Wachtel & Masyr, LLP obtains dismissal of Grasso claims against Carl McCall

On August 29, 2006, Wachtel & Masyr, LLP obtained summary judgment on behalf of former New York state comptroller and democratic nominee for governor, H. Carl McCall, dismissing all claims by former NYSE Chairman Richard Grasso. Grasso sought to hold McCall partially responsible for claims brought against him by Attorney General Eliot Spitzer who alleged that Grasso's $190 million NYSE compensation package in 2003 was excessive. In an 11-page decision, Justice Charles Ramos of New York's Commercial Division in Manhattan wrote that Grasso "had failed to establish any special duty owed to him by Mr. McCall, or any specific misrepresentations made by McCall." The case received extensive press coverage and included the depositions of many high profile former directors of the NYSE, such as U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and former Secretary of State Madeline Albright. In commenting on the victory to the New York Times, Wachtel & Masyr founding partner William Wachtel, said: "There's no factual or legal basis to blame Carl McCall for anything. I'm only sorry it took so long to prove it."