EASTON THOMPSON & KASPEREK LLP

Business Services > Legal Services

Who We Are
Easton Thompson Kasperek Shiffrin LLP (a.k.a. “ETKS”) is a law firm dedicated to criminal defense, with a growing practice in civil rights litigation. The members of ETKS have a combined 120 years of experience specializing in these areas. No personal injury. No real estate. Only defending our clients’ constitutional rights.

Our dedication and collective experience enable us to provide the highest level of representation to our criminally accused clients. In addition, partner Rhian Jones has vast experience in family law and divorce litigation, as well as in representing individuals accused of child abuse, child neglect, and domestic violence.

What We Do
Foremost, we defend people charged with crimes, who are under investigation and about to be charged, or who have already been convicted of a crime.

Our first contact is normally a phone call from someone who has been arrested or from a family member. That person is scared and does not understand what will happen next. But we do. And we take the time to explain to each client or potential client what he or she is facing and what to expect.

As our client, you can expect our complete dedication, knowledge, and personal attention. You can expect to receive a zealous defense.

What We Believe
Every member of our firm holds a set of core beliefs about how we should represent our clients.

We believe our team approach sets us apart.

We believe that sustained excellence in the practice of law requires more than individual effort and skill; it requires the support and collective strength of a team. Working as a team enables us to pool our resources. We meet regularly to discuss our cases and share our knowledge and experience to best serve our clients’ interests. This team approach is essential to our identity and to the successful representation of our clients.

It also allows us to represent clients across New York State. Our members have handled some of the most complicated criminal cases in this region, both at trial and on appeal. Collectively, we have trial and appellate experience in most counties in upstate New York. Individually, we could not provide this level of regional representation at a feasible cost.

We believe in standing up to the government.

We step in between the government and our clients. To get to you, the government has to get through us. Fortunately, we have two powerful allies – the United States and New York State Constitutions. Constitutional protections ensure the liberty and, sometimes, the lives of our clients. We believe deeply in the importance of constitutional rights and the essential protections they provide. Because constitutional rights do not enforce themselves, their continued vitality requires the assistance of dedicated and skilled defenders.

We believe in representing clients no matter the challenge.

This means we do not shy away from publicly charged cases. In fact, the opposite is true. The more the public calls for a client to be punished, the more determined we are to fight back and ensure that client’s rights are protected. We believe we must be both the shield and the sword for our clients.

We believe that to represent a client well we must get to know him or her.

In our opinion, great criminal defense attorneys understand the client’s point of view and then formulate an appropriate defense based on it. We take the time to learn about our clients. This is the reason we intentionally limit the number of clients we represent. We believe our success comes through focusing on the individuals we represent, rather than on numbers.

We believe in hard work.

Our passion for what we do drives us to work hard on each case. Good intentions do not win cases. Cases are won by hard work and follow-through. We follow through. We strive to achieve the best possible results for every client without exception. We understand your liberty, property, and finances are hanging in the balance, and we are sworn to protect you to the best of our ability.

We believe knowledge is the power of our representation.

We strive to be among the most knowledgeable members of the criminal defense bar. Our passion and hard work complement our knowledge because it means that we research, brief, and argue a wide range of issues.

As you can see from the attorney profiles, we do not keep this knowledge to ourselves. We often present what we know and have learned to other attorneys through Continuing Legal Education presentations, community groups, and our blog. We do this because we believe having a well-informed bar and a well-informed community is the best way to honor our constitutions, promote due process, and protect the rights of all.