Officers and Trustees

Officers & Trustees
2022-2023

Officers

William I. Strasser
BCBA President

Laura C. Sutnick
President-Elect

Cynthia A. Petrowsky
1st Vice President

James B. Seplowitz
 2nd Vice President

Geoffrey D. Mueller
Treasurer 

Nicole G. McDonough
Secretary


Jason E. Foy
Immediate Past President

Jacqueline S. Guenego
Executive Director

Trustees


Frances E. Barto


Craig P. Bossong


Kelly Castor



Louis L. D’Arminio



Jessica A. Gomperts


Jason R. Finkelstein


Ira C. Kaplan


Kevin P. Kelly


Joseph L. Mecca Jr.


Sheila O’Shea-Criscione


Victoria R. Pekerman


Jason T. Shafron


John L. Shahdanian II

Asaad K. Siddiqi


Andrew G. Toulas

David Edelberg
NJSBA Trustee

Gregory C. Ein
YL Trustee

Matthew M. Nicodemo
Young Lawyers’ Division President


Lucy Vargues
Assistant Director

William I. Strasser, BCBA president 2023

BCBA 125th President

William I. Strasser

Bill Strasser was sworn in as the 125th President of the Bergen County Bar Association at its Annual Meeting on March 30, 2023.

Bill is the Principal of the Firm of Strasser & Associates, P.C., located in Paramus New Jersey. Bill’s practice
is primarily focused in the Chancery Division and has been for the majority of his career.

Bill received his undergraduate degree from Seton Hall University in 1971 and his law degree from Seton Hall University in 1974. Upon graduation from law school, he commenced his legal career at the firm of Donohue, Donohue, Costenbader and Beck in Nutley, New Jersey and became the Managing Partner of that firm in 1978, when the firm’s name was changed to Donohue, Donohue, Costenbader & Strasser. Bill continued his partnership with that firm until 1994, when he formed Strasser & Associates, P.C. and moved the firm to Paramus, New Jersey.

Bill is admitted to practice before the courts of the State New Jersey, the State of New York, the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey, the United States District Court for the District of New York, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second, Third and Fourth Circuits and the Supreme Court of the United States.

Bill’s primary interest in the Chancery Division arose in 1983 when he represented the nephew of Claire
Conroy in the seminal case of “In the Matter of Claire Conroy”, the first case in the country that sought termination of artificial feeding under certain medical conditions. Bill had the privilege of arguing the case before the Trial Court, Appellate Division and New Jersey Supreme Court. The case has been cited by the United States Supreme Court and resulted in the drafting and eventual enactment of the Living Will and
Advanced Directive statute in New Jersey.

In 1986 Bill had the privilege of being appointed to the New Jersey Commission on Legal and Ethical Problems in the Delivery of Healthcare. Bill was a contributor to the original Living Will statute and assisted in the drafting of same as a follow-up to the Conroy case.
Bill was elected a Trustee of the Bergen County Bar Association in 2012. He was elected an Officer of the Association in 2018 and has held the offices of Secretary, Treasurer, Second VP, First VP and President-Elect. Since 2012, Bill has served as a Co-Chair of the Chancery Committee of the Bergen County Bar Association and has moderated its yearly Chancery Seminar. Bill is also a member of the New Jersey State Bar Association.

Bill was appointed by the Supreme Court of the State of New Jersey to serve on the District IIA Ethics Committee. Bill served on the Committee from 2012 through 2017 and as its Chairman for the term 2017 through 2019. He extended his service on the Committee for an additional year and a half based on the pandemic and concluded his service
in 2021.

Bill has also served as a lecturer for the New Jersey Institute for Continuing
Legal Education, and in addition to the Bergen County Bar seminars, has participated in numerous panels. He has also been designated as a Super Lawyer since 2012 and has also been chosen to be listed in the Bar of Preeminent Lawyers since 2008.

Bill has served as a volunteer in the New Jersey State Volunteer Parole Program. In the course of his legal career, Bill has had the honor of arguing five cases before the New Jersey Supreme Court and has in excess of 12 reported decisions.

In addition to his legal activities, Bill is was also very active in the community. Bill has previously served as the President of the Upper Saddle River Soccer Association, President of the Upper Saddle River Baseball Association, served as a Trustee of the Upper Saddle River Basketball Association and has
coached numerous recreational and travel teams over the years. Bill was inducted into the Northern Highlands Regional High School Hall of Fame in 2018 for his successful legal battle to construct light towers on the athletic fields on the high school campus.

Bill also serves as Legal Counsel to Church of the Presentation in Upper Saddle River and is also honored
to serve as a Trustee of the Church. He currently serves as Chairman of the Finance Committee and assists with numerous building projects that are undertaken by the Church.

In the course of Bill’s career he has served on a number bank boards, served as Vice President of the Leukemia Society of New Jersey and has devoted his time to numerous pro bono activities.

Bill and his wife Marianne reside in Upper Saddle River and will celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary this year. They are the proud parents of four sons; Michael and his wife Jennifer, Gregory and his wife Allison, Christopher and his wife Kristin, and Daniel and his fiancée Dawn. Bill and Marianne are blessed
with seven beautiful grandchildren; Maxximus, Olivia, Jaxxson, Brayden, Rylee, Henley and Lilliana.