Jamestown Bar Association

President: Matthew Mazgaj

Matt Mazgaj brings a mix of litigation and transactional experience from “big law” stints in Washington, D.C. and Western New York. Prior to joining Marcus & Shapira in 2019, Matt practiced at the large international law firm Steptoe & Johnson LLP in Washington, DC, and the large regional law firm Phillips Lytle LLP in Buffalo and Jamestown, New York.

Matt’s experience includes jury and bench trial cases involving breach of contract, fraud, insurance coverage and intellectual property cases in both state and federal court. Matt also works with individuals, companies, banks and governmental entities on a range of transactional issues from organizing and structuring financial assistance through industrial development agency transactions to residential, commercial and industrial real estate and commercial financing transactions.

Matt participated in a pro bono rotation at the Legal Aid Society of Washington, D.C., representing clients in family law cases in the District of Columbia’s Family Court system, assisting clients in custody and child support cases.

Matt graduated with honors from Georgetown University Law Center in 2012, where he was an editor on the Georgetown International Environmental Law Review and on the Dean’s List at the Center for Transnational Legal Studies in London, U.K. He earned a B.A. Degree in Biology with honors from Washington & Jefferson College.

Matt is admitted to practice in Pennsylvania, New York, Washington, D.C., the Western District of New York and the District Court for the District of Columbia. Upstate New York Super Lawyers recognized Matt as a Rising Star in 2017 and 2018.

Program Director: Michael C. Panebianco

Michael has returned to the Southern Tier, a place he has called home his entire life, to represent injured workers. Michael is passionate about counseling injured workers because his father suffered a career ending work injury many years ago. As a result, he has a keen understanding of the physical, emotional, and financial toll that a serious physical injury may have on a family.

Michael will also focus his practice on criminal defense. He understands the negative effect that a criminal conviction can have on a person’s life. In law school, he interned at The Center for Community Alternatives, where he counseled individuals in an effort to help them overcome the barriers to employment and education that they faced due to their prior criminal convictions.

Michael worked as a law clerk with Lewis and Lewis, P.C. during the Summer of 2015, and he is excited to return as an associate attorney.  

In his free time, Michael enjoys golfing, fishing, and spending time with his friends and family. 

Education:

• Bachelor of Arts: Political Science, SUNY Fredonia, 2013
• Bachelor of Arts:  Economics, SUNY Fredonia, 2013
• Juris Doctor: Syracuse University College of Law, 2016
  

Secretary/Treasurer: John I. LaMancuso

John I. LaMancuso was born and raised in Western New York.  He advises individual, business, and municipal clients in various legal matters and disputes in Chautauqua, Cattaraugus, Allegany, and Erie Counties. Mr. LaMancuso has substantial personal injury experience representing individuals seriously injured in car accidents, work accidents, falls and other incidents on construction sites, slips, trips, and falls on defective premises, dog bites and attacks, and sporting events and recreational activities.

Active in his community, Mr. LaMancuso is a member of the Jamestown Kiwanis Club and the Chautauqua Region Community Foundation and is co-chair of the Professionals Committee of the United Way of Southern Chautauqua County.  He resides in the Southern Tier with his wife and their two children.

​​​​JBA Officers

Vice President: Kristin Lee Yaw

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