenging the Bloomberg administration’s plan to expand the Brooklyn House of Detention. Currently, he is representing New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy in litigation.
2. Randy chairs Citizens Union, New York’s oldest “good government” group, and was vice chair of the Legal Aid Society. As CU’s chair for the past eight years, he has been instrumental in our efforts to expand voting rights, increase civic engagement and ensure a more accountable, ethical government. Under his leadership, CU has advocated for more resources to be allocated to implement non-citizen voting in New York City, fought to bring early voting to New York State, and held the Trump administration accountable for their anti-democratic actions. Indeed, in 2020, he led CU’s board to make an endorsement in a presidential race for the first time in its 125-year history, supporting Joe Biden.
3. Randy represented peaceful protesters at Lafayette Square and 9/11 fallen firefighters’ families, pro bono. After peaceful racial justice protesters were assaulted by federal officers with tear gas and rubber bullets so Donald Trump could do a photo op across from the White House, Mastro sued President Trump, Attorney General Bill Barr and the other federal officials responsible on behalf of the protesters. A settlement was ultimately reached with the Biden administration to establish protocols to prevent such abuses in the future.
On behalf of 9/11 fallen firefighters’ families, he advocated to compel the firefighters union to release $70 million it raised for its widows and orphans fund but then chose to retain. The union ultimately agreed to distribute the funds to all fallen firefighters’ families, including same-sex couples, domestic partners and other family members, regardless of marital or child status.
4. Randy literally put his life on the line as deputy mayor. He faced La Cosa Nostra death threats for cleaning up the Fulton Fish Market and the private carting industry, resulting in the largest tax cut in city history — the elimination of the “Mob Tax” on waste hauling. Moreover, he led the charge on many other important issues, including the rights of same-sex couples, securing the passage of historic legislation providing sweeping domestic partnership protections.
5. Randy has done extensive constitutional and civil rights work. Randy won constitutional litigations reopening houses of worship closed for months by state officials during COVID and protecting “good government” groups from onerous donor disclosure requirements that would have chilled free speech. And his civil rights cases include representing a Black Long Island public school teacher who was fired for refusing to withdraw an assignment she had given her eighth-grade class on racism and successfully defending a Black newspaper delivery man against criminal trespass charges for delivering papers in a Manhattan apartment building.
In short, there’s a lot you need to know about Randy Mastro. We are fortunate that someone with his impressive accomplishments in the public and private sectors is ready and willing to serve New Yorkers again, no matter what the personal financial sacrifice. I therefore urge the City Council to consider his candidacy with an open mind. And when Council members actually get to know him, they are going to like him, a lot.
Gotbaum is a former NYC public advocate.