The Daily Record NY and the Rochester Business Journal have listed two Harris Beach Murtha attorneys among its 2026 Attorneys of the Year award honorees.
Scott D. Piper, co-leader of the firm’s Labor and Employment Practice Group, was a Leaders in Law honoree, while Brendan H. Ewing, a member of the Trusts and Estates Practice Group, as well as the Tax Practice Group and Tax Exempt Organizations and Nonprofits Industry Team, was an Up & Coming Lawyers honoree.
The Attorneys of the Year awards pay tribute to lawyers working to make the community stronger and advance the law profession. Awards are presented in the following categories: Lifetime Achievement, Civil Legal Services, In-House Counsel, Leaders in Law and Up and Coming Lawyers. View the full list of honorees who will be honored Nov. 16 at the Rochester Riverside Convention Center.
Scott and Brendan both answered questions about their legal work and their community work during the selection process. Scott said his most significant professional accomplishment was reaching his current role as co-leader of the Labor and Employment practice group while also serving in a general counsel capacity as chair of the firm’s Risk Management Committee.
“I grew up on a dairy farm outside Watertown, New York, and worked my way through college and law school entirely on my own,” Scott said. “Arriving at a point where I lead a major practice group while also protecting the firm internally and guiding attorneys through high-stakes situations reflects that effort.”
Brendan said he enjoys mentoring younger attorneys and law students, including a Villanova University law student here in Rochester that he meets with regularly.
“For me, it has been meaningful because I remember how uncertain the profession can look as a first-year law student,” he wrote. “Helping someone a few years behind me find a bit more direction than I had at that stage feels like a small but meaningful way to help the next generation of lawyers.”
Congratulations to Scott and Brendan for their selection!
Here’s more about the event and honorees. (Subscription may be required.)
