About Us
Perry Law is built on a foundation of excellence, innovation, and collaboration. The firm leverages its boutique structure to produce agile legal strategies and cutting-edge solutions. Our elite team of lawyers are fierce litigators from diverse backgrounds, united by their commitment to securing the most favorable outcomes for our clients.
Founded by E. Danya Perry, Perry Law brings together lawyers with a reputation for tough and successful advocacy during the hardest moments of their clients’ lives—be it fighting bet-the-company disputes, challenging wrongful termination and workplace discrimination, standing up to ruinous false accusations, or confronting sexual abusers. With vast experience in federal and state government, private practice, and academia, Perry Law attorneys are well equipped to represent companies and individuals in criminal matters, high-stakes government and internal investigations, regulatory inquiries, civil litigation, and appeals. The firm often secures favorable resolutions before a complaint is ever filed—in large part because its veteran trial lawyers are always ready to prevail in court at a moment’s notice.
Eschewing a “one-size-fits-all” approach, the firm develops highly-tailored strategies and investigative techniques on behalf of its clients to deliver proactive solutions. Our breadth of experience and innovative thinking allows our lean client teams to go toe-to-toe with New York’s biggest law firms while at the same time prioritizing results instead of revenue, producing better outcomes with fewer unnecessary costs.
“Danya goes for the jugular. She’s not hesitant, and she’s not shy…I also work with Peter Gwynne, who is very aggressive and very fastidious. Danya is the hammer while Peter is covering my flanks by making sure all the Is were dotted and Ts crossed.”
The Perry Law team has a collective decades-long track record of success. Founding Partner Danya Perry is one of New York City’s foremost litigators in both civil and criminal cases. A former federal prosecutor and New York Deputy Attorney General known for her courtroom presence and strategic thinking, Danya is just as tenacious standing up to perpetrators of sexual abuse as she is defending her white collar and CJA clients in criminal matters. Danya has partnered with Peter Gwynne, a commercial litigator and former Naval Aviator with decades of experience in high-stakes commercial arbitration and civil litigation. The team features Joan Illuzzi-Orbon, a former senior official in the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office, who has successfully prosecuted countless high-profile and groundbreaking cases over her storied career, as well as former United States Congresswoman and Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Rice. The entire Perry Law team shares the same commitment to excellence, and each attorney brings their own deep experience and success across government service, criminal defense, civil litigation, and academia.
Making international headlines, Ms. Perry represented Michael Cohen in a trio of historic cases involving former president Donald Trump—including the hush-money criminal trial and the civil fraud trial. Ms. Perry and the Perry Law team prepped Mr. Cohen for his extensive testimony as the star witness in the criminal trial against Mr. Trump, which was the primary pillar of the prosecution’s case in the unprecedented and historic conviction of the former President. Ms. Perry also led Mr. Cohen’s defense in a lawsuit brought against him by the former President for more than half a billion in damages. With a motion to dismiss pending, and Ms. Perry’s deposition of Mr. Trump only one business day away, he voluntarily dismissed the case.
The firm also won motions to dismiss breach of fiduciary duty claims against the former Vice Chairman of NBC Universal in a case seeking over $150 million and sexual assault claims against the former chairman of Apollo Global Management. Other recent wins include acquittals, declinations, downgraded charges, and, in many instances, avoiding prosecution entirely for individuals and companies facing government investigation and criminal charges. Our young firm and its attorneys have already racked up several prestigious awards, including out-of-the-gate Chambers rankings, NY City & State features, BestLawyers, and Benchmark Litigation recognition. Perry Law is quickly growing into a legal powerhouse, with offices in New York and Washington, D.C.
Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion
As a proud U.S. Small Business Administration-certified Woman-Owned Small Business, Perry Law is committed to empowering skilled female attorneys. To that end, Perry Law has achieved a significant inclusion milestone in that half of its lawyers and nearly all its senior attorneys are women. This gender balance is just one aspect of the firm’s broader commitment to diversity, which includes a workforce comprising individuals of varied races, ethnicities, genders, sexual orientations, faiths, and socioeconomic backgrounds, as well as veterans. It is this broad array of perspectives and experiences that makes our roster of professionals so powerfully effective.
Perry Law’s commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion extends not only within our firm but also to our interactions with clients and throughout the broader legal community. We strive to provide equal opportunities and representation to individuals from all backgrounds, ensuring that our services are accessible and inclusive. The firm’s commitment to service—including through our extensive pro bono, public interest, civil rights, criminal justice reform, and social impact work—attracts community-minded attorneys who seek to use the law as an affirmative tool to improve access to justice and advance inalienable rights.